While Canadian marketers navigate summer vacation schedules, the savviest are already hard at work crafting holiday media strategies. The stakes couldn't be higher for brands, with 79% of consumers preferring to be cautious about their 2025 spending*. Q4 momentum—from Halloween through Boxing Day into January—demands more than repeating last year's playbook. It requires strategic media expansion to reach consumers throughout their extended decision journey.
Consumers are planning earlier and shopping with intention, creating both challenges and opportunities for brands and their agencies. How can brands reach consumers in the buying mindset and deliver discovery, delight and utility across the customer journey until “wish list” items drop into shopping carts? Marketers need solutions that perform at every stage of this extended process.
Campaign spoke with leading marketers about their winning strategies during retail’s most critical quarter.
Q: Every holiday season brings new consumer behaviours and pressures. As you look toward Holiday 2025, what's top-of-mind?
Rhonda Sydor, general manager, Canada, Coty
“For Holiday 2025, we are seeing a shift toward ‘intentional luxury’. Today’s shoppers want gifts that feel personalized, indulgent and meaningful. Digitally native consumers view beauty as an extension of self-identity, not just a splurge. To earn their loyalty, brands must craft a seamless, social-first journey; empower authentic advocates and creators through both organic and strategic partnerships, and root campaigns in culturally relevant moments that inspire next-gen gift givers.”
Matt Thompson, SVP, media planning, Starcom
“AI has shifted from hype to hands-on utility. Consumer expectations for personalization have evolved rapidly. It’s no longer enough for brands to simply target “holiday shoppers” with one generic message or experience. To win during Holiday 2025, brands must create seamless and connected experiences fueled by strong data across all channels and platforms.”
Nadia Giannantonio, associate director, marketing communications, The Campbell’s Company
“We are continuing to monitor how Canadians are shopping and what’s influencing their choices. People are being thoughtful about what goes in their carts. We’re also seeing continued growth of e-commerce—not just for convenience, but for comparison shopping, too. That’s why we’re investing and further expanding our digital shelf presence to ensure consumers can easily find Campbell’s products.”
Nick Pigott, interim director, creative strategy - international lead, Pinterest
“A key shift is the rising consumer demand for unique, personalized experiences. Pinterest data shows Gen Z and Millennials are celebrating more holiday moments, actively seeking fresh ideas for gifts, décor and festivities. I'm closely watching trends like our Pinterest Predicts ‘Fisherman Aesthetic’ which is gaining popularity, especially among younger audiences, with a focus on cable-knit sweaters and maritime fashion. Trending colours are also significant, influencing gifting, outfits, and decor. These insights, inspired by 2025 trends, could set the holiday tone and offer exciting opportunities for brand activations, from campaign creative to holiday products.”
Q: How do you balance tried-and-true tactics with new approaches?
Nadia Giannantonio, Campbell’s: “It starts with understanding the mindset of the holiday shopper: what they’re looking for, when they’re making decisions, and where they’re most engaged. We work closely with Spark Foundry to map out key decision points—that means continuing to invest in high-performing tactics like recipe-led inspiration and shoppable formats while also testing emerging retail media platforms, first-party data integration, or storytelling that taps into trending behaviours via social.
“By staying close to performance insights while keeping room for innovation, we’re able to meet shoppers where they are—whether they’re stocking up for a family meal, planning their next holiday gathering, or discovering last-minute ideas on their phones.”
Rhonda Sydor, Coty: “Our media strategy is a hybrid model that fuses proven reach channels with a dedicated test-and-learn fund for emerging formats. We build every campaign around broad-reach TV, social, and e-commerce, then sharpen it with data-driven personalization, high-impact retail, and agile experiments. A standout example is Coty’s Burberry Goddess franchise. When Pinterest introduced its ‘Goddess Complex’ Trend Badge, Coty Canada became the first Coty market globally to adapt our creative to the format.
“That precision-targeted experiment drove a 30% year-over-year lift in Burberry and Goddess searches and delivered engagement metrics well above category benchmarks—proof that smart, platform-specific risks can ignite new demand at key holiday decision moments without diluting brand equity.”
Matt Thompson, Starcom: “We start by identifying what has historically driven results before we look to emerging opportunities. While clients can be hesitant to divert spend from proven channels during such a high-stakes season, it is imperative that we test and learn to continue to drive growth.
“The key is to not treat innovation as a bolt-on. We purposely align emerging tactics with specific objectives, whether driving discovery earlier on, competing for share of mind throughout the season, or converting consumers at the last minute before Christmas.
“In 2024, we tested the Pinterest Premiere Spotlight takeover early in the season to prompt discovery. By doing so, we saw a significant shift in user behaviour with increased organic brand and product searches that sustained throughout the season and delivered stronger overall results for our Pinterest search campaign.”
Nick Pigott, Pinterest: “Embrace a multi-format mindset. Audiences really connect with a variety of content experiences throughout their journey, not just a single piece. Picking the right creative formats for each stage of your audience’s journey is what separates good campaigns from best-in-class ones. When planning, identify the right ad formats to activate based on your objectives.
“I always encourage brands to incorporate one new ad format in their campaign mix as an opportunity to test something new. We've got a number of new ad formats which provide fresh ways for creative storytelling—helping your audience discover, explore and shop easily this holiday season.”
Q: What elements drive the most effective and impactful campaigns on Pinterest during the holiday season?
Nadia Giannantonio, Campbell’s: “Pinterest plays a key role in our holiday strategy because it’s where inspiration turns into action, especially when it comes to meal planning and seasonal traditions. Over the years, we’ve seen consistent success by aligning with how people actually use the platform during the holidays: to discover, plan, and save ideas in advance.
“We make sure our creative is optimized for Pinterest—mobile friendly, visually rich, and aligned with the platform’s best practices. We use a mix of formats, from high-impact placements like Premiere Spotlight to interactive units like Quiz ads, all designed to drive engagement at key planning moments. Our Goldfish® Collages campaign showcased how embracing new ad formats on Pinterest can drive standout, relevant storytelling in a fresh and integrated way.
“Spark Foundry’s close partnership with Pinterest has allowed us to stay ahead of trends, test new features, and bring fresh thinking to each campaign.”
Rhonda Sydor, Coty: “Coty’s holiday campaigns on Pinterest succeed because they are built on three foundational pillars: deep consumer insights, aspirational creativity, and a full-funnel media strategy.
“First, we treat Pinterest as a premier discovery engine for gift inspiration, leveraging tools such as Pinterest Predicts, seasonal insight reports, and Holiday Trend events to help us identify emerging shopper behaviours and tailor our campaigns.
“Second, we design trend-forward visuals that mirror what Pinterest users are searching for. Whether it is a festive nail-art tutorial for Sally Hansen, or cruelty-free, clean beauty gifting guides for COVERGIRL, each execution speaks directly to seasonal intent and the platform’s aspirational, positive mindset.
“Finally, our always-on, full-funnel media approach uses Pinterest’s high-impact placements like Premiere Spotlights to seize purchase intent. By timing these against peak gifting searches, we ensure our holiday campaigns stand out and drive meaningful engagement.”
Matt Thompson, Starcom: “The most effective Pinterest holiday campaigns connect with cultural trends and reflect the platform’s unique role as a visual search engine and planning tool. The platform is uniquely positioned at the intersection of inspiration and intent as people come to Pinterest to plan, not just to browse, so campaigns that guide through storytelling and cultural relevance, rather than interrupt, tend to perform best from our perspective.
“One service-category client made a key strategic move to implement the new Collage Ads format on Pinterest in 2024. The creators were able to cut out elements from Pins and combine them to create visually engaging, shoppable content that allowed them to transform standard messaging into a more dynamic experience during the Holiday season. While strategically timing Spotlight Takeovers during critical shopping periods like Black Friday and Boxing Day, we ensured maximum visibility at moments of consumer decision-making to deliver significant brand lift and message association (+6 pts).”
Nick Pigott, Pinterest: “[Brands can] unlock better campaign results by using Pinterest's 4Cs of Creative Effectiveness. This creative framework, backed by research, helps brands understand the key creative elements that can drive incremental increases in media metrics like click-through and view-through rates. It's a helpful guide for making existing holiday content even better or crafting new holiday content for Pinterest.”
Q: How do you evaluate which platforms best drive both brand-building and sales results during the holidays?
Rhonda Sydor, Coty: “Platform selection starts with pinpointing the target audience and defining clear campaign goals. Through continuous test-and-learn, guided by brand- and sales-lift studies, we sharpen our media decisions for the future.
“Pinterest has consistently stood out for its collaborative measurement and high-intent visual discovery environment. This holiday season, we are deepening our partnership with a co-developed sales-lift study, arming us with the insights to drive even greater media efficiencies and omnichannel sales.”
Matt Thompson, Starcom: “We help clients evaluate platforms based on total business outcomes, blending brand lift, engagement, and sales/ROI performance to identify where media is driving conversions and future demand.
“Pinterest has become increasingly valuable in that mix during the holiday season because Pinners are planners who are actively seeking ideas, making it a prime space for brands to inspire early, drive mid-funnel action, and convert high-intent audiences with shoppable formats.”
Nick Pigott, Pinterest: “Pinterest's role in the holiday customer journey has never been more meaningful. Our high-intent users are already in planning mode, seeking inspiration and ready to shop, which gives brands a real edge. With advanced performance tools like Performance+ Creative, we’re making it easier for brands to scale content and we’re seeing impressive results—like an average 14% increase in conversion rate and 9% lower cost-per-action**. The journey from inspiration to purchase feels seamless, thanks to personalized recommendations and shoppable content. Pinterest's uniquely positive environment builds brand trust and purchase intent. When performance matters most, these qualities help brands turn holiday moments into meaningful business growth."
Q: What local trends or cultural insights have shifted your approach, and how do you tailor campaigns for Canadian shoppers?
Matt Thompson, Starcom: “Despite the surge in e-commerce, many Canadian shoppers still prefer to shop in-store. However, store visits are now strategic, not routine. Shoppers often arrive having already done their research online, with mobile wishlists, AI agents, comparison reviews and influencer recommendations.
“Our strategies reflect this evolving behaviour by showing up with inspiration early in the season, when online browsing and deal-hunting are at their peak. As the season progresses, we remain agile to drive both in-store and online demand through personalized messaging. In the final days, we double down on in-store impact to capture last-minute gift seekers after most online shipping windows have closed.”
Rhonda Sydor, Coty: “We are seeing holiday shopping kick off earlier each year as shoppers turn to digital-first discovery while hunting for value-driven promotions. As in-store shopping also remains strong, we ensure to create full-funnel campaigns to maximize our investment, embrace cultural values, and drive conversion while delivering value-driven experiences for our consumers."
Q: What’s one piece of advice or a best practice that’s essential for cracking Holiday performance in today’s environment?
Matt Thompson, Starcom: “Campaign success during the holidays won’t come from shouting louder; it’ll come from brands showing up smarter, faster, and more meaningfully. It’s about anticipating needs, not just promoting products. This means offering inspiration wrapped in emotion, guidance throughout their shopping journey, and value at the exact moment someone is ready to decide.”
Nick Pigott, Pinterest: “My advice: start early! Pinterest users kick off their holiday planning up to five months ahead, so being present early means your brand catches shoppers while they’re most inspired and ready to buy. This gives you a major advantage as people move from ideas to action.”
Summer’s not done yet, but it’s clear: holiday success starts now. Marketers are planning smarter, diversifying their approach and thinking full-funnel.
That’s why many turn to media choices that help them connect. Solutions like visual search, which engages consumers in active planning mode, have made discovery platform Pinterest deliver both short-term commercial performance and longer-term brand growth. That’s exactly what’s needed to transform seasonal browsers into holiday buyers.
The brands that win at peak season performance are already getting started—and doing it with platforms that meet consumers in the mindset to buy.
Don’t wait for December. Transform your holiday results with a platform that meets shoppers in the mindset to buy. Discover more in the Pinterest Holiday Marketing Guide 2025.
*Source: Global Web Index, AU, BR, CA, FR, DE, IT, UK, US, SG, GWI Zeitgeist, February 2025)
** Source: Pinterest internal data from 200+ global advertisers in beta testing for ads treated with generated backgrounds and/or creative optimizations from June-August 2024. Pinterest Performance improvements are not guaranteed].
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