Influencer collaborations have become a cornerstone for brands wanting to build visibility and consumer engagement. As the holiday season looms, brands seeking innovative ways to leverage influencer marketing beyond traditional sponsored posts can break free from standard conventions and push boundaries to create truly memorable and effective campaigns.
Below, Forbes Agency Council members dive into some fresh, out-of-the-box ideas that brands can employ to harness the powerful potential of influencer marketing. Check out their ideas below to ensure your brand’s message rings out and stays top of mind for consumers amid all the festive noise other brands make this year.
1. Create A Branded Holiday Jingle
Create a 30- to 60-second holiday jingle featuring the brand’s name. This catchy holiday jingle can then be used in the background of the influencer’s content when they go live on deliverables. If the jingle catches on, other users may use it for their personal holiday content, leading to massive, additional reach. – Mark Cunha, My People Know
2. Ask Influencers To Share Festive Recipes
One fun idea is the “big holiday potluck” concept, where a variety of influencers each share a dish and a recipe from their cultural and family traditions. Every recipe can organically feature a brand’s product, from ingredients and cookware to kitchen tools and entertaining decor. The result is a rich tapestry of festive dishes that illustrate all the ways people celebrate the season. – Laurie Buckle, CookIt Media
3. Launch A Holiday ‘Pass The Parcel’ Game
Launching a holiday “pass the parcel” game involves engaging a chain of influencers and having each one unwrap a layer and reveal something related to the brand, such as a brand story, product highlight or special offer, before passing it on to the next influencer. The final unwrapping could be a giveaway or an exclusive deal. – Hasan Saleem, DSS MEDIA
4. Create Cause-Driven Campaigns
Join forces with influencers who care deeply about social causes that align with your brand values. Make an impactful campaign that resonates with the influencer’s audience while building brand recognition for both parties involved. Support a meaningful cause together while supporting each other. – Jessica Kopach, The JKO Agency, LLC.
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5. Leverage Creative Perks Influencers Can Share
Working paid influencers are bombarded with products from brands. They craft some content, toss your product and move on. You get cheap impressions, but no good is really done. This season, send your influencers 10 extra influencer boxes and 10 shipping labels. If they love the product, they can send it to 10 friends. If they hate it, you match the value in a donation to a charity of their choice. – John Geletka, Geletka+
6. Offer A Giveaway Program
First, find an influencer who shares your target demographic and your ideals. From there, offer some kind of giveaway program. Let them give away whatever product or service you are trying to promote. For those who don’t win, create a coupon code that includes the influencer’s name and a link from their page. Their audience will be excited to support their favorite influencer—and you. – Jason Hall, FiveChannels Marketing
7. Think In Terms Of Organic Product Placement
Think about how companies used influencer marketing back in the day. Don’t think in terms of the regular integration, where they needed to mention your product three times and give a discount code, but rather in terms of product placement. The ad shouldn’t feel like an ad. Ideally, partner with influencers who already use your product or service and give them full creative freedom. – Solomon Thimothy, OneIMS
8. Create Personalized Limited Editions And Host A Pop-Up
Leverage notable partners to create personalized limited editions with a charitable donation component for positive impact. Level up by hosting a pop-up with influencers on-site to help guests shop. Have a gift-wrapping station, product sampling and brand activations to add excitement. Add fun via a facial bar, custom denim tailoring, a lipstick lab or a blowout bar to create a fully immersive brand experience. – Christine Faulhaber, Faulhaber Communications
9. Reimagine Influencer Content For Advertising
Many brands think of influencers as a way to gain organic visibility. However, consider reimagining that content for advertisements. This will not only have an impact on the effectiveness of the ad itself, but could also lead to a huge boost in brand affinity. – Revecka Jallad, DIVISA
10. Create A Themed Multi-Day Campaign
Brands could host a “12 Days of Giveaways” campaign with different influencers each day. Each influencer reveals a unique product or deal, creating daily buzz. Collaborating with influencers from diverse niches ensures a wider reach, and the limited-time offers drive urgency. This festive approach not only boosts visibility, but also fosters genuine engagement during the holiday season. – Blake George, BMG Media Co.
11. Work With Creators To Generate UGC
My recommendation is to make sure your influencer strategy includes working with content creators or influencers to generate user-generated content that will ensure brand authenticity. Stop pushing calls to action and “buy now” out of the mouths of influencers and instead showcase the brand engaging organically. Be diverse, lean into trends and issue brief, helpful talking points to empower creativity. – Olivia Ormos, OO & CO
12. Host A Live Giveaway Or Charity Auction
Hosting a live giveaway or charity auction with influencers whose values align with your company is my idea of fun. You can share great stories, perhaps auction off valuable and personal items, and just connect with others in person. If offline is not an option, a virtual event can be a substitute, and yes, a well-thought-out agenda is a must. – Nataliya Andreychuk, Viseven
13. Feature Employee-Generated Social Media Content
An increasing number of companies are featuring their own employees in marketing and influencer campaigns. Interestingly, employee-generated social media content has exponentially more reach than brand posts and is re-shared 24 times more often. When employees showcase offers, unboxing experiences, giveaways or other creative promotions, it makes the brand more authentic, trustworthy and relatable. – Ivana Johnston, Puzzle Partner Ltd.
14. Work With Local Deal-Hunting Influencers
Work with local nano- and micro-influencers who are all about “saving a buck.” People are going to be hunting for the best possible deals given the current state of the economy, credit card debt and student loan payments. Do your research and discover which influencers can really help you promote: your brand, your mission and your best discounts and/or sales for the holidays. – Bernard May, National Positions
15. Invest In Sending Unboxing Moments
Establish relationships with rising influencers who are aligned with your target audience. Invest in sending them a series of highly visual and customized unboxing moments this fall to keep them engaged with your brand. Influencers are trusted by their audience, and you want to have a few fabulous moments building up to the holidays that get them giddy. Incentivize with a big win. – Kathleen Lucente, Red Fan Communications
16. Launch An Interactive Gift Hunt
Engage in a collaborative effort with influencers to launch an interactive “holiday gift hunt” campaign. Let influencers discreetly feature your brand’s products in their content (videos, stories, posts), dropping hints and clues for audiences to discover. This fosters excitement and generates buzz around your brand, enhancing its presence in the holiday season. – Muhammad Eltiti, BOOST
17. Create A ‘Festive Flashback’ Initiative
Influencers can share their fondest memories of a specific holiday from their childhood, and recreate it in the present day using the brand’s products. Whether it’s a special outfit they wore, a game they played or a gift they received, the influencer’s nostalgic journey intertwined with the brand creates an emotional and authentic connection with audiences. – Carlos Trillo, Evinex Corporation
18. Combine Influencer And Affiliate Strategies
Combine influencer marketing with affiliate strategies for measurable returns on investment during the holidays. Ensure you have full control over when posts go live for optimal timing. Go beyond the typical gift-centric campaigns; think about less obvious holiday themes such as entertaining, decor and food. This multi-pronged approach broadens your reach, offers fresh content and allows for better ROI tracking. – Danielle Wiley, Sway Group