Every year, holiday ads show up with the same goal: create something people remember. Some succeed, but most don’t. The holidays are one of the rare moments when audiences lower their defenses, expecting sentiment and a healthy dose of nostalgia. They’re open to feeling something, but only if the story earns it. That makes December a gift and a trap for brands in equal measure.

I’ve watched this play over the years. When I taught copywriting at a local art college, I gave my students the same assignment every year: write a holiday ad. Or, depending on the semester, a Super Bowl spot. The rules were simple: tell a great story. What became clear quickly was that the assignment wasn’t really about the holiday. It was about branding under pressure. And so many marketers just don’t get it.

The good: when the brand knows who it is

The best holiday ads don’t fake emotion. They let it surface naturally with the use of great storytelling that focuses on a single character or a small moment, while reinforcing the brand’s values. The emotional reaction is earned and authentic, not forced.

In class, the strongest student work always shared one thing in common: clarity. The students who knew what the brand stood for didn’t need snow, choirs, or swelling soundtracks to make it work. Their stories could survive without the holiday window dressing. That’s true of great brand work, too.

The bad: when “heartwarming” becomes a formula

Many holiday ads rely on emotional shorthand: soft lighting, intergenerational families, or a piano cover of a familiar song. On the surface, it looks right and feels safe and familiar. But familiarity isn’t the same as meaning.

In my classes, this showed up when students leaned too heavily on the holiday itself, mistaking sentiment for insight. The ads checked the boxes but said nothing specific about the brand behind them.

Out in the wild, the same thing happens. Ads fail because the brand could be swapped out with another without changing the story, and the message dissolves the moment the ad ends. It’s not that they’re bad. They’re just hollow, and hollow emotion doesn’t stick.

The forgettable: when nothing is risked

However, the most dangerous holiday ads aren’t the ones people criticize; they’re the ones no one remembers. Forgettable ads are usually the result of excessive polishing—they’re pleasant, safe, and utterly interchangeable.

In class, these were the projects that felt “fine” but never sparked discussion. In the real world, they’re the campaigns that quietly disappear despite generous budgets. When a brand avoids risk entirely, it avoids resonance, too. Safe is not strategic.

Looking beyond December

Holiday advertising is a stress test. It exposes what brands truly believe about themselves.

Strong brands:

• Understand their voice well enough to flex it seasonally
• Know what they stand for, not just what they sell
• Trust the audience to do some emotional work

Weak brands:

• Borrow feeling instead of building it
• Confuse tradition with relevance
• Mistake consensus for clarity

In other words, if you can’t articulate the brand’s point of view, the story won’t land, no matter how beautiful it is.

The real lesson

Holiday ads aren’t about snow, generosity, or year-end reflection. They’re about confidence in your voice, your story, and knowing that you don’t need to shout to be felt. When the decorations come down and January arrives, only one thing remains: whether your brand said something worth remembering and whether anyone remembers who said it.