Ultimate Holiday Marketing Guide for DTC Startups: Strategies to Increase Your Sales

The year-end shopping season is a battleground for e-commerce, marked by intense competition and, more importantly, rising costs across paid marketing channels. After running campaigns for many DTC startups backed by Y Combinator, we’ve gathered key insights on what it takes to thrive during the holiday rush.

In this post, we’ll break down the strategies that have consistently helped brands stand out and win big in paid marketing.

What to Expect from Paid Marketing During the Shopping Season

• Paid marketing campaigns run on an auction system, and as more brands compete for the attention of the same consumers, the cost of impressions and clicks will increase significantly.
  💡 Research shows that bid prices can jump by as much as 140% during the holidays compared to the rest of the year.

• Consumers also know sales are coming, so they’re more likely to wait before making a purchase. They’ll see your ads but often hold off until the sales start.

To make sure your brand stands out during this busy time, you’ll need a solid marketing plan that’s built to work both before and during the shopping season.

Before the Shopping Season

Start your paid marketing efforts early—ideally 1-2 months before the shopping season kicks in. This period is all about building brand awareness and getting your product or service on the radar of potential customers. While most people won’t be ready to make a purchase just yet, you want your brand to be top of mind when they are.

• Run Awareness Ads: Focus on reaching new audiences and expanding your visibility. Ads that tell your brand’s story or highlight your unique value propositions are key. Consumers may not be buying right now, but you want to be the brand they think of when they’re ready.
• Optimize for Top-of-Funnel Goals: Instead of pushing for immediate conversions, focus on metrics like video views, website visits, and engagement. This helps you build a warm audience that you can retarget when they’re closer to making a purchase.
• Experiment and Learn: Use this time to test different customer segments, messaging strategies, and ad creatives. Gather insights into what works best and what doesn’t, so you’re better prepared for the big push when sales season begins.

Winning tips:

• Set Up Tracking and Retargeting: Make sure all your tracking systems are in place, and you’ve created retargeting audiences across all your marketing channels.
• Prepare a Creative Library: Build a diverse collection of creatives—images, videos, GIFs—that you can rotate to prevent ad fatigue and keep content fresh.
• Invest in Video Content: Did you know- 68% of shoppers visit YouTube on their smartphones to help decide what to buy, and TikTok is becoming the new search engine. Video content is harder to produce, but doing the tough work can give you a big advantage. Shoppers want to see what they’re getting, so focus on creating user-generated content (UGC), unboxing videos, product walkthroughs, etc. This is especially important if your products are higher-priced.
• Optimize for Mobile: Ensure your website is fully mobile-optimized, as the majority of purchases happen on mobile devices.
• Invest in Products Strategically: Decide which products to promote, focusing on items with higher margins. Avoid allocating ad spend to products with lower profit potential.
• Plan for After-sale Engagement: Think long-term by putting strategies in place to encourage repeat purchases. Consider options like subscription models, drip email campaigns, and referral programs.
• Audit Your Online Presence: Search for your brand and products on search engines and social media. See how you’re showing up and take note of what your competitors are doing. Get a free report here →
• Diversify with Organic Content: Ensure you have plenty of organic content, such as blog posts or social media material, to complement your paid strategy. For example, create guides like “Top Gifts for Him/Her” to engage shoppers.

Ramp Up Retargeting & Sales Campaigns During the Shopping Season

When the shopping season arrives, it’s time to shift your focus—and budget—from awareness to driving conversions. At this stage, consumers are actively searching for deals, so it’s essential to retarget those who’ve already interacted with your brand over the past few weeks or months.

• Retarget Warm Audiences: By now, you’ve built a warm audience—people who have visited your site, watched your videos, or engaged with your content. Retargeting ads will help you re-engage these potential customers with tailored offers and promotions. They’ve already shown interest in your brand, making them more likely to convert when presented with the right deal.
• Promote Sales Aggressively: Consumers are hunting for discounts during the shopping season, making it the perfect time to showcase your seasonal sales.
  • Use limited-time offers and scarcity tactics like "Only a few left!" or "Sale ends soon!" to create urgency and encourage immediate action.
  • Leverage social proof to create FOMO (fear of missing out). Show reviews, testimonials, or examples of others using your product to boost trust and create a sense of belonging.
• Maximize Ad Spend Efficiency: With ad costs rising during the holiday period, it’s essential to keep a close eye on your performance. Funnel a larger share of your budget into high-performing retargeting campaigns and cut back on ads that aren’t delivering strong returns. This will help you make the most of your marketing dollars when it matters most.

🎉 These strategies helped us reduce CAC for spotLESS Materials by 72% using Google and Meta Ads.