Key Takeaways
- Q4 isn't one season. It's three: the Black Friday sale, December gifting and the new year. Each needs different creative.
- For sale ads, sell the sale. Lead with the offer, not the product's features.
- In December, switch from discounts to gifting. Help people figure out who the gift is for.
- Holiday-moment ads work best when the holiday is the problem and the product is the fix.
- Year-end recaps and New Year goals give you creative for the weeks after the sales are over.
- Seasonal ads get a boost but don't last. Build them so they can run again, or turn into evergreen ads, with small edits.
Every year, Q4 creative comes down to the wire. In one of our newsletters, ten days before Black Friday, the opening line was: "Hopefully you already have your creative well under way, but if not, here's some inspo."
This is that inspo, collected in one place. Below are 11 holiday ads we've made for clients, from Black Friday sale ads to New Year's resolutions, organized by when in Q4 they run, with what makes each one work.
How Q4 Creative Changes
The biggest mistake we see is running the same creative from mid-November to January. The buyer's question changes every few weeks:
- Black Friday and Cyber Monday: "What's the deal?"
- December: "What do I get them?"
- The holidays themselves: "How do I get through this?"
- January: "What am I changing this year?"
The ads below are grouped by those questions.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sale Ads
The rule here is simple. In normal times, you sell the product. During a sale, you sell the sale. Make it really clear what the offer is and lead with it, instead of spending the first seconds on features and benefits.
1. Briogeo: Lead With the Offer
This Briogeo ad opens on the offer itself: "Get our 15x award-winning mask for free... with $100+ purchase," with the site-wide discount running across the top. Then it animates in UGC clips, a customer testimonial and the review count to make the offer more tempting.
Why it works: The offer is the first thing you read, and the proof comes after, to make you want it. And it does all of that in 12 seconds.
2. Flodesk: "I Did All the Research for You"
For Flodesk's Black Friday deal, a creator explains that she researched all the email marketing tools so you don't have to, then walks through what she found, with a Black Friday sale badge and the 50% off on screen the whole time.
Why it works: For a considered purchase like software, hearing from someone who already did the research takes the work off the viewer. And because the deal lives in a badge, removing it turns this into an evergreen ad after the sale. The same opener works for almost any category: "I spent hours researching leather sneakers. Here's what I found."
3. HPN: The Code-Led Static
A simple, lightly animated static for HPN: "Get up to 15% off the #1 NAD+ Booster," the discount code at the bottom and a review count that ticks up as the ad plays.
Why it works: Statics are the fastest way to get an offer in market and test it. The offer, the code and the proof are all readable in a second, which is all a sale ad needs.
December Gifting Ads
December marks the turn from heavy discount messaging to more of a gifting angle. The buyer isn't asking "what's the deal" anymore. They're asking "what should I get them."
4. Rishi Tea: Help Them Choose
The hook is "Looking for thoughtful holiday gifting ideas?" Which, of course, most people are. The voiceover makes two smart points: tea is universally loved, so it's a safe pick when you have no idea what to get someone, and "it's more than a safe bet, it's something truly special," so it won't be forgotten like a gift card. Then it shows a few gift sets and who each one is best for.
Why it works: It answers the gifter's real problem, which isn't "is this tea good" but "will they like it." Matching gift sets to types of people makes the decision for them.
5. Constant Contact: Gift Yourself
A creator opens with "I got myself the best gift, and it's definitely not what you would expect," then makes the case that small business owners should "gift yourself Constant Contact," showing the emails he sends.
Why it works: It borrows the gifting season for a product nobody would buy as a gift. The self-gift angle works for software, services and anything people buy for themselves.
6. JuneShine: The Holiday Party Text
A text conversation plays over a holiday table: "What should I bring to the holiday party?" "Rather than a bottle of wine..." The replies make the case for JuneShine, and it ends on "Share the Shine."
Why it works: It drops the product into a real holiday decision, what to bring to the party, and frames it as the better answer to the default choice. A text thread is also fast to read and feels native in the feed.
Holiday-Moment Ads
Not every holiday ad needs a discount. Some of the best ones tie the product to what the holidays actually feel like.
7. Lansinoh: The Holidays Are Chaos
The creator opens with "Ok mamas... I know holiday events and traveling can be SO chaotic," calling out the audience immediately. A grid of holiday images over her shows the chaos she's describing, then she swipes them away to reveal Lansinoh's wearable pump and shows how easy it is to take anywhere.
Why it works: The holiday is the problem and the product is the fix. The image grid makes the chaos visual, and the swipe-away is a clean reveal.
This is the trade-off with seasonal ads. The ideal ad works every month of the year, but a seasonal angle can give you a boost that's worth it, even if it doesn't last as long.
8. Constant Contact: Holiday Marketing, Episode 3
This one opens like a creator series: "Marketing your small business during the holidays, ep. 3." The creator explains the power of seasonal newsletters, then builds a "Christmas Sale!" email in Constant Contact on screen and sends it.
Why it works: The episode framing makes it feel like content worth following, not an ad. And it shows the product doing exactly what the viewer needs to do this time of year.
Year-End and New Year Ads
After the sales end, there's still a lot of Q4 and January to fill. Recaps and fresh-start angles keep things moving.
9. ZBiotics: The Wrapped-Style Recap
Modeled on Spotify Wrapped, this ZBiotics ad recaps the company's year: "We saved 2.75M mornings to date," what customers were up to, the team growing and the questions they answered, ending on "Cheers to 2 million more better mornings."
Why it works: It won't be the top performer in your account, but it's a fun, shareable way to show off your year and pull your fans closer. Ways to make your own version drive clicks:
- Count your five-star reviews and feature one or two.
- Round up your press mentions and feature your favorite.
- Show your launches, collabs and new colors.
- Share your impact if you have a giving program.
- Or the easiest: take units sold and attach a benefit, like "Last year we helped 35,000+ people with their back pain."
10. CandleScience: New Year, New Goals
"This year my goal is more crafting and more creating." A creator walks through her candle-making supplies from CandleScience and the process of making a candle.
Why it works: January is when people commit to new hobbies and habits. Framing the product as part of someone's goal for the year meets them right at that moment.
11. Rishi Tea: The Dry January Recipe
"This Dry January mocktail is my new favorite drink." The ad walks through a simple recipe using Rishi's turmeric ginger chai concentrate and a sparkling botanical, poured over ice.
Why it works: It ties the product to a January behavior a lot of people are already trying, and gives them something useful: a recipe they can make tonight.
What These Holiday Ads Have in Common
- They match the moment. Sale ads lead with the offer. Gifting ads help people choose. New Year ads speak to goals.
- The offer is unmissable. When there's a deal, it's on screen in the first seconds, and it stays there.
- They're built to last. Flodesk's deal lives in a badge that can come off. Lansinoh's holiday angle could be swapped for travel. Plan seasonal ads with a life after the season.
- They still use proof. Reviews, testimonials and real people show up even in the sale ads.
- They use the formats that already work. Creator UGC, statics, text threads and motion, just with a seasonal angle.
Q4 Creative Checklist
- Plan the phases: Black Friday sale, December gifting, holiday moments and January.
- Have sale creative ready before Black Friday week, not during it.
- Lead every sale ad with the offer in the first second.
- Make gifting ads that help people choose: by recipient, budget or occasion.
- Build seasonal elements so they can come off, like a badge, a headline or a supered line, so ads can run again after the season.
- Keep evergreen winners running alongside seasonal ads. Don't turn everything over at once.
- Line up January creative early, so you're not starting from zero when the sales end.
For more on keeping new creative flowing while winners keep running, see how many ads to run on Meta and why new Meta ads don't get spend.
More Ad Examples
These ads come from the breakdowns we send in our newsletter, where we look at one ad at a time. For more examples by category, see our CPG ad examples, DTC ad examples and static ad examples.
Need Holiday Creative?
Our creative agency for Meta ads makes UGC, motion and static ads for brands spending $100K+ a month, including the sale, gifting and seasonal creative Q4 calls for. Files land every two to four weeks, so plan ahead: Q4 creative should be in production well before Black Friday. Book an intro call to talk through your account.
FAQ
When should you start making Black Friday ads?
Well before Black Friday week. Sale creative should be finished and ready to launch before the sale starts, which means planning and production in October at the latest.
What makes a good Black Friday ad?
A clear offer, shown first. During a sale, you're selling the sale more than the product, so lead with the discount or deal, then add proof like reviews or testimonials to make it more tempting.
How should holiday ads change in December?
Shift from discounts to gifting. In December, people are asking what to get someone, so the best ads help them choose: who the gift is for, which set fits which person, and why it's better than a gift card.
Should you run seasonal or evergreen ads in Q4?
Both. Seasonal ads can give you a boost but don't last as long, so keep your evergreen winners running and build seasonal ads with elements you can remove to keep them running after the season.
What ads work after the holidays?
Year-end recaps in December, then New Year angles in January: goals, new habits, Dry January and fresh starts. They give you creative for the weeks after the sales end.
What formats work best for holiday Meta ads?
The same ones that work the rest of the year: creator UGC, statics, motion and hybrids. Statics are especially useful for sale offers, because they're fast to make and test.
