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3 Holiday Marketing Fails (and How to Fix Them)

Picture of Gabriella Sartor   Gabriella Sartor  ·  4 minute read
You might have heard from your father or read in a fortune cookie that “life is the best teacher.” While it’s true that tough experiences often mold people, sometimes you can receive the same lessons by observing others from a distance. Desk with a planner with the concept Holiday Email Marketing Series and festive decorations
 
We’re at least hoping that’s the case with these three hypothetical holiday marketing fails. Although we don’t use the names of actual companies, PowerChord is fairly confident these situations have occurred more than once. Consider us the Ghost of Christmas Future, the way we’re dropping cautionary tales.

 

Setting 1: The Year Without a Christmas Tree?

Background: In our first scenario, let’s consider an internationally renowned supplier of artificial Christmas trees. The company has been around for decades and is especially regarded for its high-quality trees and other holiday decor. It has one outlet store in the same building as its corporate headquarters, but the bulk of its sales happen at hardware stores and big-box retailers.
 
Problem: While the brand is extremely well-known, far fewer people know which stores carry it, let alone the locations where they can buy its signature product, the 9-foot faux Fraser fir tree. The main website lacks a comprehensive list of retail locations and often redirects visitors to individual stores' websites when they click “locations,” which causes confusion. As a result, the company leaves money on the table each holiday season, when demand is at its highest.
 
Solution: A trusted marketing technology vendor that specializes in multi-location businesses retools the main website to redirect visitors to company-branded location pages. The “locations” page includes a map of nearby retail partners and lists products carried at each store. The main website also gets a sticky “find a location” widget so potential buyers never have to navigate away from the page.
 
Setting 2: Christmas Vacation (But Nobody Knows About It)
 
Background: A group of dental practices has established itself as one of the premier providers in suburban Washington, D.C. The company has grown from three offices in 2021 to nine in 2025. It differentiates itself from competitors by offering friendly, top-notch customer service and easy online booking.
 
Problem: Like most businesses, the dental practices are set to have some modified working hours during the holidays. None of the offices will open on Christmas Day or New Year’s Day. The company decides to close early on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. The day after Christmas, a Friday, is also not a working day for the group’s dentists, though Fridays are normally non-working days.
 
Unfortunately, the company fails to update its holiday hours on its practice websites and online listings. Customers with searing tooth pain from eating too many candy canes rage when they encounter locked doors at 1 p.m. on Christmas Eve. The company’s previously vaunted customer service suffers as a result of angry reviews and Facebook comments.
 
Solution: The group absorbs a hard-earned lesson and contracts with a marketing vendor that offers a centralized dashboard for multiple business locations and listings. Having data in one place makes it easy to update website and listing information. The software also allows the team to set up automated reminders—including ones to update hours before major holidays.

Setting 3: The Calls Are Coming from Inside (Not Outside) the House

Background: A heavy equipment manufacturer that primarily sells to construction firms and government agencies has operated since the 19th century. Most of the manufacturer’s business comes from the sale of excavators and tractors. The company has a website and separate phone numbers for sales, customer service, and other important departments.
 
Problem: While this manufacturer has a marketing partner that manages paid ads and SEO efforts, it lacks a way to track which outreach channel generates the most leads. Executives assume the marketing agency’s efforts have driven growth in website visitors, calls, leads, and revenue.
 
Solution: The company decides to bring up call tracking with its marketing partner. Call tracking assigns different phone numbers to corresponding campaigns; those who see Google ads will dial a different number than those who call after seeing a promotional email, for instance. All numbers re-route to the main sales line when dialed, but the marketing software automatically logs the lead source.
 
As a result, the company finds out that much of its revenue growth after contracting with the outside marketing agency is not actually attributable to its campaigns. The manufacturer decides to search for a different firm that can deliver a higher ROI.
 
Editor’s note: The title of each vignette plays on classic holiday movies, such as Christmas Vacation and The Year Without a Santa Claus. Believe it or not, the classic “call is coming from inside the house” trope in horror movies originated with 1974’s Black Christmas, a slasher movie about a madman who targets sorority sisters. The holiday season serves as an eerie backdrop to the film’s events.
 

Stay Aware and Prepared this Holiday Season

Despite the unspoken rule about taking it easy between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, companies actually have a lot to gain with holiday marketing. The right marketing technology enables your company to identify and target the most effective channels, campaigns, and keywords. As a result, you can maximize ROI and gain some momentum before January 1.
 
PowerChord and its flagship product, PowerStack, help multi-location businesses stay on top of marketing programs, operate efficiently, and analyze critical data. Unwrap the gift of revenue growth this holiday season by treating yourself to a strategy consultation from our team.

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Topic

 

What is a good catchphrase for holiday marketing?

To find a good catchphrase for holiday marketing, focus on a specific holiday, such as Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa. As these holidays are focused on presents, you might want to use something like “unwrap the gift of xyz product” or “stuff your stocking this holiday season with effective xyz service.”

 

What is a marketing failure?

A marketing failure occurs when a company’s marketing program fails to achieve the goals it has outlined. This usually manifests when marketing campaigns fail to generate leads, acquire customers, or increase revenue.

 

What is the difference between B2B and B2C marketing?

B2B, or business-to-business, firms differ in that they primarily sell products and services to other businesses. B2C (business-to-consumer) companies market directly to consumers. Marketing for B2B companies often focuses more on ROI, informational campaigns, and long sales cycles built on trust, while B2C marketing may rely more on emotion-driven campaigns and shorter, quicker transactions.

 

What are best practices for updating holiday hours across multiple locations?

Use a centralized dashboard to manage all locations’ hours, automate reminders before holidays, and synchronize updates across websites, Google My Business, and other online listings. One of the features within PowerStack is our Listings and Reputation Management tool that handles this task in minutes. 
 

How can local SEO improve holiday sales for retailers?

Optimizing for local search ensures customers find nearby stores carrying your products. Include accurate location data, holiday hours, and product availability on your website and listings to capture local holiday shoppers.