’Tis the Season to Convert: Creative Strategies for Q4

Every brand knows Q4 is the most important stretch of the year. Between Halloween, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas, the last three months of the year drive the biggest surge of consumer activity and the fiercest competition for attention.

According to the Mastercard Economics Institute, U.S. holiday retail sales are expected to rise 3.6% year over year between November 1 and December 24, 2025. While that growth is slightly softer than last year’s 4.1% climb, the opportunities are massive, especially online. E-commerce sales are projected to grow 7.9%, outpacing in-store growth at just 2.3%.

Statista estimates mobile commerce revenue will hit $2.5 trillion in 2025, nearly doubling over the next four years to account for 63% of total retail e-commerce. 

That means more people are shopping, more of them are shopping on mobile, and more brands are fighting for the same eyeballs. In this environment, creative is not just an asset, it’s your edge.

The Consumer Mindset in 2025: Practical, Early, and Digital

McKinsey’s latest U.S. consumer sentiment report shows shoppers will be cautious but intentional this year. Net sentiment is down 35% from its 2024 peak, with inflation and rising costs still shaping household budgets. The result: more practical gifting, less splurging. Gift cards, food, and essentials top shopping lists, while discretionary purchases are losing ground.

But that doesn’t mean consumers aren’t engaged. It means they’re shopping differently:

• Earlier: 37% of millennials start before October, compared to 28% overall.
  
  
• Selective on Black Friday: Only 11% of shoppers plan to begin on Black Friday weekend. Gen Z is the exception, with 17% still seeing it as the official start of the Q4 shopping rush.
  
  
• Digital-heavy: One-third of consumers plan to shop mostly or entirely online, and the majority will split shopping across online and in-store.

For advertisers, this creates both challenge and opportunity. Shoppers are in market earlier, spread across more channels, and more focused on value. Creative is where you can win them— by being relevant, timely, and impossible to scroll past.

Five Creative Strategies to Max Out Q4

1. Lean Into Authenticity with Holiday-Themed UGC

Holiday ads don’t need to feel like ads. They need to feel like moments. That’s why user-generated content (UGC) continues to outperform, especially during the holidays when consumers crave connection and authenticity.

Think unboxing moments under the tree, cozy at-home gameplay demos, or festive TikTok challenges that tap into trending sounds. When creators show your app or game in ways that feel native to their world, the content hits differently, and drives outstanding engagement. In fact, ads with UGC deliver 4x higher click-through rates at half the cost per click compared to traditional ads and 92% of consumers trust UGC more than branded creative.

The holiday spin: authentic UGC layered with seasonal elements (festive backdrops, gifting themes, countdowns) feels timely while staying relatable. It’s how you stop thumbs mid-scroll without screaming “ad.”

2. Harness the Power of HTML5 for Holiday Engagement

Static ads risk fading into the background during Q4. HTML5 formats—playables, interactive banners, and gamified end cards—pull users in. And when consumers are actively making purchase decisions, that interactivity translates into results.

CRAFTSMAN+ campaign data shows HTML5 creatives deliver:

• 20x more installs
  
  

• 5x higher IPM
  
  

• 7x higher conversion rates

Holiday-ready examples include “build your gift box” playables, “tap to unwrap” banners, or countdown end cards that add urgency. Beyond just grabbing attention, HTML5 formats create immersive moments that push users closer to action.

3. Don’t Sleep on Your App Store Presence

Your app store page is your storefront window. And during Q4, it needs to look dressed for the season. Holiday-themed screenshots, refreshed preview videos, and seasonal copy can make your app feel relevant right when consumers are actively browsing.

What’s more, seasonal refreshes don’t end with December. Plan app store creative that maps to year-round tentpoles—Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Mother’s/Father’s Day, Fourth of July, back-to-school—so your store always feels timely when consumers are actively browsing. For gaming apps, that could mean featuring limited-time themes or events. For subscription apps, highlight seasonal bundles or trial offers.

4. Go Beyond the Feed with Out-of-Home + Mobile Sync

Out-of-home (OOH) is one of the most powerful ways to build brand awareness, and now, it’s measurable. With today’s digital out-of-home (DOOH) capabilities, brands can not only reach audiences across billboards, transit hubs, and rideshare screens but also track real-world engagement and retarget exposed users on mobile.

Imagine: a consumer sees your brand’s ad on a rideshare screen, then later gets retargeted with an interactive mobile ad linked to a “Buy Now” CTA. The combination of big-screen impact and small-screen action bridges awareness with performance. And the data proves it: 73% of consumers view DOOH favorably—more than TV, social, or print—and 76% have taken action after seeing a DOOH ad (inBeat, OAAA/Harris Poll).

For performance-minded brands, this creates a full-funnel campaign that captures attention everywhere your audience goes.

5. Turn Up the Volume with Holiday Audio Ads

Holiday shopping is noisy—literally. Consumers are commuting, hosting, and multitasking their way through the season. Audio ads offer a way to cut through the hustle, and connect with customers during moments when their visual attention is elsewhere.

Platforms like Spotify and other streaming partners allow brands to tap into curated holiday playlists, serve interactive audio CTAs, and pair spots with companion display units for cross-platform impact. It’s a channel with reach: in 2025, over 75% of the U.S. population will listen to digital audio monthly, and audio ads drive 50% more audience attention per impression than benchmarks across TV, social, and display (Basis Technologies).

For app and gaming advertisers, audio has become a way to drive installs while consumers are already in a discovery mindset, whether they’re shopping, working out, or wrapping gifts.

The Creative Testing Edge: Don’t Bet on Just One Idea

Here’s the Q4 trap too many brands fall into: launching one shiny campaign and hoping it works.

The smarter play? Test multiple creative variants early—different holiday concepts, talent, product angles—and scale what sticks. A structured testing matrix lets you discover quickly what resonates with Gen Z on TikTok vs. millennials on Instagram, or what drives installs on iOS vs. Android.

With shoppers starting earlier, the brands that win are the ones who test, learn, and scale before the peak hits.

Key Takeaways: How to Unlock Q4 Growth with Creative

• Authenticity wins: UGC and creator content feel festive and real.
  
  
• HTML5 drives engagement: Interactive formats amplify installs and conversions.
  
  
• Seasonal relevance matters: Refresh your app store presence for the moment.
  
  
• Think full funnel: Extend reach beyond the feed with OOH and mobile sync.
  
  
• Don’t forget audio: Stream your message into holiday moments.
  
  

Ready to Craft Your Holiday Win?

The holiday season is when the best creative strategies shine brightest. It’s about standing out in a crowded, noisy, trillion-dollar marketplace.

At CRAFTSMAN+, we live for this season. We’ve built dedicated holiday packages designed to help brands put these strategies into play—whether it’s UGC, HTML5, app store optimization, OOH, or audio.

📩 Connect with us today to design creatives that make your Q4 campaigns stand out and deliver results.