It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmaaaas!
And with Christmas time comes offers from our favourite brands, we just can’t resist. It’s that special time of the year when businesses are the most giving and kind, and people are looking for discounted gifts. Here’s where Christmas Discount Ideas will save both your holiday AOV and the customer satisfaction rate.
Shopify stores and small ecommerce brands can make the most of these holiday discounts, of course, if they know how to fit them to their business. During this peak season, some of them discount too much and destroy their margins, and some set super small ones, causing them to miss sales. This is the full guide to Christmas marketing ideas that don’t kill your margins and keep the business going. We’ll mix quick Christmas marketing ideas for small businesses and bigger campaigns designed for:
- ecommerce/Shopify stores
- Retail Shops
- Restaurants and food businesses
You’ll earn not just what discounts to run, but how to structure and advertise them, and keep them profitable.
Unlock up to 30% more holiday revenue
Turn your products into irresistible Christmas bundles!
Why Christmas Marketing Matters for Small Businesses
Christmas can be the make-or-break season for most small ecommerce brands. A huge share of annual revenue is packed into these few festive weeks, from early December to the quiet, cold days after New Year’s. This is the time when shoppers are actively hunting for gifts, stocking fillers, and end-of-year treats.
Shopping intent is naturally higher, and customers are more willing to discover new brands and say yes to the right offer at the right time. That’s exactly why strong marketing strategies for Christmas can give your small business a big advantage.
But this festive time comes with its own challenges. Small teams often juggle everything at once, while having to compete against big brands with massive budgets and entire marketing departments. If you’re a small business, we know your resources are limited, and it’s easy to feel pressured into offering deep discounts. That’s not always the best way to go, though. Most Christmas marketing ideas for small businesses don’t require a giant budget or big discount; they just need clarity.
That’s the beauty of a well-structured Christmas marketing campaign. You don’t need tons of offers; you just need simple, repeatable tactics that fit your margins and help you shine during the busiest shopping period of the year. Now, let’s read some ideas to help you do this.
What Makes a Smart Christmas Discount Strategy?
Best marketing strategies for christmas are ones that feel intentional and planned, not just random. These strategies are planned to achieve “Your” goals, whatever they are and however they’re different from other businesses. Every promotion should map back to what you want most from the season, like:
- increasing AOV
- attracting new customers
- clearing slow-moving inventory.
This is where the concept of guardrails comes in: simple rules that keep your Christmas offers profitable and predictable. Here are some examples:
- Margin floors: the minimum acceptable margin you won’t go below, no matter how tempting deeper discounts may look.
- Code-stacking rules: deciding whether customers can combine discounts or if each offer works separately.
- Non-discountable items: protecting hero products, bundles with already-tight margins, or MAP-restricted items from unnecessary markdowns.
These guardrails prevent panic-discounting, keep your offers consistent, and ensure you stay in control of your holiday profitability instead of reacting to competitors. They’re the foundation of your entire Christmas marketing campaign.
25 Christmas Discount Ideas for Small Businesses
Lets look at some of the best christmas marketing campaigns. You can plug these into your campaigns and modify the goals based on your business type.
Site-Wide & Basket-Based Christmas Discount Ideas
1. Limited-Time Percentage Off Sitewide
A classic Christmas sales idea: offer 10–25% off storewide with a distinct deadline. Works best during major traffic peaks when shoppers already want to shop. It’s important to set a clear margin floor and keep the message simple to avoid losing long-term profits.
2. Tiered “Spend More, Save More” Discounts
A proven way to raise AOV: “Spend $50, get 10% off; spend $100, get 20% off.” Shoppers will put more in their cart to hit the next tier. This is one of the strongest christmas sale promotion ideas for profitable scaling.
3. Free Shipping Threshold for Christmas
Shipping thresholds are the perfect examples of a psychological nudge towards higher purchases. See this: “Free shipping over $60 until December 24.” This strategy encourages shoppers to add one more item. How to make it work? Select a threshold slightly above your current AOV to keep margins intact while boosting conversions.
4. BOGO or “Buy X, Save Y” Offers
BOGO offers work on volume and increase the basket sizes. “Buy 2, get 20% off” or “Buy 3, pay for 2.” For example, their discount is not steep but it’s there and it works. They’re powerful Christmas discount ideas because customers feel rewarded while merchants maintain control over profits.
5. Early-Bird Discounts vs Last-Minute Deals
Early-bird: small discount with guaranteed delivery, perfect for planners. Last-minute: tiny incentive but strong urgency for late shoppers. Both are helpful, and both let you make the most of buying behaviours while keeping margins safe.
6. After-Christmas Clearance Discount
Demand usually drops right after New Year’s, and this one is perfect for clearing up what’s left. Keep discounts targeted and avoid promoting them too aggressively. A focused post-holiday clearance keeps cash flowing without weakening your brand’s pricing expectations.
Bundle & Product-Based Christmas Discount Ideas
No Christmas is complete without the packages and gift bundles. In whatever category you sell, there are options to create bundles, increase cart size and drive higher sales. Here are the best Christmas sales ideas related to bundles. For Shopify merchants, a Shopify bundle app like Fast Bundle is one of the easiest ways to create holiday bundles, automate discounts, and boost AOV during the Holiday Season. Fast Bundle also helps merchants curate well-structured gift sets with AI and display them through eye-catching, high-converting widgets on their storefronts.
7. Christmas Gift Bundles with Built-In Savings
Themed sets are perfect for Christmas, from self-care boxes to coffee bundles and kids’ craft kits. It’s best to put a built-in discount compared to buying items separately. Buyers love these for effortless gift giving in the holidays, and most of them don’t second-think buying something like these.
8. Mix-and-Match “Build Your Own Box” Discounts
Let customers choose any 3, 4, or 5 items from a curated collection and unlock a percentage discount. This keeps the experience fun and personal while helping you mix slow movers with bestsellers.
9. Volume Discounts on Seasonal Favourites
Need some cart fillers? “Buy 3 candles, save 15%,” “Buy 2 ornaments, get 10% off,” etc. Shoppers love taking multiples of seasonal items, and you benefit from higher basket sizes too. This can be down without the dramatic discounts.
10. Free Gift with Purchase (GWP)
Small but delightful gifts can work great once the cart value passes a specific threshold. These bonuses are considered highly valuable (even is the cost is low). This tactic boosts AOV, strengthens brand goodwill, and feels like a festive reward rather than a discount.
11. Bundle-Only Exclusives
Create Christmas-only scents, colours, flavours, or limited editions that appear exclusively inside a holiday bundle. Exclusivity adds urgency, differentiates your store from competitors, and protects margins because customers cannot price-compare standalone versions of these special products.
- Gift Sets
- BOGOs
- Mix & Match Bundles
Turn festive traffic into higher AOV!
Christmas Discount Ideas for Retail Stores
Restaurants are dynamic and ever-changing. So all the Christmas promotion ideas for a restaurant should be adaptable to different atmospheres. Here are the best ones:
12. In-Store “Friends & Family” Discount Night
Email subscribers or loyalty members can benefit from a limited-time (like 1-night) offer in the restaurant. It boosts foot traffic, creates a warm community vibe, and feels more premium than generic holiday discounts. This one is an ideal tactic among christmas promotion ideas for retail.
13. Scratch Cards or Mystery Discounts at Checkout
Give shoppers a scratch card revealing a surprise 5–25% discount. This gamified experience increases excitement and often keeps customers coming for more. It’s one of the most engaging Christmas sale promotion ideas for brick-and-mortar shops.
14. Multi-Buy Offers on Seasonal Displays
Simple multi-buy promotions work great, especially ones like “3 for 2” on decorations, ornaments, or stocking stuffers. These offers help mobilize seasonal stock quickly, grow basket size, and set working discounts.
15. Local Partner Bundle Discounts
Collaborate with neighbouring businesses to offer joint bundles, such as a florist + bakery Christmas gift set. These kinds of classic partnerships give you wider awareness, and creates a new experience for shoppers. Ideal for small retailers with limited budgets.
16. Gift Receipt + January Bounce-Back Coupon
Include a gift receipt paired with a small coupon for either the buyer or the gift recipient. This can take holiday traffic into the slower post-Christmas period and encourages repeat visits.
Christmas Discount Ideas for Restaurants & Food Businesses
17. Fixed-Price Christmas Menu with Add-On Discounts
Most cafe’s and restaurants have holiday menus, and here’s what makes them efficient: the prices are fixed (with discount), and there are add-ons like desserts, drinks, or sides. These menus are great for keeping margins predictable, and encouraging guests to upgrade their order.
18. Pre-Order Holiday Meal Kits with Early-Bird Discount
Promote Christmas dinner boxes or meal kits with a small early-bird discount for customers who order by a specific date. This creates revenue ahead of the holiday rush and helps you forecast inventory.
19. Gift Card Bonus Deals
Run a classic holiday offer such as “Buy a $100 gift card, get a $20 bonus card.” Customers love gifting dining experiences, and the bonus card ensures a return visit later.
20. Group Booking Discounts
Create tiered incentives for larger parties, perfect for work events, family gatherings, and community celebrations.
Gamified & Campaign-Style Christmas Discount Ideas
21. 12 Days of Christmas Discounts
Run a mini Christmas marketing campaign featuring a different small offer each day. You can include free shipping, a highlighted product, or a limited bundle made from your best products. This creates daily excitement, encourages repeat visits, and keeps your store top-of-mind.
22. Advent Calendar of Deals
Turn your website or email flow into a digital advent calendar where users “open” a new offer each day. The surprise element boosts engagement and drives consistent traffic, making it one of the most interactive christmas sales ideas for ecommerce.
23. Spin-to-Win / Wheel of Fortune Discounts
Use a gamified widget offering prizes like 5–20% off, free shipping, or a small gift. Do this through a spin-to-win or wheel page. Shoppers love the instant-win mechanic, and you maintain margin boundaries by presetting probabilities.
24. Social Media Challenge with Discount Rewards
Launch a fun Christmas-themed challenge with photos, short videos, or UGC. These challenges reward participants with a small discount, and also raise awareness.
25. Tiered Loyalty Rewards for December
Offer double points or tier-based rewards for loyalty members who hit specific spend levels during December. This motivates repeat purchases, deepens retention, and provides a structured alternative to sitewide discounts.
Christmas Sale Advertising Ideas (How to Promote Your Discounts)
There are lots of places where your marketing strategies for Christmas can shine. Including creative emails, push notifications, website banners, and of course, social media. To make the best of these discounts, here are some tips to consider:
Use one clear headline and one end date everywhere
Repeating the same message across banners, popups, email subject lines, and ads removes confusion and creates stronger urgency. Of course, write the copies and slogans fitting the size and placement of the touch-point, but keep the message the same.
Create a dedicated Christmas sale landing page
A single page housing all your offers, bundles, and deals sure helps customers explore everything in one place. It also performs well for SEO and paid campaigns, especially when promoting multiple Christmas sale promotion ideas at once.
Show discount mechanics visually
Use simple graphics to display offer structures like “3 for 2,” “Buy 2, get 20% off,” or “Free gift over $60.” Visual clarity increases conversions and reduces the need for long explanations.
Sync your email, social, and website creatives
Your emails should match your onsite banners, and your social ads should match your Christmas landing page. Unified visuals make your christmas marketing campaigns feel intentional, not random.
Examples of the Best Christmas Marketing Campaigns (What You Can Copy)
Examples are the best ways to learn, especially if its your first christmas as a business owner. We’ve got you covered with the best christmas marketing campaigns as examples:
John Lewis – Emotional Christmas Adverts
John Lewis releases emotional Christmas stories each year, often in the form of short movies. These videos have touching titles and are building nationwide anticipation and strong brand affinity. Sometimes they pair the campaign with limited-edition merch or a small charity tie-in.
What small brands can borrow: consistent visuals, a simple emotional narrative, and touching copywriting.
Macy’s – “Believe” Holiday Campaign
Macy’s “Believe” campaign was simple: a beautiful Christmas-themed ad with celebrities, storytelling with a charitable angle, and inviting customers to write letters to Santa while supporting a cause. The campaign creates warmth and an annual tradition.
What small brands can borrow: a lightweight charity mechanic, great use of UGC, and having a cause to gather people.
Starbucks – Holiday BOGO & “Give Good”
Starbucks mixes festive storytelling with short holiday BOGO offers and menu drops. These BOGO offers are on seasonal drinks and usually for a limited time. Their strong visual identity (cups, store décor, social content) turns simple discounts into a holiday ritual.
What small brands can borrow: simple and understandable offers, limited windows, and consistent holiday-themed creative across channels.
How to Choose the Right Christmas Discount Ideas for Your Business
Lets be real: You’re probably not going to use use all 25 christmas discount ideas. So choose the few that genuinely support your business.
Start by looking at your business type: ecommerce brands often benefit from bundles and AOV boosters, retail stores need foot-traffic drivers, and restaurants rely on pre-orders and group incentives. Match the structure of Christmas campaigns to what you need.
Now it’s time to filter ideas out (even if they all look exciting). If you’re aiming to increase AOV, choose tiered discounts, bundles, or free-gift thresholds. If you want new customers, lead with first-purchase offers or gift-card bonuses.
A simple planning framework:
- Pick one hero offer (e.g., a Christmas bundle, BOGO, or a tiered “spend more, save more” structure).
- Add two to three supporting discounts that complement the hero offer without confusing customers.
- Layer one or two gamified or loyalty ideas to keep engagement high across your channels.
Don’t just discount products individually. Bundle slow movers with bestsellers into Holiday Gift Sets to clear stock and lift your average order value (AOV).
Final Thoughts: Make Every Christmas Offer Count
The strongest holiday campaigns begin with owners who make the time to get to know their business. So bring out what you need, and then go over the list again. Keep the messaging constant to create a warm, approachable offer for your customers.
When your strategy is focused, your holiday sales rise, your margins stay protected, and every offer truly counts.
FAQ
Most merchants start soft promotions in early November and launch core offers by late November to capture early-bird and last-minute shoppers.
“Buy 1 Get 1,” “Buy 2 Get 1 Free,” and cart-value-triggered free gifts typically drive the highest AOV and fastest inventory movement.
Match each promotion to your main goal, like AOV, new customers, or clearing stock, and make sure it fits your margins and business type.
