Rachel Cravit

Holiday shopping is shaping up to be a test of how well brands actually understand consumer behavior, not just the scale of advertising spend. Shoppers are starting earlier, watching their budgets, and using more channels to research gifts and compare prices. Yet the biggest promotional days remain central. According to Tinuiti’s 2026 Holiday Shopping Trends report, 25% of U.S. holiday gift buyers plan to do most or all of their shopping between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday.

Seth Godin famously said “Content marketing is the only marketing left.” This seems particularly true as we close in on another decade, and content marketing is more popular than ever. And for good reason. Content marketing costs 62% less than outbound marketing and generates three times as many leads. HubSpot, meanwhile, determined that marketers who prioritize blogging efforts are 13x more likely to see positive ROI. While content marketing can be powerful, that doesn’t mean it’s bulletproof.