How to make Meta ads work during the holiday season

From October to January, Meta ads get harder. Big retailers pour money into the same audiences you're trying to reach, costs usually climb through November and feeds fill up with sale ads that all look the same.

That doesn't mean small and growing brands can't win. It means the approach that works in March won't work in November. Here are eight things that make the difference.

1. Start before everyone else

The most important holiday decision happens in October.

Ads are usually cheaper before the sale season peaks. Use that window to build warm audiences: people who've watched your videos, engaged with your posts, visited your site or joined your email list. When the sales start, you sell to people who already know you, which is far cheaper than finding strangers when prices are highest.

Do this: run engaging, low-cost content from early to mid October: how-to videos, reviews, behind-the-scenes and founder stories. Pair it with an "early access" offer to grow your email and SMS list.

2. Know your numbers before you discount

Discounts feel like the obvious holiday move, but they shrink your profit per order and raise the return you need from ads just to break even.

Work out your break-even ROAS (order value ÷ profit per order before ad costs) at both full price and your planned sale price. That tells you the most you can afford to pay Meta for a sale. The BFCM playbook walks through a worked example.

Then consider offers that protect margin: bundles, gifts with purchase, spend thresholds and free shipping over a set amount often beat a deep sitewide discount.

3. Sell the gift, not just the product

In December, many people aren't buying for themselves. Your ads should help them solve a gifting problem.

Gift guides: "For the person who has everything", "For new mums", "For the gym lover"
Price-point ads: "Gifts under $50" or "Stocking fillers under $25"
Gift-ready details: wrapping, gift cards, easy returns and delivery dates, shown clearly in the ad and on the page

4. Make more creative than you think you need

Holiday audiences see a lot of ads, and yours will wear out faster than usual. Plan for volume and variety:

3–5 variations per offer, with different hooks
Separate creative for each phase: warm-up, sale launch, last chance, gifting, Boxing Day
Vertical 9:16 for Reels and Stories, plus 4:5 for feed
At least one creator (UGC) style video that feels native to the feed
The offer in the first second during sale periods, because that's when the offer is the hook

Upload and get sale ads approved before each event starts, so nothing is stuck in review on launch day.

5. Scale carefully, and stop fiddling

When a sale is going well, it's tempting to double budgets overnight or change campaigns constantly. Both can make results worse.

Raise budgets in steps and watch cost per purchase after each increase.
Avoid big edits during peak days. Heavy changes can reset Meta's learning.
Check results on a schedule, for example morning and evening, instead of reacting to every hour.
Watch frequency on warm audiences, and rotate creative when it climbs.

6. Use honest urgency

Urgency works in the holidays, as long as it's real.

Christmas shipping cut-offs are a genuine reason to buy now. Check your carrier's dates and show them clearly.
Sale end dates must be true. Under Australian Consumer Law, fake countdown timers, invented scarcity and "was" prices you never actually charged can mislead customers.
Low stock messages should only appear when stock really is low.

7. Don't forget Boxing Day and January

In Australia, the season doesn't end at Christmas.

Boxing Day (26 December) is a major sale day. Plan creative and offers before you break for Christmas.
Late December and early January often bring people shopping with gift cards and holiday money.
January is the time to turn holiday buyers into repeat customers with a welcome flow and a second-purchase offer.

Schedule these before the break, so your ads keep working while you're away.

8. Measure profit, not just ROAS

Meta's reported results usually look better than reality in busy periods, because some sales would have happened anyway. To see what's really working, track:

MER: total store revenue ÷ total ad spend, across all channels
New vs returning customers: are you growing, or just discounting existing buyers?
Profit: revenue minus product cost, shipping, fees and ad spend
Your store data vs Meta's, noting the attribution window when you compare

Quick holiday checklist

Need a hand this season?

Start with our free BFCM playbook. If you want us to run it, the BFCM Sprint covers six weeks of Meta ads for a fixed fee, or book a free audit and we'll show you the three biggest fixes for your account before the rush.