The Marketer's Guide to Win the Season
Executive Summary
Holiday 2025 presents a critical opportunity for marketers. Shoppers are approaching the season with caution, with 61% of U.S. shoppers indicating they are more selective with their spending due to concerns about the future. This shift leads to fewer spontaneous purchases and an increase in research-driven behavior.
Marketers face a complex season, tasked with achieving more with reduced budgets, maximizing ROI, and investing responsibly across channels. Delivering on the shopper's redefined definition of value – encompassing the right price, product confidence, and purchase convenience – is essential for success.
Marketers can take five key actions:
- Engage users early: Be present throughout the extended season, ensuring products and offers are visible where shoppers research.
- Highlight value in your product mix and make it discoverable: Emphasize long-term benefits and seasonal promotions in product descriptions and creative, making them visible across Search, Discover, and AI Overviews.
- Build trust and confidence through Search and Video: Optimize product visibility on shoppers' primary validation engines, Search and YouTube. Partner with trusted creators for validation.
- Deepen loyalty and nurture high-value customers: Strengthen relationships through personalized experiences and engagement.
- Remove friction across online and offline journeys: Ensure simple, seamless experiences from intent to purchase across all channels.
Effectively leveraging AI is crucial for success. Google's holiday AI essentials can help build strength across data, content, and performance, using AI to connect insights, scale creative, and drive smarter decisions.
This guide, drawing on research from Google, agency partners, brand leaders, and Economist Impact, equips teams to understand shifting consumer behavior, take specific actions, and maximize ROI using AI.
Chapter 1: The Holiday Shopper's New Value Equation
Shoppers are entering the holiday season with heightened caution, leading to fewer spontaneous purchases and an increase in research. They seek multiple viewpoints across their purchase journeys and rely on multimodal search, AI, and video from discovery to decision. Shoppers now define value through three core factors: price, product confidence, and purchase convenience.
The Deliberate, Research-Driven Shopper
The majority of U.S. holiday shoppers are highly research-driven online. 50% state they conduct the same amount of prepurchase research as the rest of the year, and a significant 38% report they do even more.
When shopping, shoppers increasingly prioritize deliberate choices:
- Spending more time to save money (51%) over spending more to save time or effort (35%).
- Planning purchases in advance (63%) over making purchases when the moment feels right (22%).
- Getting the best possible deal (53%) over buying what I want, when I want it (20%).
Shopper journeys are extended and complex, with a majority (61%) interacting with 5+ touchpoints. Google and YouTube are present in 86% of these journeys, more than any other online platform.
Shoppers are also searching more naturally using images, gestures, and conversation. Google Lens is used for over 25 billion visual searches monthly, with 1 in 5 showing commercial intent. AI Overviews are proving crucial for discovery; almost 1 in 3 consumers who saw an AI Overview discovered a new brand, product, or retailer through it. Video plays a powerful role, with 80% of U.S. viewers agreeing that YouTube helps them make more confident shopping decisions.
A visual example shows a search for "Best Science Kits of 2025" featuring sponsored products with prices, ratings, and delivery information, alongside descriptions of educational toys and robotic engineering kits.
The New Value Equation
Consumers define 'worth it' by validating choices across three key pillars:
The Entry Ticket: Right Price
Nearly half of holiday shoppers actively search for competitive prices and leverage major sales events. 32% are buying when they see a discount, and 30% spend more time looking for promotions.
A visual example shows a search for "Holiday matching sweaters" with options for nearby pickup, prices, ratings, and store hours.
The Differentiator: Product Confidence
Once price is validated, decisions hinge on quality, durability, and brand trust. Consumers turn to Google Search and YouTube as primary validation engines. 70% of social media users use Google Search to inform and evaluate products discovered on social media.
A visual example shows a "Matching Fair Isle Knit Vintage Sweater Set for Family" with price, rating, and local store information.
The Clincher: Purchase Convenience
Shoppers expect clear information, flexible payment, reliable delivery, and nearby pickup options. The majority of U.S. holiday shoppers engage in omnichannel behavior, with 92% searching online before store visits.
Compared to a year ago, the following factors have become more important in completing an online purchase:
- Price: Value for money (44%), Getting a fair price or discount (39%).
- Product Confidence: Good past experience with the brand (28%), Feeling confident that product matches my needs (27%), Reading positive customer reviews (26%), Positive past experience with the product (24%), Recognizing the brand (20%), Seeing that the product is recommended or trending (15%).
- Purchase Convenience: Fast and flexible delivery options (23%), Clear product info (20%), Knowing I can easily return or exchange the item (23%), Having a quick and seamless checkout (17%), Finding something that feels personalized or relevant (17%), Finding something I am searching for easily (11%).
Chapter 2: How to Win the Season
This season, marketers must maximize value with reduced budgets, deliver the highest possible ROI, and make responsible media investments. Winning requires engaging shoppers early, highlighting product value, building trust, deepening loyalty, and removing friction across journeys.
Five Strategies to Win the Season
- Engage Users Earlier in the Season
At least half of holiday shoppers make gift purchases from October through the new year. Brands must be present with offers. Google and/or YouTube are consistently used by 4 out of 5 holiday shoppers at any point during the season.
Recommendations include running always-on campaigns, highlighting long-term product value alongside promotions, and ensuring discoverability on Search, Discover, and AI Overviews by maintaining accurate Merchant Center feeds and structured data.
An industry example highlights Aritzia, which used AI-powered campaigns across YouTube, Demand Gen, Search, and Performance Max to deliver record-breaking results, including a 42% lift in e-commerce net revenue.
A chart illustrates that purchase activity is spread throughout the season, with daily purchase percentages remaining significant from October through January.
- Highlight Value and Make Products Discoverable Across Key Surfaces
It's critical to establish value across budgets and product categories. Highlight long-term value in product descriptions and creative, alongside holiday offers. Ensure brand visibility on Search, Discover, and AI Overviews by keeping product feeds accurate across your website, Merchant Center, and structured data. Create engaging content for high-intent seasonal queries on conversion surfaces like landing pages or YouTube.
Industry inspiration: Boll & Branch used Performance Max to showcase product bundles, driving 2X sales year over year during Cyber Weekend and 130% growth in new customers on Google platforms.
- Build Trust and Confidence Through Search and Video
Beyond price, shoppers need proof. Search is the number one way shoppers confirm facts like quality, durability, good reviews, and brand reputation. YouTube was ranked as the number one choice for product reviews and information by all consumers, including millennials and Gen Zs.
Recommendations include using sale price and promotions in Shopping results, tailoring video creative by context (Shorts for inspiration, livestreams for Q&As, longform for deep dives), and partnering with trusted creators, as 82% of U.S. viewers agree YouTube has the most trusted creators.
Industry inspiration: Thumbtack diversified beyond Search by experimenting with YouTube and Demand Gen, achieving a 2X return on ad spend (ROAS) and a 3.5% lift in service requests.
A visual example shows a YouTube search result for "The best vintage holiday finds for all budgets | Gifting guide" with suggested products.
- Deepen Loyalty and Nurture High-Value Customers
The holiday season is as much about retention as acquisition. Re-engaging and rewarding loyal shoppers drives efficiency and long-term growth. Recommendations include retaining customers through deliberate engagement, personalizing experiences with member-only pricing or shipping benefits surfaced directly in Google listings, and connecting offline outcomes with online campaigns through Data Manager.
Industry inspiration: L'Oréal elevated its search strategy using AI Max features, resulting in a 27% lift in conversion value and a 20% boost in ROAS.
- Remove Friction Across Online and Offline Journeys
A strong offer won't convert if the path to purchase is complex. Shoppers expect seamless convenience wherever they choose to buy. Optimize campaigns to drive shoppers in-store by promoting local deals and pickup options with geotargeted ads. For online purchases, simplify checkout, highlight shipping speeds, and offer flexible returns. For in-store, keep local inventory and store details accurate by linking Google Business Profile with Merchant Center.
Industry inspiration: Jeep focused on creative optimization with Performance Max to boost efficiency, delivering a 133% increase in lead volume while reducing cost per lead by 43%.
Chapter 3: Your Holiday AI Essentials Checklist
Holiday 2025 may be the first truly AI-powered season for many marketers. To compete, teams need to activate AI across three core strengths: data, content, and performance. This checklist highlights immediate actions for holiday results and lays the foundation for 2026.
AI Data Strength
Identify high-value shoppers and gain confidence in ad spend with first-party data and measurement. Maintain shopping feeds by analyzing performance data and updating product attributes in Merchant Center. Connect first-party data (website, CRM) in Data Manager to unlock new signals. Measure incrementality with experiments across campaign types in Google Ads. Optimize budget with Meridian and Budgeting Tool in Google Analytics. Leverage the Commerce Media suite to convert customer intent into action.
AI Content Strength
Supercharge AI with strong content and creative assets. Create original, user-focused content for paid media and leverage Creator Partnerships. For SEO in the AI era, craft helpful content, measure true value, aid crawlers, and build quality with AI. Develop enhanced shopping content directly in Merchant Center using AI-powered image and video generation. Shape your visual brand profile on Search. Utilize Video reach and Video views campaigns on YouTube.
AI Performance Strength
Engage and convert shoppers with high intent using AI-powered campaigns. Advertisers adopting Performance Max alongside Demand Gen and Search campaigns see a median of 22% more conversions/conversion value at a similar CPA/ROAS. Activate AI Max for Search campaigns to drive performance on new queries and expand reach to AI surfaces with personalized creatives. Optimize Performance Max with asset best practices, final URL expansion, and new campaign controls. Enable brand discovery with new shoppable formats. Set up Lookalike segments and adopt video enhancements for Demand Gen campaigns. Use channel controls to customize your media mix and the new customer acquisition goal.
Agentic AI
Encourage teams to harness agentic capabilities for personalized help from AI assistants in Google Ads and Analytics, and across the web.
Sources
- Google-commissioned Ipsos Consumer Continuous Study, U.S., n=1,003 online consumers 18+, June 4, 2025 – June 10, 2025.
- Google-commissioned Ipsos Holiday Shopping Study, U.S., Oct. 2023 – Jan. 2024.
- Google/Ipsos, Global Consumer Journeys, online survey, n=5,303 new product purchases, n=6,416 new brand purchases, n=4,213 purchases from new retailers, Dec. 2024.
- Google/Ipsos, Global Consumer Journeys, Dec. 2024.
- Google Internal Data, April 2025.
- Google/Ipsos, Vertical Consumer Journeys, U.S., July 2025.
- Google/Kantar, Future of Video, U.S., Jan. 2025 – Feb. 2025.
- Google commissioned Ipsos Consumer Continuous, U.S., n=670 online consumers 18+ who plan to shop for the holidays. June 4, 2025 – June 10, 2025.
- Google-commissioned Economist Impact Future of Retail Marketing survey, July 2025 – Aug. 2025.
- Google-commissioned Ipsos Active/Passive Shopping Survey, March 2023 – April 2023.
- Google-commissioned Ipsos Holiday Shopping Study, U.S., online survey, n=8,465 consumers 18+ who conducted holiday shopping activities, Oct. 10, 2024 – Jan. 8, 2025.
- Google-commissioned Ipsos Holiday Shopping Study, online survey, AU, BR, CA, FR, DE, MX, UK, US, consumers 18+ who conducted holiday shopping activities: 2019 (n=28,181) – 2024 (n=37,151), Oct. 10, 2024 – Jan. 8, 2025.
- Traackr 2025 Influencer Marketing Impact Report, U.S., n = 1,000 individuals surveyed, Sept. 2024.
- Google/Kantar, Future of Video, U.S., n=1,001 YouTube viewers, n=2,160 weekly video viewers 18–64, Jan. 28, 2025 – Feb. 10, 2025.
- Google Internal Data, Search campaigns include campaigns that use AI Max for Search, June 2025 – July 2025.
