Holiday Traditions & Brand Legacies: 5 Marketing Initiatives That Build Lasting Connections

There’s something magical about holiday traditions. As we approach this festive season, I’ve been thinking about how the warmth of familiar customs mirrors something we strive for every day in marketing – that feeling of connection, trust, and lasting impact.

The Power of Tradition: More Than Just Custom

You know that cozy feeling you get when your family pulls out the same old recipe card, slightly stained and worn at the edges? That’s tradition in action. By definition, tradition is “the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation.” But in practice? It’s so much more. It’s the thread that weaves through time, connecting past to present, making us feel secure, joyful, and part of something bigger.

Stories from the Heart: Holiday Traditions in Action

The Marketri team recently shared some of their cherished holiday traditions, and let me tell you, they’re as diverse as our strategies! Take Jen Marino’s family, who celebrates with the Feast of the Seven Fishes – a beautiful Italian-American Christmas Eve tradition. Or Tracy Grzybowski’s family, who shares the meaningful Polish custom of breaking oplatek, those thin, symbolic wafers that carry centuries of heritage. Then there’s Brittany Heberlein’s family, keeping the magic alive with Saint Nicholas Day celebrations on December 6th.

The Marketing Connection: Building Brands Like Traditions

Here’s where it gets interesting: marketing, at its core, isn’t so different from these beloved traditions. Think about it – both rely on consistency, repetition, and emotional connection. Just like holiday customs, strong brands build their reputation through consistent experiences that create lasting memories.

Remember those Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips? As a child of the ’70s and ’80s, the mere mention of Tollhouse cookies brings back a flood of memories – even the slightly burnt bottoms from my early baking adventures. That’s the holy grail of marketing: creating a brand that becomes part of people’s stories.

When Traditions Meet Strategy: The Long Game

But here’s the catch – just like you can’t create a family tradition overnight, you can’t build a lasting brand with short-term thinking. In today’s digital maze, it takes 15-20 touchpoints just to reach “top of mind” awareness. One batch of seven fishes doesn’t make a tradition, just like one campaign won’t build a brand.

Building Your Marketing Traditions: A Five-Point Plan

As we wrap up this year and look toward the next, let’s commit to treating our marketing efforts with the same reverence as our holiday traditions. Here’s how:

1. Craft Quarterly Content Masterpieces: Commit to creating five exceptional pieces throughout the year, each one a testament to your thought leadership. I’m talking about content that’s infused with creativity, packed with insights from your best minds, and wrapped in your brand’s visual identity. Each piece should speak directly to a specific persona and vertical market. Here’s the key: never take shortcuts, never just check boxes. Make each piece so good it becomes a resource your audience returns to again and again.
2. Launch Your Signature Charity Event: Let me share something that worked brilliantly for one of my clients. They started an in-office miniature golf tournament and happy hour for charity. Sure, the first few years saw light turnout, but it grew into a 15-year tradition that raised over $250,000 for various non-profits. Beyond the community awards and press coverage, it became something their team looked forward to each year. Former employees would come back, bringing colleagues and friends. That’s the power of creating your own branded tradition that serves both community and company.
3. Develop a Classic Ad Campaign: This is where you get to blend old-school creativity with modern tools. Start by crafting a clever slogan that highlights your key benefit. Use generative AI to test variations, then get your team involved in selecting the best options. But here’s the crucial part – invest in professional creative direction. We’re talking way beyond a basic Canva design. Test your concepts with top clients, then roll out a multi-channel strategy that runs for at least six months. Make it an annual tradition, using performance metrics to refine and improve each year.
4. Host Executive Roundtables: Yes, this is a heavy lift, but the rewards are worth it. Picture this: bringing together leadership from your top 15 clients and prospects for a fully paid, two-day facilitated exchange. One of my clients did exactly this, adding premium dinners and activities to create an environment where executives could learn from peers in a non-salesy setting. It became their annual must-attend event, with executives choosing it over traditional conferences. High risk? Absolutely. High reward? Even more so.
5. Start a Quality Podcast: This isn’t just about jumping on the podcast bandwagon. It’s about creating a mobile university for your audience – content they can consume while walking the dog or hitting the treadmill. But remember, this is a serious commitment. You’re looking at planning, practicing, shooting, editing, and distributing – and it all needs to be exceptional quality. The payoff? An opt-in audience that chooses to spend time with your brand, leading to lower media spending and higher quality engagement. Commit to at least monthly episodes, and watch your audience grow with each passing season.

The Gift of Long-Term Thinking

Notice what’s missing here? No quick-hit email blasts. No spray-and-pray LinkedIn messages. No AI-generated content soup. While these tools have their place, they shouldn’t overshadow the fundamental marketing principles that build lasting connections.

This holiday season, as you’re surrounded by the warmth of your family traditions, take a moment to reflect. Feel that satisfaction, that sense of continuity and meaning. That’s exactly what we should aim for in our marketing efforts – creating experiences that resonate, remain, and become part of people’s stories.

So, here’s my holiday wish for you: Choose one substantial marketing initiative and commit to making it your new tradition. Give it time to grow, to evolve, to become part of your brand’s legacy. After all, the best traditions – and the best marketing – are built on patience, persistence, and heart.

What marketing tradition will you start this year?