{"id":530532763,"date":"2026-01-12T17:39:51","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T22:39:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/contently.com\/?p=530532763"},"modified":"2026-01-21T15:08:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T20:08:36","slug":"content-strategy-2026-holiday-lessons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/contently.com\/2026\/01\/12\/content-strategy-2026-holiday-lessons\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s Working in Content for 2026? What the Holiday Season Taught Us"},"content":{"rendered":"

By many accounts, this past holiday season was a banner year for brands. Adobe Analytics <\/a>found that 2025’s holiday spending hit record highs, despite slower growth than the 2023\u20132024 season. Overall, online spending from the start of November through the end of December hit $258 billion (6.8% YoY) in 2025.<\/p>\n

Behind those millions of searches, clicks, saves, and sign-ups are real signals that show exactly what audiences care about and how they engage. For example, retail sites saw a 693% surge in traffic<\/a> tied to AI-powered shopping assistants and chatbots this year. That kind of growth suggests shoppers are becoming more comfortable letting AI do the comparison shopping for them. Buy now, pay later<\/a> also became an even more popular option, implying that shoppers were looking for ways to make bigger purchases feel manageable.<\/p>\n

January is your opportunity to harness those insights or let them languish. This guide looks back at what worked during the holidays and how to use those insights to plan more effectively for 2026 and beyond.<\/p>\n

What People Searched for in December (and Why It Matters Now)<\/h2>\n

December queries are shaped by the year people just lived through. Sometimes, they signal indulgence; other times, restraint.<\/p>\n

Google\u2019s Holiday 100<\/a> trends, for instance, made a few patterns clear. In 2025, search interest clustered around practical gift categories: things like movie projectors, weighted vests, kids\u2019 scooters, and backpacks. At scale, that mix suggests steady demand for items that solve everyday needs and feel worth the spend.<\/p>\n

In addition to category interest shifts, broader consumer behavior illuminated how people actually made decisions across the season:<\/p>\n