TT5 #5: Selling the Season
Social Media That Sells: How to Turn Festive Followers into Buyers
Previously on TT5…
In The Great Bounce Back, we explored how to keep momentum high post-Christmas with clever campaigns, gamification ideas, and tactics to drive January visits.
Now, in Selling the Season, we’re shifting the spotlight to social media and diving into how hospitality operators can create content that converts, build audiences that stick, and use smart paid activity to drive festive gifting. To guide us through it, Holly is joined by Natalie Dunning, CEO & Founder of Kitch — the specialist social agency for hospitality, food and drink.
Meet Kitch: Social Experts for Hospitality
Kitch specialises in helping hospitality brands grow through authentic, engaging social media. From premium restaurants to neighbourhood bars, their work focuses on community-building, platform-native content and strategies that drive real-world action.
Natalie brings years of experience crafting campaigns that turn attention into bookings, engagement into loyalty, and followers into festive spenders.
Creating Festive Content Without a Big Budget
Natalie’s first message: great content doesn’t require a huge photoshoot.
Some of the most effective seasonal posts come from:
- Simple iPhone footage
- Staff-led content that feels real and warm
- Atmospheric venue clips that showcase your brand naturally
- Quick Reels and TikToks built on trends or personality
- Up-close food & drink shots with clear storytelling
What matters most is authenticity — not perfection.
Where to Spend: Put Budget Into Meta Ads
When it comes to paid activity, Natalie’s recommendation is clear: Meta is your best friend for driving festive conversions.
To get the best results:
- Use CRM data to build warm custom audiences
- Create lookalikes based on recent buyers
- Keep creatives simple, bold and focused on gifting
- Avoid spreading budget across too many platforms
With strong targeting, small budgets go a long way.
Engagement Is the Real Metric
Natalie emphasises that high engagement is more powerful than high reach. The more comments, shares and conversations your content sparks, the more the platform amplifies it.
Simple ways to increase engagement during gifting season include:
- Asking questions
- Using polls or interactive stickers
- Showcasing behind-the-scenes content
- Highlighting team moments
- Encouraging user-generated content (UGC)
Engaged audiences convert — especially when it comes to gift cards.
Using Social to Drive Gifting
A crucial part of Selling the Season is helping customers visualise the gift.
Natalie recommends:
- Showing the experience, not just the voucher
- Highlighting “For Two” and package-based gifts
- Building video content around “perfect presents”
- Running countdown content to key dates
- Using Stories to spotlight limited offers or low-stock items
Social media should make gifting feel easy and irresistible.
Laying the Groundwork for January
Even in peak season, your social strategy should look ahead.
Natalie suggests:
- Tagging festive buyers for retargeting
- Collecting UGC to repurpose in January
- Building content pillars that roll into New Year campaigns
- Planning soft-launch content for January offers
- Using paid remarketing to bring gift card purchasers back in
Sell the season now and set up your next wave of visits.
Final Thoughts
Selling the Season is all about making social work harder for your business. With the right blend of authentic content, smart targeting and community engagement, social media becomes a powerful driver of gifting and a springboard into January.
