Specific takeaways from top creative campaigns of this year for your 2025 inspo

We’re almost there, guys.

If you’re like us, you’re tired. [More on that for our paid subscribers tomorrow!]

So we need content that grabs our attention, and that got us thinking about what an amazing year 2024 was for marketing. It feels like brand teams took inspiration from the 2023 Barbie-mania and ran with it. And that made things really fun, even in an otherwise challenging year.

Our marketing queen of the year is, obviously, 👑Sabrina Carpenter. Her strategy is a great example of how personal branding can drive buzz and engagement. From brand partnerships with Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, REDKEN, Skims, Marc Jacobs, and Supergoop to promoting her tour and music videos, she leaned into creative, audience-first strategies that made her campaigns impossible to ignore.

All of that culminated with a holiday special on Netflix, which put her right at the heels of Mariah Carey. Holiday content, even if it’s cheesy, has the ultimate ROI. If you do it right, people hit “play” on an annual basis.

You probably know that you’ve seen Sabrina pretty regularly this year, but when it’s all laid out like this, one thing is clear: it’s by design. She and her team have done an A+ job in diversifying her audience, and she’s the new blueprint for what it will mean to be an “entertainer” in 2025.

Beyond individual talent, brands like Heinz stood out by tapping into what sets them apart with “The Wait” campaign, which celebrated how diners are willing to wait longer for ketchup if it’s Heinz. Surreal Cereal nailed absurdist humor with its “Real People Named Cereal” series, generating conversations and word-of-mouth buzz. Meanwhile, Wicked’s pre-release campaign showed the power of well-timed teases and behind-the-scenes exclusives to sustain excitement. [And, needless to say, it worked.]

TLDR; The best campaigns of 2024 all had one thing in common: they connected with audiences in ways that felt natural and shareable. Whether it was through humor, nostalgia, or strategic partnerships, these campaigns leaned into creativity without feeling forced. They’re a reminder that strong cultural insights and a willingness to take risks pay off.