It may not be Thanksgiving yet, but brands are fully in the holiday spirit with their newest campaigns. Dive into the season with us and catch up on the latest news in our Weekly Must Reads.

All I Want for Christmas Is McDonald’s

McDonald’s just partnered with perhaps its largest celebrity guest yet – the queen of Christmas herself, Mariah Carey. Beginning December 13, the Mariah Menu will come to McDonald’s locations across the US, offering a free menu item for 12 straight days leading up to December 25. Each item will come in festive, Mariah-inspired holiday packaging, and can be earned with any purchase of $1 or more through the McDonald’s app.

Last year, McDonald’s ran a similar promotion during the holiday season, offering free items daily through their app. However, last year, the deals were endorsed by different holiday icons, including Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph and Scrooge. Learn more about Mariah’s latest holiday venture here: https://adage.com/article/marketing-news-strategy/mariah-carey-will-promote-mcdonalds-holiday-meal-giveaway/2379541

Cameos from Santa

As part of its revamped “Real Magic” brand platform, Coca-Cola has launched a new holiday campaign in collaboration with Cameo, the video messaging app. The campaign, called “Real Magic at Christmas,” encourages consumers to use Coke’s “holiday hub” to request personal video messages from Santa Claus himself. Additionally, Coke, Cameo and Santa are co-hosting a virtual event, where Mr. Claus will introduce Coke’s new holiday ad, which reportedly will feature community members using recycled cardboard boxes to build a “chimney” during Christmas.

The partnership with Cameo makes sense for Coca-Cola, who has been focused on personalized interactions with its audience for years. Coke has also regularly used Santa in its holiday advertisements, though this is the first time the brand has helped bring the icon directly to consumers. Find out more details about the partnership here: https://www.marketingdive.com/news/coke-partners-with-cameo-to-gift-personalized-videos-from-santa/609717/

Chase Reimagines Home Alone

Catherine O’Hara and Kevin are back in their Home Alone roles this holiday season – except this time, there’s a new Kevin left behind. In Chase’s first holiday ad, Kevin Hart takes on the role opposite O’Hara, who played Kevin’s mom Kate McCallister in the original film. Of course, in this version, Kevin is accidentally left alone, and O’Hara has to tear through a department store to find him. When she finally spots Kevin, we discover he was “busy cash backing” on new holiday décor for the house.

The holiday ad follows Chase’s recent emphasis of cash back, which has been the focus of most of their ads this year. According to Chase spokespeople, cash back can make holiday shopping “a bit more joyful,” as they save money while purchasing gifts for their loved ones. Watch the new ad here: https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/catherine-ohara-loses-kevin-hart-in-chases-home-alone-throwback-holiday-ad/?itm_source=parsely-api

Instagram’s New Link Sticker

Recently, Instagram rolled out a long-awaited feature to all its users: link stickers for Stories. Now, any Instagram user can use this sticker in their Story to provide a direct link to a webpage of their choice. Though this function was previously available to verified creators and businesses, it hadn’t been widely accessible until now. According to Instagram, it took them longer to roll out the feature to everyone because they were worried it could negatively affect the app’s integrity and make it easier to spread misinformation.

The addition of the link sticker to Instagram Stories will further enhance the app’s relationship to e-commerce, making it easier for users to find and purchase products through any creator. For now, though, link sharing is still limited to Stories, as regular posts still don’t support direct links. Catch up on all the latest Instagram news here: https://techcrunch.com/2021/10/27/instagram-rolls-out-the-ability-for-all-users-to-share-links-in-stories-via-link-stickers/