The holiday season is a time where people's thoughts turn to giving, and a period where the instinct to be just that little bit more selfless is stronger than it might be at other times of the year. It's also a time where people's sharing activity increases. On Facebook for example, people share 28% more photos and videos on mobile during the festive season, so make sure that you stand apart from other seasonal messages by using visuals that not only encourage discovery and purchases, but also contain an emotional element.

In this post, I'll show you 5 real examples of brands who are tapping into the emotional side of their customers this Christmas, specifically with giveaways; maybe they will inspire you to try something similar, however big or small!

1. Tesco Mince Pies Giveaway

Mince pies are up for Grabs. If you see our mince pie van tweet us a pic including #HapPieChristmas! ! pic.twitter.com/0P7uocdO7O
— Tesco News (@TescoMedia) December 7, 2015

UK Supermarket Tesco is delivering 1,000 free boxes of its mince pies to random people across England, knocking on their doors and wishing them a merry Christmas. It's a simple gesture that spreads the festive spirit (and helps to promote the brand).

2. Carlsberg's beer-covered Christmas tree

Carlsberg decorated a giant Christmas tree on the banks of the river Thames in London with beer glass baubles, candle-lit beer bottles, digital festoon lighting and beer hops. The first 100 visitors to the tree were given one of the hand-blown glass beer baubles, or ‘beerbles’, from which to drink free Carlsberg lager.

Carlsberg also used the tree as an opportunity to host a social media giveaway:

Guess how many bottles on the tree by 4pm for your chance to win! 18+ & UK only, T&Cs apply: https://t.co/kTqBVAOd7F pic.twitter.com/e1J1IyU4aY
— Carlsberg UK (@CarlsbergUK) December 4, 2015

3. Harley Davidson's Trike giveaway

#NiceToBeNaughty
Posted by Harley-Davidson Australia on Sunday, December 6, 2015

Harley-Davidson's Australian arm is looking for the “most deserving kid in Australia” to give away a unique custom-built tricycle as part of its holiday social media marketing push. A link from its Facebook Page reads:

SOMETHING NICE FOR SOMEONE NAUGHTY

Milk-spillers, food-spitters and mud-trudgers rejoice - this year we're celebrating all those kids that are curious, rebelious and free-spirited!

We're giving a custom built Harley-Davidson trike to one lucky little minion of mayhem.

To enter, tell us in 100 words or less why your 3 - 6 year old deserves the most badass 3-wheeler in the Southern Hemisphere.

At the time of writing, the campaign video had racked up nearly 500,000 views and ver 6,000 shares.

4. Shangri-La's #worldofwarmth

The adventure begins. Our Christmas Star sets off to discover a #worldofwarmth, the start of a 25-day journey, to a wonderful place called Earth. Visit us daily from December 1 - 25 for a new episode in our animated Holiday Tale and the chance to win 2,000 Golden Circle Award Points. Here's how: 1️⃣ Screenshot the moment the Star glows with warmth and #regram 2️⃣ In the caption tell us who you want to share a #worldofwarmth with and why 3️⃣ Don’t forget to tag #worldofwarmth and @shangrilahotels Please refer to the Terms & Conditions in our bio.

A video posted by Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts (@shangrilahotels) on Nov 30, 2015 at 5:11pm PST

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts is spreading a #WorldOfWarmth among its Instagram community. Through an interactive advent calendar, it is offering its 32,000 followers a chance to win prizes for watching and interacting with brief Christmas videos. The continuity of the videos will encourage users to come back, which will in turn help the material go viral.

Each of the videos includes the Shangri-La Christmas star, which glows orange when it is held. Fans are encouraged to screenshot and regram the moment in which the star “glows with warmth” and tag #WorldOfWarmth and @ShangriLaHotels.

Participants have a chance to win 2,000 Golden Circle Award points - enough for a free night's stay at number of Shangri-La locations.

5. Three's Christmas Day Birthdays

The boy who was born on Christmas day
It sucks having a birthday in December right? Know anyone who does? Wish them a merry birthday.#makeitright
Posted by Three UK on Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Having a December birthday shouldn’t suck! Comment below with your name, December birth dateand #merrybirthday to win the BEST.BIRTHDAY.EVER!http://blog.three.co.uk/2015/12/09/merry-birthday/
Posted by Three UK on Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Mobile phone company, Three, has gone for a humorous slant with its marketing, tapping into the large group of people whose birthday's fall in December, or on Christmas Day - nothing worse than a combined birthday and Christmas gift!

Over to you

How will you be making the most of the holiday season in your social media marketing? Let me know in the comments below

Andrew Macarthy is a social media consultant and the author of the #1 Amazon Web Marketing Bestseller, 500 Social Media Marketing Tips.

Buy 500 Social Media Marketing Tips
Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007L50HE6
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007L50HE6

Follow Me:
http://www.fa cebook.com/50 0socialmediatips/
http://www.pinterest.com/andrewmacarthy
http://www.twitter.com/andrewmacarthy
http://www.youtube.com/5 00socialmediatips

Social Media Tips, Social Media Marketing Tutorials | Andrew Macarthy