These Were the 4 Best Marketing Campaigns in January 2025

When it comes to makeup, Glossier’s cult following is undisputed. The brand’s reputation was only strengthened by its recent marketing campaign that marked the launch of its Black Cherry Collection.

The campaign went beyond social media and featured multiple in-person experiences. This included mall pop-ups packed with instagrammable photo booths and freebies, as well as an exclusive New York supper club that raised funds for those impacted by the LA wildfires.

All of Glossier’s marketing efforts, be it in person or on social media, were tied together by its clever use of color. The bold cherry red motif wasn’t just eye-catching, but on trend too, appearing in the recent Pinterest Predicts round-up as one of the colors shaping 2025.

• What to take away from the campaign: Don’t underestimate the power of color. Think carefully about color theory when designing your brand’s marketing materials, and consider how you want your choice of color to make your target audience feel.

When RedNote surged in popularity after news of the TikTok ban, Duolingo also saw a huge spike in users taking Mandarin lessons. According to official data from the language learning app, it experienced a 216% increase in American users joining Duolingo to learn Mandarin compared to last year.

But how did the green owl respond? Well, with as much humor as you’d expect. To capitalize from RedNote’s popularity, Duolingo took to its key social media platforms – like TikTok, Instagram, and X – to create eight pieces of funny content that directly addressed what was happening. 

After the marketing team got to work and jumped on the trend, Duolingo’s posts were trending across social media platforms in the US in less than 24 hours.

• What to take away from the campaign: Use the unexpected to your advantage. If you’re stuck in the middle of the latest pop culture phenomenon, don’t be afraid to poke fun of the situation in your social media content (but make sure that it’s an appropriate fit for your brand identity first).

Though the Super Bowl airs on February 9, the marketing campaigns leading up to the event have already been at full force. In particular, Doritos has made waves by bringing back a much-loved campaign from 2006. 

Its “Crash The Super Bowl” campaign invites fans of the brand to create their own 30-second ad for the Super Bowl. From an official Doritos website (“doritoscrash.com”), users can then vote for their favorite ad, with the winning submission being shown during the Super Bowl!

By bringing back a memorable campaign and encouraging fans to express their creativity, Doritos has generated plenty of buzz before the big game.

• What to take away from the campaign: User-generated content is an effective strategy. If you’re lacking the resources to create a huge marketing campaign, you could always get your audience involved and use their content to your advantage.

To promote the new “Peptide Lip Shape” from Hailey Bieber’s beauty line, Rhode, Bieber took us back to the 90s. The ad campaign also featured a star studded line-up, which appealed to the brand’s youthful, trend-conscious audience.

The advertising photography referenced a famous 90s Versace campaign, which saw the era’s biggest supermodels posing in cropped jumpers and metallic miniskirts. In Bieber’s homage, she had pop star Tate McRae and models like Yoon Bae pose in a similar way.

By combining a nostalgic reference and choosing strategic celebrity partnerships, Bieber has been able to keep the hype over her slow beauty brand alive. 

• What to take away from the campaign: Nostalgia is a powerful tool. If you can pay homage to a pop culture reference that you know your audience will enjoy, it’s worth a shot.

You’ve now seen our top marketing campaigns of 2025, but do you have your own favorite you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments. If you’re also thinking about creating your own marketing campaign, you should have plenty of inspiration now. Think about how you can appeal to your target audience’s needs, whether that’s through a strategic use of color, comedy, creativity, or nostalgia.