Blurring the Lines: Why Integrated Campaigns Are the Future of Retail
Today's shoppers don’t think in channels — they flow between digital and physical without a second thought.
Shoppers expect fluidity. They expect to discover a product on social, see it showcased by a creator, find it on-shelf in-store and purchase it online for convenience.
To keep up, brands can't just connect the dots, they need to erase the lines entirely. That's where integrated omnichannel campaigns come in.
Forget "online" versus "offline." Modern marketing is about seamless experiences that showcase the right message at the right time, wherever your consumer shows up. Integrated campaigns are how brands build trust, stay relevant and move people from scroll to shelf and then back again. Here's how to do it right:
1. Create One Brand Voice — Everywhere
Consumers are bombarded with content. Consistency isn't a nice-to-have — it's how you break through. From social ads to shelf talkers and creator content, the experience should feel like one consistent conversation — not a series of disjointed ones.
Working with Kraft Heinz, SALT XC executed a national Festive campaign in partnership with Pinterest (Kraft Festive Program) that exemplified a unified brand experience. We wrapped a seasonal story across the Pinterest platform, social UGC, recipe content and physical retail POS touchpoints. Whether someone was "pinning" a Mini Eggnog Cheesecake or grabbing ingredients in-store at Loblaws, the brand message stayed cohesive, inspirational and craveable.
That kind of consistency builds recall and, more importantly, trust and relevancy.
2. Ride Culture in Real Time
The best campaigns don't just show up where people are, they show up when they care. Cultural timing and relevance are everything.
Case in point: In Kraft's Festive campaign, curated UGC recipe content didn't just look good, it inspired and converted. By syncing seasonal flavour trends with Pinterest’s forecast data, we developed and filmed recipes as they were trending — not weeks later. The result? 37.4 million impressions, a 21.5% sales lift for hero SKUs and engagement 2.5x the industry benchmark.
But it's not just about recipe content. Look at Reese's + Nougat collab with Canadian basketball star Lu Dort - a slam-dunk example of cultural crossover. Dort's defensive prowess inspired the "tough outside, soft inside" concept for a candy bar partnership, and it came to life across social and retail. It was fun, hyper-relevant and most importantly it moved product.
Being reactive isn't about rushing, it's about listening. Brands that monitor real-time shifts in conversation and engagement patterns can pivot faster, speak more authentically and drive conversion across every part of the shopper journey.
3. Design the Full Journey, Not Just the Launch
Great marketing isn't about a one-and-done activation. It's about building a cohesive journey that guides consumers from first impression to final purchase and beyond. It's about ensuring that the right message resonates with consumers where they are in their journey.
Integrated campaigns shine when every touchpoint feeds into the next. With the Kraft Festive Pinterest partnership, users saw branded pins that were native to the platform, clicked through to Instacart and then encountered the same recipes in-store with out of category POS. Digital drove discovery, retail sealed the deal.
Smart tech like QR codes, trackable links and loyalty data allowed for a trackable and measurable consumer journey. This avoids guesswork, enables learning and allows optimizations and iterations.
Final Thought: Integration Isn't a Buzzword — It's a Requirement
Shoppers aren't waiting for brands to catch up. They're already gliding between apps, aisles and inboxes. If brands are not there with them in a cohesive and compelling way, they're behind.
Whether brands are launching a holiday recipe program or hard launching a strategic celebrity partnership, the brands that win show up consistently, read the room culturally and close the loop across every screen and shelf.
Because integrated marketing isn't the future — it's the now.
About the Author: Sarah Young is senior strategic planner, shopper marketing, at SALT XC. She and the omni shopper team at SALT work with brands to bring their programs to life across online and retail channels.
