Just as the holiday buzz in many regions starts to fade, Asia switches gears and enters Lunar New Year mode – one of the year's most important and widely celebrated events.
Chinese New Year, also called the Spring Festival, is a centuries-old celebration that lasts 15 days and originated in ancient agricultural traditions.
Historically, it symbolized the shift from winter to spring. People clean their homes to get rid of bad luck, close unfinished chapters, and get ready for a new cycle of prosperity and balance. It’s a time to reset habits, refresh routines, and start the year on the right foot.
Sounds like a dream scenario for marketers, right?
To get the full picture, we spoke with our China market experts and gathered everything you need to prepare properly – from top GEOs and winning verticals to traffic sources and funnel tweaks.
Let’s dive straight into Lunar New Year traffic.
Lunar New Year Campaigns
Before we begin, let’s introduce the experts who’ll be guiding us through the nuances of advertising during this festive season:
MaxJmac, PropellerAds Partner & Affiliate Marketer
Sam, Co-owner at Pantech Marketing Services
Natalia Gudimova, Team Lead of the China Team at PropellerAds
What GEOs Should You Target?
The first thing we asked was which GEOs advertisers and affiliates should prioritize. This part is crucial: CNY offers only really work if your audience actually celebrates the holiday and emotionally connects with it.
According to Sam, the primary focus should be Core Tier-1: Mainland China. It’s the heart of the celebrations (and competition), and that’s where CNY hype reaches its peak.
He also highlights a seasonal shift: during the holiday season, traffic often shifts away from 1st-tier cities toward 2nd- and 3rd-tier cities, as people travel back to their hometowns.
Outside Mainland China, several other GEOs consistently perform well: Southeast Asia – including Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Vietnam – as well as Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan. And beyond Asia, major Western cities like Sydney, San Francisco, London, and Vancouver can deliver solid volume thanks to large Chinese diaspora communities.
From PropellerAds’s perspective, Natalia narrows it down even further. For international-friendly offers such as e-commerce, utilities, and entertainment, she recommends scaling in Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
For Tier-3 GEOs, she points to diaspora-heavy markets that work particularly well for e-commerce, travel, and entertainment – namely Australia, Canada, the US, and parts of the EU, depending on the offer language and support.
Top Offers to Run During CNY
Chinese New Year is deeply tied to ideas of renewal and symbolism, which is why offers connected to gifting and “fresh start” themes tend to perform best.
Another key factor: during the holidays, people spend noticeably more time on their phones. They slow down, travel, socialize, and scroll far more than usual, which naturally leads to more impressions, more clicks, and more room to test lighter, entertainment-driven offers.
As Max explains:
“During CNY, people are basically in holiday mode. They’re not thinking long-term; they just want something fun, easy, or instantly rewarding. So stuff like e-commerce deals, casual games, and entertainment offers usually do really well.
For iGaming, if the GEO allows it, CNY is actually one of the strongest periods because people have time and they’re in a “let’s try my luck” mood. Anything that feels low-risk and quick to understand converts way better than complex offers.”
Sam adds that fortune-based messaging performs especially well during CNY, making Finance and Wealth Management a strong vertical. Gaming and Entertainment also see a surge, particularly in social and board games, which drive engagement and in-app purchases.
And of course, eCommerce takes center stage. Gifting ramps up significantly: premium electronics, curated gift boxes, and health products perform well. Fashion & Apparel follows closely, as people invest in new, festive outfits (often red) and upgrade to more premium items.
Sam highlights the strongest offer formats:
“Gift-Ready” Bundles, “Family Pack” Subscriptions, Digital Red Packet (Hongbao) Promotions (cashback, bonus credits), and “New Year Limited Edition” products. Offers that facilitate gifting or family sharing convert significantly better than generic individual discounts.”
Natalia agrees and adds insights based on PropellerAds’ long-term CNY data:
E-commerce: fashion, beauty, electronics, home (brands like Shopee, Shein, Temu)
E-travel: seasonal travel demand spikes (Booking.com, Trip.com)
Entertainment & content: streaming, news, YouTube, short-form video
Giveaways: red-packet psychology + gifting budgets (perfect for coupons, cashback, win-a-prize mechanics)
Which Traffic Sources Work Best?
Once GEOs and offers are locked in, the next question is traffic sources.
CNY is a season where low-attention, mobile-first traffic dominates. People are relaxed, scrolling in short bursts, and reacting more emotionally.
That’s why, as Max notes, push and pop traffic usually perform extremely well during CNY – users tend to make faster decisions in a holiday mindset.
Overall, the most reliable combo is Push + Pop:
Push works great for urgency and exclusivity – daily deals, countdowns, limited perks. Natalia calls it ideal for “time-boxed offers, fast testing, and reactivation.”
Popunder delivers cheap reach and fast scaling, especially during the pre-holiday shopping phase. Natalia points out it’s especially useful for broad e-commerce promos.
Social traffic can work too, particularly if you have strong creatives and localization. Even without direct buying, you can target social and Telegram audiences through PropellerAds and tap into high-quality holiday traffic.
Platforms like Douyin, Xiaohongshu, and WeChat dominate the space. Sam notes that festive, storytelling-style in-feed videos that showcase the product often perform exceptionally well.
A smart approach is audience collection: gather users on social platforms, then retarget them later through PropellerAds campaigns.
That said, expectations should stay realistic. As Max warns, competition and costs rise during CNY, making social less efficient for quick wins.
For promo- or reward-driven offers, Natalia also suggests Survey Exit, which can be surprisingly cost-effective during the holidays, as giveaway mechanics align perfectly with CNY themes of luck and rewards.
When Does CNY Traffic Peak?
Statista data shows that spending usually begins increasing about a week before the festival starts.
In practice, however, CNY traffic follows a clear three-wave pattern:
1. Prep Phase
The strongest conversion window happens before the holiday, when users are buying gifts, booking travel, shopping for festive outfits, and stocking up for family gatherings.
Sam calls this the “golden conversion period”, roughly 21 to 3 days before New Year’s Eve.
2. Holiday Period
During the holiday itself, purchases slow down, but engagement peaks. People spend more time on content, video, social, and entertainment apps.
Natalia notes that conversions here are often more spontaneous: impulse installs, quick deals, and strong performance from gaming offers due to massive traffic volume.
3. Post-CNY
After the holiday, traffic doesn’t disappear – it shifts. This phase is driven by people spending gifted money (red packets), returning to routines, and embracing the “new year, new me” mindset.
The first 7–14 days after CNY are ideal for retargeting, utilities, and clearance-style campaigns.
How User Behavior Changes During CNY
During CNY, users don’t just buy differently – they use apps differently.
The biggest change is time. As Max puts it: “People suddenly have a lot of it… and spend way more time on their phones.”
With that extra time comes a shift in decision-making. Users hesitate less, compare less, and click faster.
Shopping becomes gift-driven rather than self-focused, often resulting in higher AOV and last-minute rushes. Premium packaging, fast shipping, and easy returns matter more than usual.
App usage follows the same logic. Short videos, messaging, and gaming dominate. Productivity and work-related apps, on the other hand, see a noticeable drop.
Natalia also points out an important detail: installs often peak before the holiday, while usage and engagement spike during the break itself.
Creative Angles That Work Best
So how do you speak to a relaxed, scroll-happy audience?
Lunar New Year creatives perform best when they lean into luck, gifting, and limited-time urgency. Users are already primed to believe in good signs and grab seasonal deals: no need to overcomplicate the message.
Winning Creative Themes
Luck & Fortune
Naturally, this is the most intuitive hook. Phrases like “lucky price,” “prosperity deal,” or “red packet savings” resonate instantly. Visually, Sam recommends classic CNY symbols: red and gold, lanterns, dragons, money cats, and the 福 (Fu) character.
Gifting
Creatives framed around gifting outperform generic discounts. Messaging like “Perfect Gift for Parents” or “Share with Family” works especially well.
Urgency
The season already feels time-limited, so countdowns, “ends tonight,” and holiday-only promos feel natural and effective.
Year Symbol
Using the zodiac symbol of the year – the Year of the Horse – instantly makes creatives feel relevant and seasonal. Even premium brands rely heavily on this motif.
One caution: avoid heavy black or white designs (mourning associations) and steer clear of unlucky numbers like 4.
Funnel Adjustments That Convert
If there’s one golden rule for CNY funnels, it’s this: keep everything simple.
Users are distracted, mobile, and not interested in reading long explanations. As Max says, “One clear message, one main CTA.” If the value isn’t obvious immediately, they’ll move on.
That means:
Shorter funnels
Faster load times
Fewer steps and fields
Clear value proposition above the fold
Natalia recommends showing the discount + deadline on the first screen.
Pre-landers can work, but only if they add value. Sam suggests highly visual formats, such as curated gift lists or lightweight “Gift Finder” quizzes.
UX details matter more than ever. Reduce checkout friction, enable guest checkout, and support local payment methods such as AliPay, WeChat Pay, or GrabPay in SEA. Highlight shipping deadlines to capture last-minute shoppers.
Chinese New Year Campaign Essentials
GEOs: Mainland China, SEA (MY/SG/ID/VN/TH/PH), HK/Macau/Taiwan, diaspora markets (AU/CA/US)
Offers: eCommerce, travel, entertainment, content, giveaways, fortune-based finance
Traffic sources: Push for urgency, Pop for scale, In-App for engagement; social works, but costs more
Timing: Pre-CNY = conversions, Holiday = engagement, Post-CNY = retargeting
Execution: Simple creatives, luck/gifting/urgency angles, fast mobile funnels
Chinese New Year is a unique opportunity not only to run high-performing campaigns, but also to connect with Asian audiences in a way that feels authentic and timely. Align with the symbolism, match the holiday mindset, and your ads won’t just perform, they’ll feel like part of the celebration.
In addition, PropellerAds has prepared a special festive Bonus Giveaway exclusively for Chinese-speaking audiences. To participate, users need to join a WeChat group and complete a short form by February 13. The winners will be announced on February 16 on the official WeChat channel.
Happy Lunar New Year! 🧧
