Don't be fooled. A Christmas sale isn't going to offend anyone. The major brands are in a mad rush to play it safe, but that doesn mean anything in terms of numbers.

I have yet to see some real numbers that show using the word 'holiday' will get better results than using the word Christmas.

As a matter of fact, some people will go out of their way to deal with a company that still uses the word in their ads.

Marketing is about numbers...not about offending someone, and certainly not about following trends (unless it affects the numbers). If you can find the numbers that show 'holidays' works better, then that's what you use. But if it's all speculation, then go with whatever suits you...or your boss, if that's what is necessary.