The cold weather has crept up on us and Christmas and the New Year are fast approaching. For those of us who run online stores, this time of year is often when it starts to get busier and busier as people begin to get into the swing of shopping for the important annual holidays. You will want to make sure that your business is fully prepared for the busy shopping season ahead – not only will that make things easier for you as the influx of orders gets larger, but it’ll also ensure that your customers have a smooth, pleasant experience that will encourage them to come back for more at other times of the year. We’ve put together some ideas and tips to help you cope with the busy period and successfully market your brand during seasonal periods to ensure that you continue to surprise and delight your customers.
#1. Surprise Potential Customers:
In the run-up to Christmas you’re probably going to find more and more potential customers visiting your site – after all, now’s the time when people start browsing for gift ideas and trying to find the best deals on the products that they want to buy for their nearest and dearest. Pop-up voucher codes are a great way to do this; on random days of the week, display a pop up informing potential new customers that they’ll get a discount on that day only; this can create a feeling of exclusivity and drive many lurkers on your site to become existing customers. After all, who doesn’t love getting started early with their Christmas shopping, and getting a discount on it too!
#2. Send Perfectly Crafted Seasonal Marketing Emails:
It’s that time of year when most people have begun to think about getting prepared for Christmas, and what better way to remind them that you’re there for them then a perfectly crafted seasonal marketing email! You could curate lists of your products that make the best gifts by recipients, offer tips on choosing gifts for certain people, or when it comes to existing customers, use their shopping trends from last Christmas to come up with a personalized list of suggestions that they might like for this year. They will certainly appreciate the efforts that you’ve put in to help make their Christmas shopping experience go as smoothly as possible.
#3. Entice Customers With Minimum Spend Offers:
Christmas shopping is that one time of year when most people will spend more than they usually would in a single transaction. And when it comes to shopping online, it can be very satisfying to get a huge chunk of your gift shopping out of the way at one online store. Minimum spend offers are a great way to encourage your customers to buy more of their gifts from you – deals such as getting 10% off if they spend over $40, for example, will encourage them to add more gifts to their basket.
#4. Offer Free Shipping:
If you don’t already offer it, consider offering free shipping throughout the Christmas period. If you already have a free shipping option, a Christmas special of free next day delivery can be a great idea to make your brand stand out from the competition at this busy time of year and encourage your customers to choose your shop above others. When it comes to Christmas shopping, many people want to avoid going out to the crowded high street shops but begrudge paying shipping costs that can easily add up when shopping online, so make their experience amazing by taking this worry away.
#5. Save Last-Minute Shoppers:
There are two types of people in the run-up to Christmas – those who like to have everything bought, wrapped and put aside months in advance, and those who are scrambling to get the perfect gifts mere days before Christmas Day. It’s a good idea to cater for both kinds of shoppers – along with free next-day delivery, make sure that you have plenty of stock to ensure that last-minute shoppers don’t miss out and send tailored marketing emails closer to the holiday to remind anyone rushing to get everything in on time that you’re still there for them. Electronic gift card options can also be a great idea for anybody who’s really pushed for time; they can send them to the recipient via email or instant messaging – a great idea if there’s no chance of getting a gift shipped on time.
#6. Engage on Social Media:
Upping your engagement levels on social media is crucial for the holiday period as, after all, this is where thousands of your customers are going to be, and they’ll probably have Christmas shopping on their mind when scrolling through their newsfeeds. Curate carefully written blog posts recommending your products for various recipients and post them to social media with an interesting caption; this will encourage your followers to click through on to your website and take a look at the products that you have linked to. When it comes to social media, it’s not only important to advertise products but also provide some advice and guidance – after all, Christmas shopping isn’t always an easy task when you’re trying to get the perfect gift for everybody.
#7. Start Early:
When it comes to preparing your store for seasonal marketing and the big Christmas rush, starting as early as possible will ensure that you have enough time to get everything prepared and make sure that you can best serve your customers at this time. There’s a reason why the big stores start planning their Christmas campaigns right at the beginning of the year! And, take note of what you did last year – look at the statistics to see what worked well, and what can be avoided for better results this time around.
Christmas is one of the biggest and busiest times of the year for most e-commerce stores, but with so much competition out there, it’s important to put in the work to ensure that your customers choose you for their Christmas shopping.