Holiday & End-of-Year E-commerce Check-in
We’re in the thick of the shopping season. With retail sales highest during the holidays and with 2017 sales expected to increase 3-4% from 2016, it’s important to take stock of whether your company is maximizing the season’s potential. Here are some ideas you can still fold-in to take advantage of peak shopping!
End-of-Year Lists
Gift guides are always welcome by B2C shoppers—Everyone is wading through their lists of friends and family and everyone gets overwhelmed by the numbers of to-buys and options. Buying guides that put the best options front and center are effective because they help decrease the stress of holiday buying. Didn’t come up with a fancy gift-guide spread to start the holiday season? You can still create a quick gift guide by highlighting this season’s top-sellers, either on your site or via email.
B2B sales can focus on top-product lists too—B2B customers also benefit from end-of-year email reminders about top products. Show customers who have been considering upgrading or trying new products how well-performing those top products have been received.
Add Bonuses for Referrals
Your customers know that their friends and family are shopping right now too. What better time to encourage people to spread the word with referrals than the holidays? Even if you haven’t already planned a holiday-referral marketing campaign, there is still time to add bonuses to your existing incentive structure.
Boost Connection & Visibility with Media that Embraces the Holiday Spirit
Don’t think only about promoting your products at the end of the year. Media that focuses more generally on the season may not give customers information about a particular product, but can increase your customers’ feelings of connection to your brand and your brand’s visibility.
One of the best large-scale examples: REI’s #OptOutside campaign, for which REI retail stores closed on Black Friday but invited customers to share via social media what they did in the outdoors instead of shopping. The response was so large, the retailer is repeating the campaign this year and even The National Parks have gotten in on the hashtag.
If you haven’t already started, a large-scale campaign may have to be on the resolution list for next year. This year, make sure you’re reaching out to customers with festive wishes, add holiday elements to your website, and look for opportunities to jump into existing social media holiday chatter.
Use the Season to A/B test
You’re no doubt running a variety of campaigns this season, with multiple emails, ads, and discounts planned. This is the best time to track responses to different campaign styles. Identify a few Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and make a plan to compare your various types of holiday outreach.