It doesn’t matter what big day you prepare for – Black Friday, Cyber Monday or any other day among the upcoming Holidays. The stats say the weekend after Thanksgiving is the greatest shopping event of the year.
According to the data of National Retail Federation the sales are expected to increase 3.7% (to $630.5 billion) this year, which is more than 1% higher than an average 10-year increase of 2.5%. Having such a significant numbers in mind huge retailers spend a lot of their annual marketing budget at this period. Being small or mid-sized business owner, you should find some creative, personalized and comparatively not very expensive ways to succeed in this rush. Today we will discuss nine ideas that might be useful for your business during the holiday season.
- Build up your Email Strategy
Email marketing is one of the best methods to inform your consumers about special holiday offers. If you want to get the maximum from this tool, think in advance about the ways of getting more emails from your prospective clients. For instance, you can update the signup copy with the phrases like “Signup for the best Holiday Deals” or “Cyber Monday Special Discounts for the subscribers only” etc. Such a phrasing will show the real value of the email subscription to your consumers and will help you to increase the list of users loyal to your brand. Make the updates as soon as possible. Remember, it will take some time to collect the data!
- Make your Business Mobile Friendly
According to the recent data 80% of consumers use smartphones to browse the internet (including product research prior to purchase). Think about having a mobile-optimized website, if you still do not have such. It will undoubtedly rise you above the competitors, not using the mobile. For small businesses, doing their first steps in mobile – holiday season can be a good time for the official renovation. Start with creating mobile-optimized versions of your holiday campaign landing pages.
Source: Smartinsights.com
- Use Social Networks
It is indisputably clear that social networks are your cornerstone in online marketing, but what are the differences for a holiday season?
– Launch special pre-Holiday topical contests. (It can also be a good way to collect consumers’ content for future marketing campaigns);
– Design images with discounts and special offers. Be sure to put the large type on the image, i.e. “50% off”, so that your followers won’t miss it;
– Offer additional discounts for “Likes” and “Shares”.
- Add Special Holiday Banners to Your Site
As houses and stores are decorated for the holidays, you should think about decorating your website as well. Make it easy to navigate by adding additional buttons and banners redirecting your consumers to the sections with special offers and holiday discounts. You can also make additional landing pages for the season and promote them actively through social networks and your email marketing campaign.
- Launch Retargeting Banners
Holiday season is your opportunity to get those loyal to your brand users back to your website to make a purchase. Retargeting Banners will help you to follow the target audience through the web showing them your holiday sale ads. Since those users have been to your website before, they are likely to come back, by clicking the ad and complete the purchase. All you need to do is to choose right a Retargeting Platform and a tool for your managed hosting. There are some advantages and disadvantages of using different kinds of platforms, so cooperate with your developer to choose the best option to meet your goals.
- Make Special Packages
Offer your consumers special holiday packages. Customers in this period are quite busy with getting everything done, so why not to offer them several options of holiday packages to solve part of the problems. In addition, your customers will be grateful for special offers for the sets of matching products packed according to the upcoming event. Combine products into sets based on the list of best-selling products and make sure you will have enough designed boxes, cases and gift-wrap.
- Make a Good and Touching Holiday Video
A creative and smart video can help your small business stand out from the crowd using a very little budget. Ideas value. Try to think out of the box to present your brand in a proper light according to the companies’ objectives, business goals and the target audience you work for. Remember to include the holiday ingredient and to share the video through social media and other relevant online platforms you use.
- Make an Additional Marketing Campaign on Pinterest
Pinterest is a great tool for holiday sales. The infographics by Shopify shows the customers coming from Pinterest spend in average 50$ more than those coming from any other social media platforms. Huge multinational brands use rich pins, however, you can still succeed without having a great marketing budget. Target your audience properly and try to be creative. You can also use some offers for Pinterest users exclusively, or for users of several social media, asking consumers to like and share your content.
- Make a Global Brand your Partner
Strategic partnership with a huge brand is kind of a win-win deal for both of you. The global brand is interested in getting a new audience for their store, at the same time, they can help you to strengthen the reputation of your brand and promote your company for a larger number of consumers. A good example here is the GAP and VSCO cooperation, where the global fashion retailer Gap partnered with the creative photo community VSCO to get the whiff of fresh air for their brand.
Lastly, Happy Holidays!
There is no need to have a huge budget for marketing and to compete with the global brands. With the upcoming shopping weekend, you can take these ideas into action or just for motivation. Get started with your campaign ASAP! Remember, your main feature is uniqueness and personal attitude towards each consumer.
We would like to hear about your own creative ways to promote your business during the holiday season.
