In 2022, online shopping is the norm. It’s essential to prepare your business to handle the holiday shopping flux, serve your current customers with excellence and “wow” new customers! Your digital marketing can be the thing that makes your business cut through the holiday noise and bring in new customers.
First, here are the important 2022 holiday shopping dates your business needs to be ready for:
Give Your Website a User-Experience and Holiday Makeover!
Having a seamless online customer shopping experience is a must during the holidays. Your website should be easy to navigate, have eye-catching designs and offer a safe and secure checkout.
Outfitting your website for the holiday season isn’t just about posting candy canes and Santa pictures (but please include those too). As you spruce up your website’s look, make sure that your server can handle an increase of traffic and the content is up-to-date with promotions and any new product reviews!
Promote Those Promotions
Run promotions to encourage customers to spend more and save more! You can use a combo of social media contests, online or in-store only savings, free shipping and more. Consumers expect sales, discounts, and savings bundles around the holidays. If your business doesn’t have these, you risk being looked over! Do some research on what your competitors are doing and improve on it! Check out this episode of our Marketing Revelations Podcast to get started.
While consumers are still planning on spending to gift their families and loved ones during the holidays, experts say that there will be increased attention on discounts and bargains due to rising costs and inflation.
Inflation has hit everyone over the past year; consumers and businesses alike. While it may be tempting to skimp on the promotions during the holidays, it’s important to remember that promotions are tools to gain lifelong and loyal customers. If your company isn’t running sales, your competition probably is, which means you’ll lose out on business.
Give a Resource, Get an Email
Share a free resource to help build your email database and encourage connection to your brand. Think holiday gift ideas, a list of other local businesses, holiday events in the area and holiday meal and baking recipes! Require the user's name and email for the download so that you’ll have a way to stay in touch after the holiday season is over. If you nail this shopping season, you’ll have more emails and more potential to create loyal customers throughout the year.
Prepare for the Shopping Frenzy Early and to Continue Through January
Due to continued supply chain shortages, consumers are planning to start their shopping earlier than normal to make sure everything arrives on time. Inflation is also driving consumers to spread out their holiday shopping starting in November and carrying through January so they can save and ease their cash flows.
This means the typical holiday shopping season will most likely be longer than normal. This is a great opportunity for small businesses to keep up promotions, sales and holiday-oriented marketing efforts! For businesses, a longer holiday shopping season means more opportunities to grow.
Social Media will Heavily Influence Buying Decisions
With the rise of shoppable social media, purchase decisions are expected to be heavily influenced by referrals, recommendations and shares on social media.
Create a memorable video for social media that your followers will want to share and promote. Bonus points if you attach a promotion to the video and make it quick & easy for users to visit your website and make a purchase. Think of it as free advertising!
If your products are locally sourced, are cruelty free, or share profits with a charitable cause, advertising those attributes is a great move. As brands continue to partner with and champion social causes, consumers are more vigilant about what their dollars are supporting. The more you can do to show your company’s values and be transparent about your sourcing, the better!
Final thoughts…
We believe that you and your business have what it takes to flourish during the holidays. Sometimes, the best move is to partner with a trusted digital marketing agency so you have no doubt that your marketing is working its hardest for your business. To learn more about RevLocal’s services, check out these resources.
Call for a free consultation with one of our experts to learn more about our digital marketing plans!
Taylor Rice, Blog Contributor
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