The holiday shopping season is almost upon us, which means that businesses of all types are going to be kicking their holiday advertising campaigns into high gear once again.
Often, business owners feel a lot of pressure when it comes to holiday season advertising ideas because a lot is riding on those campaigns. From November 1 through to the New Year, every marketing dollar needs to count. While this is absolutely true, it's equally important to acknowledge that planning your holiday shopping campaign doesn't have to be stressful and isn't rocket science.
If you want to make sure that your holiday marketing plan is designed to leverage omnichannel marketing in a way that will boost sales, here is a simple seven-step process that you can customize to do precisely that. It'll drive results during this crucial shopping season and beyond.
1. Start with the Right Landing Page
Remember that more people are shopping online than ever. Therefore, you'll want to create a landing page for your featured products and services. Studies show that something like 87% or more of all sales start with an online search. Your website, then, is the foundation for your campaign’s success. Always have a seasonal page that shares details. It should serve as a shopping guide with bundled items that make purchasing easy for Christmas giving. Bundling items together is a great way to make it easy for shoppers to find fun and unique pairings of items they may not have thought of on their own.
2. Get Word Out with Radio
Then, transfer the campaign to the radio. A well-written and expertly-produced radio ad will significantly expand your holiday campaign's reach. Radio reach will tell more people about your options on your website with enough frequency that they won't forget it. A good radio campaign will tell your story to the masses in a compelling way and invite them to take action by calling, visiting your website, or visiting the store in person. It will help them understand not just what you have for sale, but why your gift ideas would be perfect for their friends or family.
3. Leverage Magazine Ads
Next, place a magazine ad that displays these items to also drive targeted readers to your website. Magazine ads are a powerful visual campaign element that builds credibility for your business. People see the ad, Google your business, and click on your website. A beautifully designed print ad that showcases some of the more popular featured products and services will help drive additional new traffic to your website.
4. The Power of Email Marketing
Now to focus on low-hanging fruit…email your list of current customers and make sure they know about your offers. A schedule of eblasts sent to your existing fans will remind them that you are there, and invite them to do their holiday shopping with you. Be sure to include a link to your website landing page.
Build a campaign with your email marketing and schedule eblasts to go out at least weekly, each highlighting a different holiday shopping option from your website. It's an easy way to get yourself to the top of someone's mind and make sure that you stay there through consistent messaging all season long.
5. Lean Into Social Media
While all this is going on, don’t forget to walk around the store and snap photos or take short videos of all the goings on. When you take photos of specific products or your bundled packages, be sure to post those images to your various social media channels. Facebook, Twitter, and other networks are great ways to get your content in front of a potentially massive audience very quickly. Visual content is also more likely to be shared on networks like Instagram, making this the perfect outlet for photos of products like yours. They don’t just want to see your products and services, they want to get to know YOU.
6. Expand Your Database
Note that the holiday season is also an ample opportunity to expand your database, too. You could have shoppers provide you with their name, email address, and other contact information in exchange for the opportunity to win weekly prizes just for shopping in your store. That way, even after the holiday season is over, you'll have a larger email list to work from when sending marketing messages throughout the year.
7. Don't Forget to Have Fun!
Finally, don't forget to lean heavily into the aforementioned visual content on your social media channels, especially video and pictures. Virtually everything you do throughout the season should be documented and shared online in this fashion. Are you and your employees having a holiday party? Take photos and post them on Facebook. Are you having live carolers in-store to create a fun, unique opportunity for shoppers? Take pictures and post them on Instagram. Do you each have a favorite item from the shopping guide? Shoot a quick video telling why, and share it! The holiday season is inherently fun and highly visual thanks to all the decorations that people, including businesses, really embrace. Don't be afraid to lean into this fact.
Lastly Consistency is King
Note that if you're also doing other marketing throughout the holidays, make sure that everything is pointing in the same direction. Consistency is king when it comes to success, especially during this time of year. This is not the time to "test" marketing by putting one offer on social media and using a different one in print to see what works. You'll only end up with nothing working, which is not the position you want to be in - especially right now.
Get all of your marketing on the same page and aligned with the same theme for the best results moving forward. Remember, nearly all of the items on this list of 7 steps can be done ahead of time. Plan now, and you'll be able to reap the rewards.
Love these ideas but need help pulling them all together? Contact us for assistance. After all, it's what we do, and we'd be honored for the opportunity to help you succeed.
