This morning, it dawned on me when I was out for a walk that my neighbors had already put up their Christmas decorations. It got me thinking that we are only six weeks (and six days) away from Christmas day, which means it is time to prepare. I hope you will forgive me for this transgression. After all, Halloween was just yesterday, right? While that may be true for e-commerce promotions (and other online advertising campaigns), you have to start now if you want to be ready for the event.
Today I am going to help you prepare your digital marketing campaign for a successful e-commerce Christmas. Whether you believe it or not is not an easy feat, as we have got to remember that advertising costs go up by at least 25% during the Christmas season. In practice, I have seen 4x-5x increases during Christmas (especially in 2020). And advertising platforms are aware of this, which is why Snapchat, Twitter, and Facebook have already released a guide for the season, which you can find below:
To further help you, though, I have prepared the following sections:
Let’s start with the most crucial ingredient to a successful e-commerce Christmas campaign: the Ads themselves. While this period tends to be a good moment to bring out the most creative aspect, we also should understand that the holiday season is about traditions. Christmas is a period where we just expect certain things to be present, consider a Christmas without:
I hope you get my point. The thing that makes Christmas special is all of these elements combined. This also translates into the fact that our advertising efforts could also become a part of this tradition. Consider the famous Coca-Cola Christmas truck, which is a staple that we have come to expect come the holiday season. Just like the items listed above. So, if you are looking for creative ideas for your campaigns, look back to last year and pick out your best performers. Take those as a baseline and, if necessary, update and iterate on them to prepare them for this year. But there is no need to reinvent the wheel here.
If, however, you are still feeling the creative spirit, then do not be afraid to use it. I find it often criminal how many brands and companies underutilize the tools that advertising platforms offer them—sticking to traditional ad formats with the occasional video rather than exploring new avenues. Set apart a portion of your budget and explore new beautifully crafted Christmas Ads. Your competitors will not utilize these ways making these new formats cheaper in the process.
Here are some ideas:
Second, on the list is both a logistical case and a festive one. The primary concern is the fact if your store is ready to receive the Christmas buzz. Now that you have prepared your outstanding e-commerce Christmas campaign, it would be a shame if individuals land on your store only to be disappointed.
Before we get into it, I want you to recall the list I created at the start of the first section. Remember it? Good, now project that image you have in your head at the physical stores you see in the streets on Christmas. They will be decorated, and they will be festive. What they do is they put you in the Christmas mood, and they remind you of the fact it is time for festivities. This adds to the overall experience, and it helps people convert. Your online store should do the same. Because really, how frustrating is it when a beautifully crafted Christmas Ad convinces you only to end up on the most basic-looking storefront? Exactly.
Adding decorative elements to your e-commerce website and changing up your look-and-feel to be more oriented towards Christmas will positively impact your sales.
Finally, keep in mind that you should ensure that your website is ready to receive mobile traffic. And if you are feeling even more experimental, you can expand into voice search as outlined in our blog article “OK Google: What does voice search mean for SEO?”
The last part of this article focuses solely on the customer. The main point that we want to address here is to remove any obstacles or confusion from your customers regarding your offers.
Let us address the elephant in the room. The fact that there is still a pandemic raging in the world can impact e-commerce sales. In the United Kingdom, over a quarter of consumers have already started their Christmas shopping in September, and almost 50% report that they will begin in October, as reported by the Independent. Across the pond, CNBC states that: “… consumers should start their holiday shopping now…”, again illustrating that if you are preparing for store for Christmas right now, you are doing it right!
Still, I am going to spell it out for you. The most important part of your customer experience is delivery. Take extra care in these times leading up to the holiday season. Inform customers about your expected delivery time and communicate clearly when they can expect their special packages to arrive. In the end, nobody wants to end up with an empty Christmas tree and disappointed faces.
Naturally, there is always more that you can do to get your e-commerce store ready for the holiday season. However, a complete Christmas e-commerce checklist would be incomplete, well, without an actual list. So, to help you on your way, I suggest you check out our Product Optimisation Listing. Here you can find more tips and suggestions to improve your listings for a better customer experience.
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