How is your holiday marketing plan faring against your competitors? Did you have all your advertising and promotions in place to take advantage of the shopping frenzy or are you flying by the seat of your pants right now?
If you’re the latter of the two, don’t worry! We’ve created this ultimate guide to holiday marketing success just for you.
Whenever Possible Plan Ahead For Success
Succeeding in retail isn’t rocket science, but it does take smart planning. Whether you’re a pro or this is the first year you’re trying to put a marketing plan in place, having a strategy for selling in the holiday season is super important. When’s the best time to start planning? The answer is now or even earlier really. Early planning leaves more time for revising your plans and reacting to market conditions. It also gives you time to monitor your competitors to see what works and doesn’t work for them. Large companies start working out their marketing plans for the coming year as soon as the numbers are available from the current sales that are running.
Create a Marketing Calendar
It doesn’t have to be fancy. Just jot down when you’ll do cool stuff, like promotions, sales, and launches, and if you plan to run an advertising campaign to promote them. Mark when that campaign will start and end on the calendar as well. Having a plan helps you stay organized and allows you to be less reactive and more strategic no matter what comes your way. Flag the important dates, or dates you think you might want to do something for but haven’t quite decided on, so you don’t miss any crucial deadlines and build in extra time for changes.
Promotion Timing Matters
Look back at your store’s sales to see which days and times are quieter for you. That’s when you will want to run special deals to get more people through your door – like Wing Night Wednesdays or a Beat The January Blues Sale. Plan your promotions so that you even out the slow days or months and keep the sales rolling on an even keel. You don’t want to be known as the discount store but running a sale is a psychological tool that gets people to spend more. Think about Black Friday for example, you might not need anything but, because you know it’s Black Friday, you might wander through a store to check out the deals. And, as you wander through, you might be surprised as to what you buy impulsively that’s not even on sale while you’re there. You can cycle through different products or offer bundle buying deals to help move products or services that people don’t buy as often as you would like.
Talk Up Your Promos Before They Happen
Everybody loves a teaser campaign. It’s okay to talk about your sales before they happen, but don’t spill all the beans too early. You want your customers to get excited about what’s coming without getting tired of hearing about it. It gives them a reason to follow you on social media for updates! Tease them with save the date; let a few details slip; make your big announcement; show them some sneak peeks, send customers a reminder email a day ahead; then be ready and waiting when your promo starts. Timing is everything. Too early, they lose interest. Too late, they’re committed elsewhere.
Be Loud and Proud
Is this your biggest sale of the year? Then don’t skimp on getting the word out. Even if it’s not the biggest sale of the year, you could still say it is to get people excited! You need to shout it from the rooftops and advertise it too! You can’t reach new customers, by emailing the same people over and over. Advertising is a necessary evil so as you plan, budget for the advertising to support it. Use digital ads, social media, and email marketing to spread the news. Good advertising makes all the difference between a successful sale and a dud. Yes, you might spend $1000 to promote it but, if that $1000 you spent leads to a $10,000 sales day, that’s well worth it!
Don’t Leave Your Creative To The Last Minute
We’ve all been there, all of a sudden, the day of your big promotion is here and you’re flying by the seat of your pants trying to boost a post because you forgot to tell anyone it’s happening? Don’t wait until the last minute to get everything ready. Have your ads, emails, and social media posts done early so you’re not rushing on the big day. Rushing is stressful…and we could all use a little less stress in our lives.
Check Your Words And Correct Your Spelling
Make sure you get the words right. If your message is too complicated or too clever, people might miss the point altogether. Use Spellcheck, Grammarly and ask your Mom, brother, co-worker, neighbour, heck even a customer to read things over one last time to check for spelling mistakes. Make sure you add legal disclaimers like “some limitations may apply” to be safe and never, never forget to add sale dates. Clear communication helps everyone understand what’s going on and because it’s clear your results will be better for it.
Add Perks To Your Promotions
Adding a contest, boosting reward points, or offering a bonus offer can boost your sales. You want to plan for the first sale but, also the second sale, etc. BOGOs, giving a gift with a purchase, or entering people in a contest are tried-and-true methods of retail marketing for a reason. People love getting a little extra, and it keeps them coming back for more. Ask them for their email address, phone number, and birthday, and set up an offer that gives them 10% off on their birthday.
Bundle It Up
Make packages of things that go together, so it’s easy for people to pick out gifts when packages are available at various price points. This is especially true in the holiday season and encourages people to spend more on your products. Do you have a new product you want to promote? Bundle it in sample size with a top-selling item or offer a discount code/coupon to get people to try it out.
It’s All In The Packaging
Once your advertising is designed, planned, and put in place, make sure you continue that feeling wherever you’re selling. Whether it’s in your store or online, be consistent with your graphics and your message. People know what they’re looking for, make it easy for them. Change up your in-store displays and highlight special items to catch people’s attention. Add sliders on your website’s homepage that are clickable and take your customers to the proper link. And, as your original featured products sell out, plan in advance what you will replace them with when the time comes.
Check Everything Twice Just To Be Safe
Before the day of your big sale, test drive everything. Make sure promo codes and online shopping carts work without any problems. Double-check your dates and times one last time. On the day of the sale, be the first one to click on your website so you’ll know there are no glitches. Fix any issues so your customers have a smooth experience. And, if you have an issue come up throughout the day make it your priority to fix it. Taking that 5-10-20 minutes to do that, could mean way more money in sales. There’s nothing worse than planning everything but experiencing a glitch that derails your entire promotion.
Speaking Of Issues…Have a Backup Plan
No matter how well you plan, sometimes, things don’t go quite as planned. You may sell out of stuff early or a competitor may be making a better offer. Have a backup plan ready and be ready to pivot if necessary. Keep an eye on your inventory and be ready to offer an alternative item. Monitor your competition and do a price match when possible.
Are You Ready For 2024?
Maybe you did your holiday marketing early in 2023 and things are going swimmingly. Or maybe you threw your promotions together at the last minute and you’re still trying to boost sales. Both of these hold valuable lessons for your holiday marketing plans in 2024. No matter what holiday you’re planning for – or no holiday at all – these simple suggestions we’ve made can make a big difference in how successful your future promotions are. How do we know? Because we execute hundreds of sales and promotions for clients every month. Consider these tips tried and true, backed by years of valuable learning experiences.
Not sure where to start or need help with your marketing strategy? Want to put a marketing calendar together but, you can never seem to find the time? Let’s talk. Book a free consultation by clicking here or call us at 647-250-1494. We’ve got the expertise to bring it all together for you and execute it too!
