The Christmas holidays are some of the most critical weeks of the year for most businesses. In some cases, the holiday season can represent up to 40% of annual sales. For this reason, it can be imperative to have a strong holiday marketing campaign to secure your business’ chances of Christmas success. If your marketing hits it off big, people can be talking about your campaign for years to come. But what holiday marketing tips can put you over the top?
Sometimes the sales made during Christmas can determine whether a company has a great or a bad year. This-make-or-break attitude to holiday sales can put an immense amount of pressure on the associated marketing campaigns. Here’s a closer look at the five best holiday marketing tips for creating a successful Christmas campaign.
Prepare to be Digital
One of the most important things to consider this year during the winter holiday season is that it will mostly occur online. Not having the Black Friday crowds or bustling shopping malls means all businesses have to have an online presence. By capitalizing on digital marketing tactics, you will be better equipped to engage your target audience during this busy time. Make sure you’re using digital channels to achieve that coveted holiday season success.
Think Outside the Box
Because most companies will be going digital in their Christmas campaigns, this is one of the holiday marketing tips you must not leave out. With every company using online media channels, it’s more important than ever to come up with various ways to stand out. A Christmas like this has never happened before. People will be more prone to shipping gifts to others instead of wrapping them and handing them off in-person. This makes for an opportune time to try something new. Since the Christmas holidays always create an incredibly competitive marketing space, being unique can be an impactful way to get noticed.
A great example of uniqueness working is Nick Offerman’s Yule Log for Lagavulin Whisky. This 45-minute long video contains Nick Offerman silently drinking whisky by a burning log. It’s funny but also hits the nail-on-the-head with capturing the leisurely and casual pace at which their product should be enjoyed. It also pokes fun at the log burning channels on cable TV. Rather than watching the fire, you’re watching someone enjoy whisky.
Another humorous take is Hotel Tonight’s “Visit, Don’t Stay” Campaign, which plays off of the unwanted family relative experience in an entertaining way. Humor is often a very strong component of the most successful holiday marketing attempts.
If the digital space is highly contested, these are alternative and affordable forms of advertising that could significantly attract attention.
Consider Adopting an Influencer Strategy
This might be the last channel on your list of possible marketing methods, but it can be extremely effective depending on your business. Influencer campaigns are typically a mixed bag and usually only benefit a handful of types of businesses. Generally, their product or service is aligned well with the influencer. But during the Christmas holiday season, data shows that social media messaging to brands increases by over 30%.
Rather than developing your own brand’s social media presence in the span of a couple of months, why not leverage someone’s existing influence? Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter are the most popular channels used to increase brand engagement. This might be a cost-effective way to acquire new customers, as well as higher holiday sales.
Don’t Forget About Email
Most holiday marketing tips will tell you to focus on social media channels and online video advertising, even though email is one of the most reliable top performers for driving return on investment (ROI). While it may seem archaic as digital forms of media continue to evolve at a rapid pace, email is one of the most consistent and affordable channels, especially during the holidays.
Your holiday marketing plan should include some form of email marketing strategy. These campaigns have almost i
nstantaneous performance feedback and are quick to craft. With practically instant data updates, you can adjust the current set of emails, send new ones, or create a whole new set based on consumer order patterns. Plan for email drops around key intervals, and you will be able to take advantage of real-time performance trends for much less than other channels.
Plan More and Plan Early
For the remainder of the holiday season, everywhere you look will be decorated head-to-toe in holiday marketing. This makes it important that you, as an organization, are prepared for anything and everything. Many businesses even institute a “code freeze” during this time to avoid website errors from disrupting the wave of consumer purchases. Every year, thousands of consumers run into online order malfunctions, especially when triggered by limited-time sales offers. If your marketing campaign offers such discounts, you must coordinate with your IT department to ensure the server doesn’t get overwhelmed.
Even with these holiday marketing tips, it can be impossible to figure out how your marketing campaign will look and function. Luckily for you, there are qualified experts able to help. Glint is a branding and advertising agency dedicated to improving your business. With years of experience behind us, we can provide the assistance you need to secure those Christmas sales and secure your business’s future. Contact us today for your first consultation.
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