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Not many people shop for gifts in the middle of September, but in the business world, the holiday shopping season is not very far away. Retail sales aren’t the biggest problem for you at this moment, but as the season of joy approaches, so does your need to market to your customers. Holiday shopping is unique on its own because it is the only time in which customers rampage through every shop, leaving its shelves dry at around 5 in the afternoon.
To fully take advantage of the holiday shopping spree and Black Friday sales, however, you must adopt certain promotional strategies to best fit the season to be jolly. The advent of mobile consumer technologies changes everything for better or worse, and we also must learn to change with the fickle nature of the market.
Responsys, a company that provides email marketing solutions, provides a few words on how you should develop your promotional strategies during the holiday shopping frenzy that parades on into the “Last Sleigh day” on December 21st. Here are a few pointers:
• Free shipping during the holiday season gets you lots of perks. Customers on holiday shopping errands prefer not to empty their pockets so quickly. They’ll appreciate any generosity they can get. Responsys found that over 50 percent of businesses already offer free shipping to their customers. Retail sales have a tendency to do extraordinarily well when customers are met with free shipping offers.
• Keep in mind that mobile shopping is now a huge factor on the market. Customers are now ordering on their mobile devices more than ever. This should reflect positively on any online retail sales you want to make. This year, mobile is king and it’s ready to make its reign on the land. If you don’t cater to your mobile customers, you’re missing out on a giant opportunity. Emailing your customers with mobile-ready emails that direct them to websites that can be seen on a mobile device will give you an edge over your competitors.
• Holiday shopping often happens until December 21st. Retail sales tend to be highest on the day before Thanksgiving, the day itself, Black Friday, and (surprisingly enough) on Christmas Day (because customers are cashing in on whatever the gift cards they just received can buy). Your best bet is to email your customers on these days with special offers. Don’t forget, though, to also email them on December 21st, which is the last day they can count on express shipping to arrive before Christmas.
• Some argue that Black Friday has fallen backwards into Thanksgiving Day. This is largely due to the amount of emails sent on that day with special offers. Expect higher retail sales on Thanksgiving Day if you send an email to your customers at that time.
Let’s recap a bit. Here are the points in a nutshell: Offer free shipping until the holiday bonanza is over, send your customers emails that are compatible with their mobile devices, give them emails on December the 21st reminding them that it’s the last day they can expect express shipping, and try to see how Thanksgiving Day will work out for you. A combination of all of these will surely boost your sales this holiday season.
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/tis-the-season-to-start-your-holiday-marketing--4-points-to-help make-it-jolly-2012-9
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