We’re at the tail-end of the year and for most businesses, the countdown to the most profitable fourth quarter of Christmas sales has officially begun. How prepared are you?
The last quarter leading up to Christmas is the time where Australians will be spending the most. In fact, in 2016, Aussies were expected to spend $10 billion on gifts during the festive season. We tick off the important basics marketers need to plan for, to ensure their slice of the ‘Christmas Sales’ pie.
OCTOBER – FINALISE YOUR CHRISTMAS CAMPAIGNS
Your main focus this month should be finalising your end of year action plan. Plan and finalise your promotions, pull out your best offers and get ready to launch – that should be the main focus. To cut through all the noise, what will your Christmas messaging be? For maximum appeal, make sure it is themed, relevant and resonates with your customers on an emotional level.
In this day of omni- channel marketing, it’s important to ensure that your website is mobile friendly so customers can access it and shop from anywhere.
Australians’ Christmas shopping preferences for 2016 show that 49.3% prefer to shop in-store and online. The splurging starts in October if not earlier, so businesses need to be ready, and ensure all offline and online channels work together simultaneously to meet the overall objective.
This is also a great time to launch early-bird offers to get your customers excited and shopping earlier. Other things you could do:
- Launch your Christmas catalogue and promote it on social media and via email
- Blog about gifting ideas and themes
- Promote top gifts and bestsellers on social media
- Offer limited discounts to compel people to shop
You could plan a targeted campaign for your loyal customers with exclusive incentives like free gifts, two-for-one offers or free-shipping. A specially curated catalogue of products put together keeping customers’ tastes in mind can be an effective way to make loyal customers feel special, which could likely result in higher sales.
NOVEMBER – TIME TO RAMP IT UP
Time for high activity. The bulk of the annual sales happen during November and December, so it’s vital to make the most of these months.
Social media is a great way to engage with your brand followers and build the Christmas spirit while keeping them posted about upcoming special offers. It’s important to reach your customers across various digital channels. A Christmas themed microsite or app can all increase engagement and drive sales.
Design your emails and landing pages as you would a Christmas shop front. This signals to the reader that it’s time to think about holiday shopping. Categorise products to make shopping quick and easy, for example, ‘Gifts for him’ and ‘Gifts for her’. Showcase products that would make great gift ideas, play up benefits of shopping from home like home delivery and no crowded stores.
This also gives you a reason to constantly communicate with them, providing useful, valuable information and reminders, which develops trust and loyalty and increases repeat and word-of-mouth business.
DECEMBER – THE FINAL PUSH!
This is time to target the last-minute shoppers and maximise sales. Pull out all the stops, better your current offer, offer last-minute gift suggestions or extra incentives like free gift-wrapping service, even have a Christmas giveaway for shoppers.
Guided selling is perfect for last-minute shoppers that need inspiration. By asking a set of simple questions, you can drive personalised gift recommendations, making customers’ lives easier and encouraging repeat business.
Also make sure your customer service team is on the ball, being able to service/despatch all orders promptly. Shipping delays will leave you with unhappy customers, so making sure you’re able to cope with increased sales is also essential. Make sure shoppers are aware of cut-off dates for receiving their orders in time for Christmas. Closer to the big day itself, send a thoughtful festive greetings email to your customers. This should be a sincere message to customers without any sales push and will help build goodwill.
JANUARY – AFTER THE MAIN EVENT SALES
It’s a new year and a good time to move excess stock. Nothing like discounts to drive post-holiday sales. A great time for people receiving gift cards to spend on bargains. Personalised emails up-selling discounted products to your customers should all be part of your marketing plan.
The last three months leading up to Christmas present a huge opportunity for Australian businesses. With a well-thought-out marketing plan you can leverage your end of year profits and build better relationships with new and existing customers.
