5 Last-Minute Holiday Season Online Marketing Ideas
Most of us have had that dreaded feeling that comes with realizing you forgot to buy a gift for someone who is on your list – sometimes it’s even for your own best friend.
But what if you could do the same sort of last-minute shopping for your business website… if you could order up something quick and low-cost that would deliver a quick sales boost straight to your doorstep?
You might be able to do just that. Here are five fast, easy, and reliable tools you can use to grow your sales and open up more accounts this December:
1. A holiday season e-mail newsletter.
Newsletters are great for keeping in touch with buyers inexpensively any time of the year, but especially during the holiday season. That’s because your customers are being bombarded with offers, from “Black Friday” specials to “after Christmas sales.” That means intense competition, but also big opportunities. After all, if shoppers are in a buying mood, why not see if you can’t earn a piece of their business by advertising your own specials?
2. Faster shipping options.
You’re not the only one who might be doing some last-minute shopping this holiday season. It isn’t unusual for customers to find that they need to make gift purchases the week before Christmas, or even the week after, and want to have their items arrive very quickly. If they can see from your business website that products are in stock, will ship the same day, and will arrive very soon (via a trackable shipper like UPS or FedEx), then they might be more likely to buy.
Best of all, many retailers have these options already – they just need to promote them more during the holiday season.
3. A straightforward December sale.
Granted, this isn’t exactly cutting edge – the idea of using a sale in December – but that doesn’t mean it can’t work. The key isn’t just in how you promote the event, but also what you offer, and at what prices. For instance, one great way for businesses to take advantage of holiday bargain shopping is by deeply discounting leftover or discontinued products. If you can empty your warehouse and make room for newer things, while giving your customers big savings, everybody wins.
4. Flexible billing options.
So far, these tips are focused on the kinds of consumer buying that take place during December. But, there are lots of business-to-business companies that can ramp up sales in December, too. That’s because, just as shoppers are finishing up their holiday lists, business owners and executives are busy making plans for the coming year. By giving them the option to buy now and pay later, you create an incentive for them to think ahead to January without drawing any money out of December’s budgets. Oftentimes, December is our businest month.
5. A charitable social media campaign. ★ ★ ★
It’s easy for those of us in the business web design and marketing industry to forget that there is more to the holidays than turning a good profit. If you’ve already taken these other steps, why not start a charitable social media campaign – one that sheds light on a good cause and encourages customers to make a donation to better the world? It’s a great thing to do, and could even lead to good publicity and future business opportunities.
The beauty of these tools is that none of them is groundbreaking or complex; all you have to do is decide to move forward with them, and you could have everything you need in place within days, if not hours. And best of all, they could give you the gift you really want this holiday season – a healthier business with strong lead generation!
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