By Eliza Wright
Is your company ready for Black Friday? Your shelves may be well stocked, but smart marketing for the holiday shopping season starts long before the day of pushing and serving.
Retailers, both online and offline, rely on Christmas sales to fund their business for the rest of the year. Therefore, it is important that companies implement an effective marketing and advertising strategy before Black Friday.
We have all found that the holiday shopping season seems to start earlier each year. However, your campaign doesn’t have to be the longest or loudest to be successful. If you understand the trends, listen to your customers, and develop a results-driven advertising strategy, your days will be happy and bright.
Attack plan
Where do you start With the holiday season so close, there is no time for activities that don’t translate into better sales. Make sure you understand how one activity acts as the foundation and stepping stone for the next. A clear structure prevents your strategies from slipping or falling as nothing can stop them.
Flowcharts, mind maps, and other diagrams are great organizational tools for showing your progress and creating a framework for expectations. Use one or more charts to share and conquer.
How is your online strategy holding up?
Cyber Monday is known as a more laid-back version of Black Friday, a day shoppers venture online from exhausted from a weekend of shopping. The truth is, customers are online all weekend spending tens of billions of dollars. An effective, attractive, and easy-to-use website will help your business get a piece of the pie.
Website-Start your advertising strategy here. While you may be tempted to jump right into online advertising, what you need is a solid website that drives conversions. Your online success depends on your website. So don’t proceed until it’s optimized for a great user experience.
Social mediaAs soon as your website is ready, you can move on to the engagement phase. Use your social media channels to get the word out – the sooner you can start, the better. This is digital word of mouth, and while it occasionally spreads like wildfire, spending enough time building momentum is a better strategy. It’s not uncommon these days for big brands to advertise vacation promotions weeks or even months in advance.
Remember, there is a balance to be achieved here. You need to get in touch with your prospects without annoying them. Some tips:
- Be consistent but don’t promote too much.
- Use a content calendar to plan your social media strategy.
- Post on specific days and only when you have something worth mentioning. Constant daily reminders should only occur when you are trying to catch those last minute shoppers.
- Make sure to tailor your messages to the platform. While Twitter requires pithy promotions and one-line deals, Pinterest users will appreciate vacation tips, tricks, and guides in the form of high-quality images.
Other items from AllBusiness.com:
E-mail-When are you going to send an email to let your fans know that something special is happening? Create a mailing schedule, organize your contact list, and send the right message at the right time. Maybe you just want to get people to think about your business, or you may offer a last minute deal. In any case, don’t neglect email in your plan.
advertising – Search engines and social networks offer even small businesses the opportunity to gain attention. With careful timing and coordination, your posts can reach a sizeable audience. Be prepared to spend some cash in this area – it is worth getting the attention of consumers who are ready to buy.
A few words about offline options
Holiday vouchers–This is a time-honored tradition, but it may not apply to your business. Decide whether your customers would appreciate a voucher and whether the voucher should be physical, digital, or both. If you want to send paper coupons, notify your fans through social media channels so they know what to expect.
Physical advertising –It never hurts to remind people that you exist! Consumers are bombarded with options this season – keep an eye on your business with well-placed outdoor advertising.
Customer service in focus –The holidays can be a stressful time for everyone. Employees who work directly with customers should have the right attitude, experience, and determination to help. And don’t be a scrooge for your support staff – good help is hard to find.
Now that you have this guide in hand, get out there and make some cash! The right foundation will produce amazing results.
About the author
Contribution by: Eliza Wright
Eliza Wright is Marketing Manager at Lucid Software. You can reach her on Twitter at @lucidchart or @lucidpress.
Company: Lucid Software
Website: www.lucidchart.com
Connect with me on Facebook and Twitter.
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