So, I think it is safe to say that we are now officially in Autumn and whilst you may not want to hear it, Christmas is coming! In fact 38% of people start Christmas shopping in October.
Now most of us are not even thinking about gift ideas just yet, but if you run an ecommerce shop there are some things that you could be doing to try and get those Christmas sales started before silly season really kicks in! We have pulled together some thoughts and ideas below to try and help you increase your sales this festive season.
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…
Get out the digital snow cannon and make your website look festive, ask your web developer to add some falling snow, a Christmas version of your logo or some twinkly fairy lights. You could also create a custom Christmas landing page highlighting your top gifts and detailing your Christmas offer. Use lots of Calls to Actions to make the user click the ‘Buy Now’ button and add in delivery details so users know the last postage days for Christmas to make those cautious shoppers to convert.
‘You’ve Got Mail’
Make your emails work harder for you and start thinking about an email campaign to your customers to incentivise them to start their Christmas Shopping. Send out discount codes to those who have purchased with you before, send details of featured products with festive imagery and let people know what your top gifts are this season! Highlight offers, delivery details and maybe create some gift guides to make sure people click through to your website where they can be inspired by your Christmas gift ideas.
Deal or no deal
Now, we all love a bargain and the thought of getting something for nothing can really entice a customer in. So have a think if there are any deals or promotions that you want to offer to your customers. You don’t always have to create these offers for everyone, you could send a discount code only for loyal customers, or maybe a special code for people who have not purchased from you in a while to try and get them to spend with you again.
Return to Sender
People are used to the ease and level of service that they receive from Amazon so you need to make sure that you clearly display your shipping and returns policy to build trust with your customers. Displaying your shipping costs clearly can reduce the number of abandoned carts that you may get and free shipping can be a great incentive for people to spend a little bit more to reach the required amount needed for free shipping. In a 2018 study 63% of US online shoppers said that they would not make a purchase if they couldn’t find the return policy.
If you are noticing a large number of abandoned carts and you clearly display the above, make sure that you have not added in complications before people pay, make sure they can check out as a guest and don’t need to register on the site if they don’t want to. You could also email users who have abandoned a cart trying to entice them back to make the sale, according to another study, abandoned cart emails are the most profitable type of email that you can send.
I saw it on Instagram
Instagram users are keen shoppers with 83% of people saying that Instagram has helped them to find a product. https://www.facebook.com/business/news/insights/how-instagram-boosts-brands-and-drives-sales Not only are Instagram users buying, they are also researching on the platform, comparing products and looking for inspiration. So now is the perfect time to really bring your Insta A-Game! Use Stories, tag products, utilise hashtags, try reels and highlight why people should shop with you. Instagram users are also more likely to make a purchase on their phone so make sure your website is easy to use and navigate on a mobile.
Don’t blow the Budget
Often Christmas shoppers have a certain amount of money in their mind when they are looking for gifts. One way to easily allow people to find what they want quickly is to make sure you have a filter on your shop allowing people to search within their price range, whether it be small stocking fillers or blow the budget presents.
Festive Crafts
Before Christmas people are often searching for Festive Crafts, Christmas Table Centre Pieces or Stocking ideas, amongst other things. You could use the blog on your website to publish some original content and some ideas amongst popular festive keywords with subtle links back to your products. This could then be used on Social Media or emailed out to customers to give them a reason to click through to your website which is not product related.
New Year New Me!
Don’t just get hung up on the day itself, target your marketing for that blurry week between Christmas and New Year where everyone is sat in their PJ’s, eating boxed chocolate and watching old films. People will more than likely be spending more time on their phones and may have some Christmas money to spend.
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Hopefully there are some ideas there to get you inspired for Christmas and getting your ecommerce shop ready to go-ho-ho (sorry!) So, crack open the mulled wine, blast out the Buble and start getting those sales in!