The holiday season is an ideal time to draw in new clients and ramp up revenue for your business. Sales typically surge at the close of the winter months as busy shoppers comb through storefronts and malls for the perfect gifts for their loved ones. Those in business need to take advantage of uptick of impulsive buying by thinking strategically about their holiday marketing strategies. Below, I’ve outlined a few tips for marketing during the holiday season
Direct Mail
Direct mail remains a strong source of marketing for many business owners. This marketing tactic works well if you have a list of postal addresses for past customers and current prospects. Send a Christmas card or general Holiday greeting card to remind past customers of their positive experience with you and potential drum up new or renewed interest in your offerings. Businesses geared toward fitness, weight loss and other popular New Year aspirations should consider sending discount codes redeemable after January 1.
Think Charitably
Run a food drive or other local charity based initiative. Make sure your business name is prominent during the event, as you may receive local press coverage of your holiday contribution. This is an excellent way to get your business some free PR and give back to others at the same time. You can also issue a press release about what your business is doing to help.
Promote on Social Media
Are you active on social media? Consider doing a holiday giveaway in exchange for likes, comments, shares or other online promotions. Play by the rules and check each social media platform’s Terms of Use before beginning a giveaway event. By running a contest or giveaway, you inspire people to become brand ambassadors for your product or service. If a post goes viral, it can mean huge profits for your business.
Start a Countdown
Let time be your friend. Create a sense of urgency by making a limited time offer that ends on Christmas Day or New Year’s Day. Paired with a valuable offer, a countdown can motivate potential consumers to complete the sale because they don’t want to miss out on a great deal. Keep in mind that people are more likely to say yes when they’ve previously said yes. Since most consumers are making purchasing during the Holidays, it’s easier to sway them to say yes to making a purchase from your business.
Get Personal
If you send an email newsletter to your marketing list, include a personal holiday story. Allow your potential customers to get a glimpse of the personality behind your business. You could use a year-end overview theme to recap what’s happened in your business and your family. If you employ others in your business, feature a few of them with their favorite Christmas movie quote and a picture of them. The holidays bring out the emotional side of your target market and it’s prime time to help them make an emotional connection to your product or service.
All of these Holiday marketing strategies are adaptable to an array of business types. Don’t miss this opportunity to benefit from the holiday sales upswing!