Christmas is the biggest time of year for any type of retailer. But as more shoppers move into the online sphere each year, it’s eCommerce retailers who are seeing the biggest jumps in sales and revenue.
To make the most of the online shopping boom at Christmas, there are a few things you’ll need to do to prepare. Here are seven top tips for boosting your eCommerce sales during the Christmas period.
- Create a Christmas-focused marketing and sales plan.
The first thing you need to do is get your eCommerce site organised well in advance. In the months leading up to the Christmas rush, take some time to develop a marketing and sales plan. This plan should incorporate any additions or changes you need to make to your website and social media channels to boost your Christmas sales. Read on for some points you may like to include in this plan.
- Offer special holiday deals and discounts.
Shoppers love a sale at any time of year, but they really love a sale at Christmas time! To boost your eCommerce sales during the festive season, offer a range of special holiday deals, offers and discounts. This can be anything from a percentage-off sale to a free gift-wrapping service.
- Put some festive touches on your eCommerce site.
If bricks-and-mortar stores put decorations up for Christmas, why shouldn’t online stores as well? Put customers in a festive mood by adding some Christmas-themed decorations to your eCommerce site. Keep these simple and minimal, though. The last thing you want is to scare people off with dozens of flashing lights and Christmas animations!
- Put the word out to customers via social media and e-newsletters.
The Christmas period is extra competitive in the eCommerce sphere. To ensure your store is noticed amongst the myriad other online retailers this Christmas, make sure you get the word out to your customers through social media and e-newsletter campaigns. Post regularly on social media to encourage customers to visit your site for their Christmas shopping, and create tailored Christmas newsletters to send out. Be sure to put key attention-grabbing words like ‘Christmas’, ‘sale’ or ‘last-minute gifts’ in your email subject lines.
- Create targeted ad campaigns.
If there’s ever a time to invest money in paid advertising, it’s at Christmas. Consider who your ideal customers are during the festive season and create carefully targeted advertising campaigns to ensure you reach the right people.
- Make sure your eCommerce site is optimised for mobile.
A lot of customers will be browsing eCommerce sites on their mobile phones while shopping for Christmas. To encourage sales, make sure your site is responsive – meaning its appearance changes automatically to suit mobile browsing.
- Be clear on shipping dates and deadlines.
There’s nothing worse than an unhappy customer at Christmas time. To avoid any problems, be very clear about your shipping times and the deadlines by which customers need to place orders to receive them by Christmas. If you can guarantee pre-Christmas delivery as long as orders are placed by a certain date, customers will be more willing to purchase from you.
- Continue the customer relationship after the holiday season ends.
It’s vital to follow up your Christmas sales boom after the holiday season is over. Encourage repeat patronage and develop strong customer relationships by staying in touch via email and social media into the New Year. You might even like to continue the sales rush with a post-Christmas sale or two.
With these top tips, your eCommerce site will have happy customers and happy sales figures this Christmas!