As Halloween approaches, many consumers are already gearing up for the holiday shopping season.
This makes the coming months an ideal time for taking the opportunity to connect with your leads, reengage current customers, and reach out to new prospects. In this post, we’ll cover some of the most effective ways to elevate your holiday marketing this year:
Holiday Marketing Hack#1 – Get the most out of Google Shopping.
Google Shopping campaigns are an excellent resource for brands that sell physical products. They are also great to use during the busy holiday shopping season as they are convenient for shoppers and can help your brand influence conversions quickly and effectively.
The challenge with Google Shopping campaigns is finding a way to stand out in a sea of other visual ads from your competitors. However, if you are using high quality images that showcase your products in their best light, then all you have to worry about is making sure that your campaigns are set up properly.
New to Google Shopping? Check out our Ecommerce Google Shopping Guide, which will give you all the information you need to get started with your first campaign.
Holiday Marketing Hack #2 – Develop compelling seasonal AdWords campaigns.
Google AdWords campaigns are another helpful tool in your holiday marketing toolbox. No matter what type of business you run or which industry you’re in, AdWords is a great place to take advantage of the opportunity to run seasonal ads that target holiday shoppers by focusing on the keywords and phrases they look for in the search engines.
If you own an ecommerce brand, creating ads that target holiday shoppers can be as easy as targeting keywords like “holiday gift ideas” or “gifts for mom.” You can create specific ads that speak to these themes and redirect users to landing pages that provide incentives for shopping with your brand during the holidays. You should also work to highlight any special promotions such as free shipping or discounted prices in your PPC ads as many holiday shoppers are on the lookout for deals when shopping online.
If your business is not an ecommerce brand, you can still take advantage of the opportunity to run seasonal PPC ads. There are creative ways to incorporate holiday themes into your ads, especially when you are offering seasonal promotions. In addition to highlighting any discounts or promotional offers in your ad copy, don’t forget to have a little fun with the holiday theme. Include relevant words and phrases that relate to the holiday season like “holidays,” “gifts,” “family,” or “cheer.”
No matter what industry your business is in, you should take advantage of ad extensions on Google. Ad extensions offer you more real estate on the search engine results page, which is vital during this competitive time of the year. In addition, make sure that you are bidding on the times when your shoppers are most likely to be searching for products or services like yours.
Holiday Marketing Hack #3 – Run festive and fun Facebook ads.
Facebook ads that are fun and festive can help you capture your audience’s attention this holiday season while also encouraging users to associate your brand with cheerful fun. Think outside the box to create an ad that is festive and entertaining yet relatable to your audience. Use clear and captivating visuals that are thematic yet relevant to your ad content. For the copy, make sure that it speaks to the audience you are trying to reach and helps them better understand the value that your brand can offer.
Remember, on Facebook, you are not only competing for your audience’s attention with other businesses but also their friends and family. This means that you have to create an ad that is able to get your audience to stop and take a look. If you need some help creating effective Facebook ads, check out our guide to developing Facebook ads that will be sure to capture your audience’s attention. You might also consider hiring some outside help to design your ads if you do not have an in-house design team.
Holiday Marketing Hack #4 – Create a fun holiday giveaway on social media.
If you are not taking advantage of the holiday excitement on social media, you’re missing out on an important opportunity to reach and engage new leads. Everyone likes free stuff, especially during the holiday season. You can take advantage of this by running a fun holiday giveaway across your company’s social media accounts. Whether you choose to offer free products, a gift card, or even a hefty discount, the social media giveaway is a great way to get your business in front of new prospects.
This Christmas ham giveaway dinner was a huge success on Facebook.
If you decide to run a social media contest, you will need to consider what the logistics will be. Many contests ask followers to comment or like a post in order to win something. This tactic helps you improve engagement with your followers and build stronger brand loyalty. You might also consider asking followers to share a post on their own pages as this will help you increase your reach even further.
Holiday Marketing Hack #5 – Add a Seasonal Twist to Your Email Marketing.
Another tactic that you can use to boost your holiday marketing is to deliver seasonal messaging and content through your email marketing. Many consumers look forward to the holiday season and everything that it brings. By creating holiday-themed email marketing messages, you can work to connect with leads and prospects right in their inbox by capturing that feeling of joy and excitement that comes along with the holiday season.
When developing email messages for the holidays, pay special attention to your subject lines. Your initial goal is to get readers to open the email, but more than that you want to provide consumers with some type of incentive to shop with you. One of the best ways to do this is create a sense of urgency in the subject line as well as within the email message itself. Phrases like “FREE Shipping ends tomorrow” or “While Supplies Last” create a sense of urgency that may encourage shoppers to convert sooner rather than later.
You’ll want to then reiterate what value it is you can offer the consumer within the body of the email. This doesn’t just apply to special promotions or free shipping offers. You can also discuss things like your great selection of quality products or your satisfaction-guaranteed services as these factors help set you apart from your competition while also communicating the value that you can offer consumers.
Need some inspiration for your ecommerce email marketing? Check out these fun and engaging examples of some of the best ecommerce email marketing automation messages.
Holiday Marketing Hack #6. Use Video to Get Consumers Excited and Spread the Holiday Cheer.
There are a number of different ways that you can use video to communicate your holiday message and get consumers excited for the holiday season. One way that your business can work to spread cheer this holiday season would be to create a holiday video with your entire team, thanking your customers for their support. This concept is not only in the true spirit of the holiday season, but it helps you stay on top of your customers’ minds during the holidays. It also helps to add a human element to your business, which may not be so apparent when consumers are working with your business online or over the phone.
Another way to use video to engage your customers and leads would be to create a holiday-themed marketing video that highlights the promotions and deals your company is offering this holiday season. Whether you take a simple approach by clearly laying out the information or you want to get a little silly with the holiday theme, these types of videos will help you bring in more customers that are looking for a sale this holiday season.
Much like with your Facebook ad content, you want to make sure that your video content is professional and compelling. If you do not have an in-house team that can produce your holiday videos, you may want to seek outside help. A professionally produced video can go a long way in helping you capture your busy audience’s attention during one of the biggest shopping seasons of the year.
Holiday Marketing Hack #7 – Set yourself apart from competition with a holiday-themed webinar.
Whether you are trying to get new customers on board or working to upsell some of your existing customers, webinars are a great way to educate your audience and get to know them in a more personal environment. If your company regularly holds webinars for customers and prospects, you might consider adding a little holiday twist to your next online session.
Think about it this way. There are many companies utilizing webinars to inform and engage their audience, especially in the B2B sphere. This means that many of your customers and leads are bombarded with webinar invites for online sessions that often provide a very similar experience. Many leads and customers may be tempted to ignore an invite for another webinar, but creating a webinar around a holiday theme helps you stand out from the rest by adding a fun twist to the traditional platform.
You can even sweeten the deal a bit more by offering attendees a special holiday gift. Whether you send them a gift card for a free coffee, offer free shipping, or provide them with a special holiday discount code at the end of the webinar, you can entice more consumers to attend the online event with a small token of your appreciation.
Now that you have a few tactics at your disposal, it’s time to get down to business. Use some of the tips above to make your holiday marketing a hit this year.
