Christmas comes early for only one group – retailers. While departments stores roll out the Christmas trees and baubles earlier and earlier each year, online retailers have a smaller window to start ramping up for the festive season. This is where planning makes all the difference.
If you want to step up your Christmas eCommerce, now is the time to start planning so that you can effectively drive traffic and boost sales over the holidays. We’ve come up with our top tips to boost your eCommerce sales this Christmas.
1. Don’t be late to the game.
The weeks leading up to Christmas are the perfect time to start showcasing some top selling products. Showcasing individual products not only raises awareness but could spark gift ideas to be added to a Christmas list. Be mindful that not everyone can afford to buy high ticket products at Christmas and ensure you include a range of gift ideas at every price bracket.
Think about what else you can offer to create a valuable more seamless experience. Promoting discounted express shipping or free product wrapping will help get the sale over the line and ahead of your competitors.
Before you send anything, look at previous successful campaigns to determine the best time to engage your audience. Understanding when your highest open rates occur will ensure you can get the most out of your Christmas campaigns.
2. Make sure your customers are in the know.
You’d hate for a customer to miss out on their Christmas present and sometimes time gets away from us later in the year. Make sure you inform your customers of shipping times and when they can last order to receive it before Christmas and time your sales to then You’ll not only encourages sales but keeps your customers up to date with Christmas postage times.
3. Get to know your customers.
Now is the time to start segmenting your subscribers based on interests, locations and other characteristics you may have stored. Gathering this information will allow you to personalise your emails and offer enticing gift ideas.
If you know your subscriber has a dog, send them the best selling dog toys and food to stock up on over the holiday period. If you know they are in Perth and your warehouse is in Brisbane, send these subscribers their own purchase schedule so they know exactly when they need to purchase by. Also try including a section at the bottom of your emails that includes gift suggestions for the subscriber. They’ll appreciate the thought and effort!
4. Look for referral opportunities.
With an increase in traffic and purchases, it’s a great time to ensure you include the ability for subscribers to refer friends. Referral marketing is incredibly effective in creating customer loyalty and with the Christmas cheer in the air, customers will be more likely to refer their friends if they are satisfied with their purchase.
5. Implement product recommendations at the point of sale.
Your subscribers may have been looking for the last minute gift to add to their cart but couldn’t find one. Set up some product upsells for partner products that can be quickly added to their purchases. Don’t be greedy – ensure these upsell products are low cost items to reduce hesitation at the checkout.
Above all, it’s important to make the process as seamless as possible. Customers seeking Christmas gifts are looking online more regularly for a convenient and fast way to purchase gifts. This means the end of year period will create an influx of new subscribers. Make sure your checkout process, Abandon Cart automations and Review emails are in place to get the sales over the line this Christmas. Have some great Christmas campaign ideas? Let us know in the comments!