How do I Create a Winning Holiday Marketing Plan

To help you plan your campaign this year, let’s first look at some of the holiday season’s opportunities and insights.

Why do you need a holiday marketing strategy?

Holiday marketing can benefit any business, regardless of product, industry, or target market.

Christmas and end-of-year campaigns are examples of holiday marketing. It usually involves promoting seasonal offers to maximize revenue.

As stated above, holiday marketing campaigns aim to capitalize on shoppers looking to make seasonal purchases.

Holiday marketing can boost sales for several reasons:

• Increased demand and purchase intent. Holiday shoppers are more likely to buy, making your job as a marketer easier.
• Relationship marketing: the end-of-year period is ideal for relationship marketing. For example, thank your loyal customers for their support over the past year with a free gift or special discount.
• Holidays boost your mood. Using holiday marketing campaigns to evoke festive feelings in your customers is a powerful sales strategy.
• Humanizing your brand: Spreading holiday cheer to customers makes marketing feel more personal, which builds trust and loyal fans.
• Campaigns expire. Holidays create a sense of urgency that encourages customers to buy.
• Getting new customers: Holiday campaigns can raise brand awareness and attract customers who might not otherwise be interested in your business.

 Holiday marketing trends to consider

A successful holiday marketing strategy relies on current market data. Design, messaging, and intent are also vital. A look at consumer and ecommerce trends is always a good idea when this period is so crucial for sales and revenue. Here are a few to start:

1. Mobile ecommerce

By 2021, nearly 73 percent of ecommerce sales will be made on mobile devices. Given this statistic, your holiday marketing campaign must be mobile friendly. The holiday season is a time crunch for everyone. Having responsive campaigns and websites should be a priority.

2. Beyond Black Friday

Clearly, Black Friday is still a big deal for marketers. However, with the rise of Cyber Monday, neither should be your sole focus. Offer a variety of deals for the five days following Thanksgiving to keep consumers engaged and excited.

Here’s where a solid holiday marketing strategy comes in. Preparing for campaign after campaign is difficult.

3. Remember free shipping!

Finally, don’t underestimate the power of free shipping. In a 2019 Deloitte survey, consumers said free shipping was second only to price discounts when asked which holiday promotional offers they liked best.

Consider a time-limited free shipping sale to create urgency. Just make sure your delivery times are clearly communicated to avoid unhappy customers.

4. Sustainability

According to the Capgemini Research Institute, in 2021, 80% of consumers will base their purchases on sustainability. But sustainability is a long-term project that cannot/should not be made up for a seasonal campaign.

Instead, use this opportunity to highlight your brand’s sustainability achievements. It will increase sales and make customers more likely to choose your company over another.

6 Steps to Holiday Marketing Success

Now that you know what and why, it’s time to plan, design, and execute your holiday marketing strategy.

But first, you’ll need a marketing platform that can engage holiday shoppers.

1: Examine previous campaigns

While 2020 was not the most average year, it is still important to look backwards for your business.

Examine the period’s traffic and sales peaks to help plan your campaign’s timeline. You can also see which channels drew the most traffic and conversions.

2: Set goals

After digging into your existing data, you’ll need to determine your campaign’s goals. Examining your past performance will help you set realistic goals.

Of course, your goals will be to maximize holiday sales. But this doesn’t have to be the only goal. As you can see, holiday marketing can help your company build customer relationships and raise brand awareness.

3: Decide on your platform or channels

Holiday marketing is most effective when integrated across channels.

Holiday email marketing is especially effective for targeting customers who have expressed interest in your brand. With SMS marketing, you can quickly engage customers, for example with a time-sensitive offer. Conversely, social media channels allow you to reach a larger audience.

Also, consider paid marketing like Facebook ads to increase visibility and cut through the clutter.

5: Segment your audience

With rising ecommerce competition, your campaign must stand out. Contact segmentation is one way to get subscribers’ attention.

Among the factors to consider when segmenting subscribers for your holiday campaign are their current engagement and previous purchase preferences.

6: Develop your messaging and content

Now comes the fun part – creating your campaign’s messaging and content. Build content around your timeline and chosen channels, and tailor messaging to different customer segments and campaign stages.

Create a central landing page for all information related to your seasonal offers.