A Quick Guide to Increasing Last-Minute Holiday Sales Now

A Quick Guide to Increasing Last-Minute Holiday Sales Now

Tick tock. There are 14 shopping days left until Christmas and even fewer days until the last ship date to ensure arrival by the big day. By now your marketing plan is steadily in place and your staff is ready to tackle the end-of-season holiday sales with endurance and grace. Before it’s too late, make sure you’ve implemented the following five steps in our last-minute holiday sales guide to increase visibility, traffic, and sales volume in the upcoming weeks.

1. Be price-competitive.

Online shoppers are searching for the best deal on pricing and shipping speed. Scope out what your competitors are doing, especially for your most popular products. Google Shopping lists products from different sellers side by side, so staying a few price points ahead of the competition can only help your CTR and sales. Keep checking on rival sales to stay competitive.

2. Sweeten the deal.

Now is the time to try different promotions—either every few days or same-day tests—to discover which ones get you the best CTR or sales. There are a variety of promotion options, such as BOGO, free shipping, percentage off of your total, and more. You can also offer price-matching to competitor sites.

“Remember to remarket to customers who have opened and/or clicked through your email offers,” says Alisha Chocha, President and Co-Founder of Your Marketing People. “They may just need that extra promotional incentive to complete the sale, especially as it gets closer to Christmas.”

3. Perfect your product listings.

eCommerce sales rely heavily on the product photos and the information you provide in your listings. Make sure to use high-quality images (at least 800 x 800 pixels on Google Shopping, for example) and add descriptions that accurately portray the item you are selling. Include accurate descriptions on how to use your product, the size (any and all dimensions), pricing, packaging quantity, testimonials, and colors. Clarity is key—the last thing you want is for customers to be confused about your product and go to a competitor to make the purchase.

Videos are becoming increasingly popular as well. While there isn’t much time to create a new video, you may be able to find a user-generated video of the product on YouTube. Just be sure to always get permission and give credit to the user.

4. Create a sense of urgency.

Determine your last possible ship date to get products delivered to customers. Then, urge customers to complete purchases through effective marketing emails and banner ads, with wording such as, “Order now to arrive before Christmas!” Also, last ship date countdown clocks on your website can further create a sense of urgency. Once the ship date passes, promote discounts on gift cards through your main marketing channels (for instance, $100 gift cards for $85). Gift cards can be sent electronically and printed for last-minute shoppers.

5. Energize your team.

Lead your team through the long hours and short days with energy and enthusiasm. Your staff should be prepared to respond to customer inquiries, consistently check inventory, and fill orders on time.

A Forward-Thinking Approach

Once the holiday is over, plan to use what you’ve learned this season to incorporate into a strategic eCommerce campaign for next year. Ask yourself and your team:

• • What promotion worked? What didn’t work?

• • Which items sold the most? The least?

• • Which marketing channels drove the most sales? The least?

• What customer feedback should you take into consideration for next year?

The answers to those questions are a great starting point to improving your marketing for next year, including everything from paid search to email marketing to social media. To get ahead for next year, schedule a consultation and learn from our eCommerce experts today!