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Last-Minute Holiday Promotion Tips for eCommerce
2019’s Cyber Monday was the biggest eCommerce sales day ever, racking up a total of $9.4 billion in sales.
But holiday sales don’t stop after the big Black Friday weekend—far from it. Shoppers are just getting warmed up. By the end of November, shoppers have only picked up about a quarter of their holiday shopping list, according to the National Retail Federation.
They complete the rest of their gift-shopping in December, with 61 percent of shoppers planning to buy their last gift the week before Christmas.
Let’s make sure that the gift they buy is one from your eCommerce site. Here are five last-minute holiday promotion ideas to try this December.
1. Add a countdown clock for final shipping day
Nearly 100% of shoppers (97% to be exact) say shipping speed plays a major factor in whether or not they decide to purchase a product, and 60% say slow shipping was a reason they chose not to buy from a particular retailer.
Don’t give shoppers a reason not to buy from you. Ease their concerns (and heighten their sense of urgency) with a prominent shipping countdown clock on your website.
Also make sure to update your Shipping page to include detailed information about expected delivery times, like Nordstrom:
2. Run a flash sale
Countdown clocks are also useful for making a December flash sale that much more exciting. People continue their gift- shopping throughout the month of December, so it’s up to you to interrupt their day with a friendly, enticing email announcing your flash sale.
Here’s a fun example from Rifle Paper Co. There’s no way to miss the flash sale announcement on their homepage, animated in big block text that flashes different colors. As shoppers browse the site, a sticky banner at the top of the site ensures they don’t forget the limited-time deal and promo code.
Pro Tip: When running a flash sale, update your PPC and Google Shopping campaigns to attract more shoppers through search:
3. Offer e-gift cards for the procrastinators
Last-minute shopping is a thing. Your eCommerce site can compete with brick-and-mortar retailers, and help out your procrastinating customers, by selling e-gift cards.
Warby Parker sells both physical and e-gift cards, with a clear explanation of when shoppers can expect them to arrive:
Anthropologie goes the extra mile with a dozen-plus designs for their e-gift cards, pre-sorted with holiday designs first.
Pro Tip: Update your e-gift card product descriptions to speak to the urgency of last-minute holiday shopping, like Anthropologie does:
4. Throw in a free gift
Shopping is fun, but it’s also stressful. Help your customers take a load off and spread the holiday cheer by throwing in a free gift, exclusively available during orders made in December.
You can make your free gift a low-value gift card, or you can use this as an opportunity to clean out your excess inventory.
For example, Fitness Fashions offers shoppers a free tank top with their purchase—but only if they spend at least $100 and act fast.
5. Keep the sales coming post-holiday
Get shoppers excited to spend now, by luring them with steeper discounts later. Here’s the catch: they can only unlock that steeper discount if they buy now.
During their Black Friday promotion, fashion e-retailer Bebe offered 40% off sitewide. But, if shoppers spent at least $150, they also received an exclusive promo code to use on a later, separate purchase made in December.
This is a great strategy for boosting your initial Cyber Week sales, and riding the wave for long after—but you can use this strategy any time of year, including now. Offer a promotion for all sales made during December that gives shoppers an exclusive promo code to redeem in the New Year.
Boost Your Holiday Sales With These Last-Minute Tips
Make every minute count this December. Implement these promotion ideas on your eCommerce site and help those last-minute shoppers buy, buy, buy.
For more tips on making your holiday sales season a success, check out our Marketer’s Guide for eCommerce or contact us to develop a custom-built strategy for your brand.
