The Christmas Hype in 2020

As medical experts struggle with the COVID vaccine, tremendous sales opportunities are upon us. Let us highlight them, but if you have not done them already – there is always 2021.

Successful eCommerce runners know that getting your storefront ready for the holiday season takes weeks of meticulous preparation. A skillful seller tidies his merchandise and has a long-term sales strategy ready long before his customers start thinking about buying. Thanksgiving just passed by, New Year and Christmas sales are at the door, and you are reading this during the after-effects of Black Friday. The shopping craze is coming despite the global pandemic, and sometimes – fueled by it. As an eCommerce owner, you must shortlist a few schemes for better sales.

Seasonal Homepage Decoration

Your home page should not change drastically, and that’s why the seasonal decoration should not be a complete changeover. Like any other holiday or discount occasion – you must embed the event’s spirit in your design. Show that effort each year, and your customers will learn to recognize the visual change trend and associate it with better deals. Consistency is detrimental to customer retention, and having it will reflect on your reputation as a trusted provider.

Big Discount

Discount is a bad word in some sellers’ vocabulary. They prefer ‘deals’ as a better-sounding substitute. Stripping the merchant lingo away, what customers want during seasonal mass sales is getting the things they want and spend less than usual. Significant discounts are the ultimate winner from the customer’s perspective, and what also tips the scales when moderate competition is a factor. Understandably, not every company can afford to ramp up the discount rate.
Still, statistically and practically, a price reduction is one winning strategy with customers. Your ‘things must go’ products are ideal for attractive deals. Significant discounts can also help clean-up warehouse space while making more room for exciting new merch.

Newsletter Campaigns and Customer Feedback

Newsletters are great extensions of customer feedback channels. You can use them to alert and notify, but they are also an excellent source for customer behavior data. Customers are getting distracted by default, and with holidays kicking in, it’s becoming naturally more challenging to get anyone’s attention. Think about all the people who used to be big shoppers but now have temporarily retracted their purchasing habits, suppressed by uncertainty and market stagnation.
Talk to your customers; see what drives them to make that purchase. During massive attractive sales, people broaden their search scope, knowing that most vendors recognize the tradition with holiday-level prices, and the choices are always there.

About Video Content Marketing and Social Media Campaigns

You could use newsletters to support a healthy connection with your present and potential customers. But to bring attention to your seasonal offers and deals, you need to increase your presence. As an online seller, social networks should still be your trusted tools as part of your strategy.
Social networks create an environment where content marketing gets its meaning. With cool infographics depicting your selling points, you grab the initial attention. Once you have that, gear up with interactive tools like quizzes and calculators. And, of course, videos.
Video is still the industry king in content marketing. Whether your motion graphics or footage is shaped as a product promo, case study, explanatory clip, or tutorial, many customers prefer great videos. Most of the regular online shoppers also keep a YouTube tab.
Seeing your favorite product in 3D space has an enormous post-effect. Any video has the power to bring a tremendous level of detail, much more than a photo, even if it takes in series of angles. With the combined power of audio and visuals, videos show the work and lessen the gap between reality and customer’s expectations. They help customers get a better glimpse at the product and reveal things that potentially differ from what they initially imagined. As a result of such simple checks, you can reduce the chance of disappointing a customer. Part of eCommerce specialists’ job is to create an accurate profile of what the client is after.
And even if it isn’t about your targeted present or one you meant for someone close. New videos are always exciting and are on the radar of many potential new shoppers. There’s still a person out there, not knowing that your product is what they will enjoy; unless they see it first. Of course, the video should highlight actual strengths and features and be tastefully done. But there’s another requirement –getting people’s attention. The next step after making a cool video is to make it be seen. The magic usually starts after one carefully placed post on social media.

Integrated Products and Landing Pages Content

Landing pages are always of grave matter – every text you put on display must be a meaningful piece, part of a grander goal. These pages are responsible for the delicate transition online users do, starting from the initial page load and ending with a conversion.
Content density depends on your audience and the specific nature of your products. Veteran eCommerce business owners know that their merchandise is still new to the public once they see that most of their traffic comes from ads. However, new products get released all the time, and hence why ads are always an excellent choice to boost the recognition process.
Quality content is tough to create also because of one additional variable: customers’ preferences. Each customer has their unique ways of doing things, and they are free to interpret your messages, sometimes with unpredictable outcomes. An example of when good intentions temporarily dislodge from the good path. Look into your customer behavior and feedback, and scan for emerging patterns.
Content placement is also about persuading. Your word must carry a clear message, and one that is also convincing. As an online seller, you should carefully filter your target audience. When it comes to product placement, there is no room for preaching to the void – all your prospects must have the capacity to become part of your client family.

Advertisement

In a product advertisement, a big part of efforts better goes towards mobile-first solutions. eCommerce websites that operate for years don’t just have any plan for mobile ads in stock. They have an advanced program, honed and improved over the years, and considerably better than the initial version.
Although mobile sales are rising, mobile users don’t finalize their purchases with their smartphones. Many customers use hand-held devices to evaluate a product before moving to purchase: online customers scout and research products using their phones, getting that precious preliminary information. And what’s more important – getting the first impression. Hence the motivation of eCommerce sellers to upgrade their business and make it mobile-strong.

Unique Shopping Experience

Since customers have unique preferences, devising a strategy to improve their experience is a very tricky and intricate battle. A shopping journey is just as one-of-a-kind as is the taste of each customer. Knowing details about both at the same time is challenging but very rewarding if done right.
Customers highly appreciate it when companies show an effort to match their expectations. With the current pandemic post-effects on communication, presenting your online catalog can be an attractive, virus-free alternative connection with high value. Try to make the best of your relationship with your customers. Convince them that you are not part of the global uncertainly – you can do that by using consistency.
Embed a good dose of empathy into your deals. Customers are also people affected by the pandemic no less than the next man. Showing a genuine concern opens doors that are likely to remain otherwise closed.
Conversion rate itself can sometimes directly show whether the shopping experience is appreciated. This rate exemplifies the difference between those who saw some form of initial hook and those who followed through. It’s a simple ratio packed with meaning. For example, if many people landed but few showed activity, it doesn’t automatically point to a failed effort. It might suggest that many people are interested in it, but they need to get more familiar with it.

Conclusion

Looking at current holiday deals, it is somewhat clear that the pandemic did affect much the holiday shopping intensity. If anything – online sales are surging right now more than ever, making it the preferred choice to brick-and-mortar shops. Social distancing seems to contribute to people choosing to do online commerce. The lack of persona contact has re-channeled the hype towards getting online presents. It is not only safer but inexpensive.
Following how the industry changes under the lashing of disruption, maybe we already witnessed the new online commerce rules that will also reign during the coming year.
We wish everyone happy hunting, a Happy Holiday Season, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year! Above all, stay safe!