During the holidays, there’s always a disproportionate amount of spending that occurs between retailers and consumers. Merchants slash prices with the expectation that holiday promotion will motivate people to spend more money. Businesses invest a lot of time and money trying to promote the sales they are having. But is that enough? Whether you it’s black friday marketing or just holiday marketing in general, below are some important tips.

 

Businesses that fail to cash in on the holiday season are missing a gigantic revenue opportunity. Brands that only invest a tiny portion of their budget on seasonal ads falter while their competitors with larger budgets usually win the wallets of customers.

 

During the holiday season, companies have an opportunity to capture tons of new customers. Typically, ad impressions increase by 50%, direct traffic blossoms approximately 150% and conversion rates can increase a whopping 60%. Unfortunately, few marketing budgets have the ability to accommodate such rapid growth in this marketing opportunity. Brands need to start preparing for the holidays early, so they can celebrate their success sooner.

 

Keep An Open Mind

---

The most important thing you can to do is establish a sound marketing plan. While developing your campaign strategy, you need to focus on both your target audience and mainstream holiday shoppers. Christmas marketing isn’t the only effort that you could be targeting.

 

Holiday-Themed Offers

---

People tend to get caught up in the holiday frenzy, so you need to maximize engagement by creating a social media plan that draws people in. Holiday-themed offers on social media platforms give you just enough exposure to stay relevant in people’s minds. Make sure you have great visuals and graphics, because social media is such a visually oriented platform.

 

Here’s a great example from Free People discussed by HubSpot:
 

 

Recycle And Reuse

---

Rethink your ad copy to make the most of your previous campaigns. Toss in a few holiday-themed keywords to pique interest.

 

Advertise Early

---

If you want to get a head start on the holidays, you should start promoting ads several weeks in advance. This gives you ample opportunity to test out your latest creatives without blowing your budget. By promoting yourself early, you’re able to prime shoppers to choose you as the go-to shopping destination.

 

When you celebrate the holiday season early, you have a chance to have fun with customers, dramatically increase revenue and outshine your competition. Think as if you’re a holiday shopper? What type of advertising would appeal to you?

 

Both current customers and potentially new ones want to see your human side. They want to connect with their favorite brands. That means you need to make them part of the equation long before the holiday season sets in.

 

About Author

Emma is a freelance writer currently living in Boston, MA. For graphics and design, Emma writes for Arc and Co. To see more from Emma, say hi on Twitter @EmmaSturgis2