A Guide to Help Your Business Prepare For Christmas | Varn

Insights

7 November 2016

A Marketing Guide to Help Your Business Prepare For Christmas

In fact, according to Bobatoo, 54.6% of people start before November and this jumps up to 77.3% for those people who start their shopping before, or at the start of, December. So, when it comes to having an online business, it is crucial to be prepared and make sure that you have your marketing covered.

From November through to mid-December we see online conversion rates increase and although this is largely thanks to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, marketers who adjust their plans in line with these consumer shifts will be the ones who ultimately win at the end of 2016.

There is a lot of value to be had in the build up to Christmas and the same research by Bobatoo explains that 58.7% are planning to spend more than £300 on presents this Christmas and 63% of the people surveyed will be doing their shopping online.

What does that mean for you and your business? There are a number of ways your business can utilise its marketing efforts to earn a slice of your industry’s profit.

Understanding and Utilising Micro-Moments

Firstly, what are micro-moments?

Micro-moments are an intent-rich moment when a person turns to a device to act on a need. These include I-want-to-know, I-want-to-go, I-want-to-do or I-want-to-buy-moments.

These moments are important because the consumer knows exactly what they want and they will focus their attention on those businesses that are more likely to deliver on these needs. Around Christmas, these micro-moments are even more important. To exploit these moments, it is crucial that you are ‘there’, you are useful and you are accountable.

Google AdWords and other paid platforms can work well when optimising for micro-moments and although it is vital to use these as a means to drive traffic to your site, it is also essential to focus on the whole digital journey so your website and other marketing is seamlessly prepared for these moments; which moves us onto our next point.

Think of the Whole Journey, Not Just When They Make a Purchase

If everyone made the same journey, it would make our job a whole lot easier but that’s just not the case and is part of the reason our industry is so interesting because we are able to work out which platforms and paths people take before they actually buy a product or a service. And, it’s this information that can help your business understand any pitfalls your website or marketing might have between consumer research and their actual intent to buy.

Think with Google revealed that 78% of smartphone shoppers turn to mobile search when searching for ideas about what they are going to buy before heading to a physical store. If you’re not ‘there’ when people search on their mobile, then the chances are your store will not be the one they will be visiting for that all important purchase.

During The Busiest Times, Make Creativity Your USP

Through Google AdWords, you have the ability to dictate where and when you show your ads to your preferred consumer and this can help you leverage not only your budget, but your USPs too. It is important to stand out in a busy online marketplace and the best way to do that is to include what makes you different in your Ad Text.

These USPs should include things like:

  • Discount or promo codes
  • If you offer quick or free delivery
  • Do you deliver in time for Christmas and/or internationally
  • Specific brands you stock or specialise in
  • Local store information

Think with Google also shared a stat that highlighted that 76% of mobile shoppers have changed their mind about which retailer or brand to buy from after searching for a product or service on Google, so it is even more important that your business stands out from the crowd.

It can be challenging to stand out in a busy marketplace and if you need help with your digital marketing pre or post-Christmas, get in touch with our team at Varn to discuss some potential options.

Article by: Christopher, Senior Paid Media Executive More articles by Christopher

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