2020 Holiday Marketing Guide The pandemic has had a great impact on consumer shopping habits this year. Many have been forced to move to online shopping due to the lock downs. In fact, 36% of consumers shop online weekly since the rise of COVID-19, up from 28% prepandemic, according to new data from Digital Commerce 360. While this does not mean the demise of traditional brick and mortar storefronts, having an online presence is important for every business. A website for customers to find your business information (offerings, prices, location, contact info) and at minimum a Facebook or Instagram account to promote to customers online. Online Shopping t r a t S : y l r a E As shown, 2020 has seen a drama�c increase in overall online sales. With that there is also many shipping issues arising, so many business will be trying to get a head start, to make sure that items are arriving to consumers before the holidays. Many of the big-box retailers have decided to start their sales even earlier this year. While many sales used to begin on blank Friday and con�nue the following few weeks, this year some are beginning as early as the beginning of November. Big Box retailers like Target, Walmart and Best Buy are already announcing some of their upcoming deals right now. By star�ng early, there will hopefully be less of a last second rush of orders that could lead to late arrivals or expensive shipping. In a survey of 12.,000 consumers more than 50% of consumers have already started shopping for these gi�s or will begin in October, while 33% plan to start in November and 9% in December. (DC360). Shipping: If you are selling products, this may be the �me to start offering shipping op�ons as well as curbside pickup. Since the start of the pandemic, many people’s shopping habits have changed to more online shopping. If possible, try to set up a promo�on that can offer free shipping if you spend a certain amount (i.e. Spend $49+ and receive free shipping). This may en�ce someone to add another item to their cart to avoid spending money on shipping. Extend Sales Period Black Friday/Small Business Saturday/Cyber Monday will s�ll be big events this year, and you will want to hold some of your best promo�ons during that 4 Day period. However, do not limit yourself to just that weekend to hold special deals, many consumers will be looking for deals even earlier. While you may want to save the bigger deals for that weekend, start your promo�ons early in November to try and reach those early shoppers. With consumers beginning their holiday shopping early, you don’t want to completely miss them if you are wai�ng un�l a�er Thanksgiving to run a promo�on SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY Small Business Saturday This is the day that small business owners should be focused on the most. Black Friday and Cyber Monday most consumers will usually flock towards big retails such as Walmart and Amazon. However, Small Business Saturday has become increasingly popular in America over the past few years; giving people a chance to support their locally owned business in the area. While the en�re weekend is a chance to drive traffic, small business day is when the spotlight will be on you small business owners. Consumers will look to the stores in their local community in a�empts to support local business owners. The holiday has only grown since its incep�on in 2010, with 2019 marking the largest year on record. Shoppers supported local small businesses with an es�mated $19.6 billion poured back into their local communi�es. 2020 in par�cular is the year that local shopping ma�ers more than ever. Many businesses were forced to shut down temporarily and are s�ll struggling to get back to where they were preCovid19. So many people will be looking to help support their favorite local business this year. SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY Raise Awareness While some people know about small business Saturday, you should s�ll begin promo�ng it early. It is important to build an�cipa�on for the day and make an event out of it, rather than throwing together a last-minute sale. If consumers know about your event in advance this may encourage them to make plans to stop into your store or check your website the day of for your special deals. The best way to do this is through email and social media marke�ng. If you have an email list of exis�ng customers, send out 2-3 emails over the few weeks prior to small business Saturday to generate awareness and interest. Social media should be used in a similar fashion. Post to your accounts a few �mes in the weeks leading up to small business Saturday to keep online followers in the loop on what you have planned for the day. Be sure to use hashtags such as #SmallBusinessSaturday, #ShopSmall, or #ThinkLocal to help broaden your reach. SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY Plan Deals As previously stated, have a plan for the promo�ons you are going to run. These do not have to be slashes in overall prices to try and compete with the prices of large retailers. They could be promo�ons such as offering a free dessert with any 2 entrées purchased at your restaurant. Giving a gi� card on purchases over a certain amount. So if a customer spends over $49 on small business Saturday, give them a $5-10 gi� card to your store for their next purchase. This will bring them back in the future where they will more than likely spend more than the $5-10 you provided. This is the �me to use promo�onal discounts to en�ce shoppers. Most businesses are already extending out these deals during the holidays but this year it is especially important. Many people are facing financial challenges this year with the pandemic. This will have people searching for the best bang for their buck when it comes to holiday shopping. However, slashing your prices isn’t the only way to a�ract customers looking for deals. Another op�on is to offer a discount on mul�ple items in the same category or complementary products. Alterna�vely, you can offer a percentage off orders over a certain amount. SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY Collaborate With Surrounding Business If you have other small businesses in the surrounding area, now would be a great �me to team up with them. This is a great way to make it a full event for the town as shoppers can browse the area and shop in different local stores. Collabora�ons can be things as simple as including other business in your social media marke�ng efforts. You can also try to work together in a sales effort. For example, a local candy shop can offer 10% off with proof of purchase from the neighboring family owned restaurant. Ask for Reviews Asking for reviews will help improve your marke�ng for the long run. Customers are always happy to help small businesses, so there is no be�er �me to ask for their help. It is so important for small businesses to have an online presence and many poten�al new customers will look at your online reviews before deciding to do business with you. Therefore, asking you loyal and suppor�ve customers to leave an online review will help you in the long run. You can even make it a promo�on and offer a coupon or gi� card for their next purchase if they come back in a�er leaving a review. Customers are already willing to spend their �me and money to support your business, what is another 2 minutes to leave a good review on google? SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY EFFECTIVE MARKETING TACTICS UTILIZE VIDEO MARKETING Whether it is YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok video marketing has grown over the best few years. More and more people are watching videos on their phones regularly throughout the day. Video is a good chance to show customers your face and the people behind the brand. It also is your chance to tell a story about your brand, that can captivate your audience. Think about ways to incorporate video into your holiday marketing materials. Create video advertisements for social media networks, organic content you can share on your website or social channels, or use video to create virtual events. EFFECTIVE MARKETING TACTICS Make a Splash with your Website: As stated there will be even more growth this year when it comes to online shopping. So now it is even more important to have a well designed website. No matter what business you are in, you should have a website for customers to find you online. Even if you are not selling products online, a well designed website with business and contact info is a great source for online consumers. Make sure your website is user-friendly with an appealing design. You could even create a special holiday-themed landing page, or countdown clock for special deals EFFECTIVE MARKETING TACTICS EMAIL MARKETING: Print: While customers will be shopping online, they may not think to check your website. While digital is still extremely important when it comes to marketing, the old school print advertisements still have plenty of value. Utilize email marketing to reach out to your audience and give them info on new deals that you have coming up. Try and use a catchy subject line to grab their attention and incorporate a holiday theme to have it feeling different than your regular email campaigns. Whether you are a store-front or an online store, small business Saturday is a great opportunity to drive traffic to your business. This year has been very difficult for many small businesses, so if capable, many people will be ready to support small businesses. So plan early, execute and provide the great customer service you always do and hopefully this will put you on the fast track to recovery. AP Digital Marke�ng is ready to help small businesses overcome, grow, and thrive a�er 2020. Talk to a representa�ve today to find out how we can help.
