As the seasons change to fall and we move closer to winter that means the holidays are coming! The end of the year holidays is when most promotions and sales are done for the year. Sales have increased online over the last 20 years, in fact since 2000, online retail sales have increased by over 400 billion dollars to over 700 billion dollars in 2019.

That’s a lot of money being spent online, which means having an online store is very valuable. With the COVID-19 crisis, many brick and mortar retail shops are talking about not having in-person Black Friday events at all or at least limiting them. This means more online purchasing. 

Whether you sell directly to consumers or B2B, online sales are critical, and especially in the last quarter of the year. Promoting your products and services can keep you busy and profitable if done right. Here are a few ways you can promote your website and business during holidays.

The easiest way to stimulate more purchases is to promote a sale. If you want to sell your products or services at discounted rates this is the time to do it. Setting yourself up for success by creating buzz around new products or offers you may be having during that time is how you get people to gravitate to your store. Bao Xiong of BXNCO.COM is a prime example of using anticipation to drive sales.

Bao says, “I like to keep them updated [through social media] and I’m always thinking of something new to create.”

“Buzz” around products and services makes your audience’s interests and engagement rise. Are they able to save money? Get something for free, or exclusive?

Social Bakers recommends seven ways to help create buzz on social media for new products:

1. Behind the scene videos

2. Mystery around product

3. Utilize ads

4. Team up with influencers (if possible)

5. Giveaways and contests

6. Educational / informational videos

7. Preorders

Read full Social Bakers article.

These types of promotions are valuable for sales. Creating excitement through social media, on your website, and with email marketing campaigns and video content can make your sales event more exciting. Making the event time-sensitive will also encourage more buyers to act.

Here’s how you can create buzz right now with Zibster:

• Set up promo banners and pop-ups: Have promotional codes on the banners visitors can take advantage of or exclusive offers for those who sign up for email through the pop-up banner (this is also great for building your list for future promotions).

• Send out email marketing campaigns: Since you get 2,000 free emails to send each month, send them! Email is a very powerful promotional tool to get information about your products and services to your customers.

• Blog more: Blogging is a great tool for storytelling and sharing company updates and promotions. After you publish a blog post, share it through your social media platforms to drive traffic to your site.

• Set up your store: If you don’t have an online store set up yet or need to tweak what or how you're selling online, now is the time to set it up for the holiday push. Prep any new product descriptions, images, and pricing. Then create promocodes and gift cards for your customers to take advantage of.

• Update your site: Refresh or add new marketing banners and design wrapped around your event or promotion. Have you been to a website that never changes or doesn’t call out a promotion? Probably not too often. Keeping your website up to date with new content and images helps people see what you are doing, engages with them, and encourages them to focus on your promo. Zibster gives you all the tools for this, even the ability to change your template with just a few clicks. Plan ahead: Figure out what your goal is and focus on that.

As a business owner, your goal is to sell a product or service. Each focuses on consumer needs. How does your product or service add value to your customer life? When creating effective marketing, you should explain/show how your product can enhance that need. Here are some great ways to do this:

• Before and afters: Nothing works better than a reveal, showcasing a problem and how you solved it is the best way your product or service can effectively help a customer. As a business who provides services, this is the best way to show your skills and proficiency to customers. Use your blog, photos, and video on social media and on your site to display this effectively. 

• Product showcase: Another way to get people’s attention is by showing a product in use. People are visual, so seeing jewelry on a person, or an item in action helps people see how it can be a part of their own lives. Instead of the item just being on a solid color background, show how the product can be used with real-world examples to help customers envision it in their lives.

• Highlight testimonials: Nothing sells you better than referrals from other happy customers. If you know a customer has had a good experience, get permission to share their story with your customers. Their experience can sell your products or services for you. According to Nielsen’s, over 83% of purchases are referral based. Often a customer or client chooses you much more based on a good experience or solid product versus your advertising. So, let your customers speak for you. Use videos, blogs, or images to share their experiences. Utilize Google reviews and if possible, get that customer to share their experiences directly with their friends and family.

Another way to drum up sales is by using coupons or discount codes. Applying this on your site is a great way to entice customers to take action, but sometimes they may not want to purchase right away. Some effective ways to keep them hooked is by giving them an offer they can use later.

• Newsletter sign up discounts: This is a simple way to give people an incentive to spend money on your site. I’m sure you have seen this when visiting other websites, you open a site, spend a minute or two looking around and then a pop-up reveals a discount offer, if you join their email list. It’s pretty simple. This gives them an opportunity to save either right then or later (pending the expiration date you set).  

• Gift card promotions: Buying your services or products may be out of range for some customers, but gift cards are a great way to help bridge those purchasing gaps. It helps let them “buy-in” to a future purchase.or provide a gift for friends and family. Having gift cards available on your site helps make your website a more complete sales tool.

• Timed events / pre-registrations: Promoting a big sale or event coming up is a great way to drive potential sales. Pre-registrations to an event gives exclusivity, especially if space is limited and if there is an upfront saving right away. You can make these events timed so people know to take advantage sooner so they don’t miss out or have to “pay in full.” People like a discount even if it’s a small one. Studies have shown that nearly 94% of people search for a deal or offer when purchasing online. Discounts matter.

Preparing for holiday sales shouldn’t feel like preparing for a battle, with effective marketing strategies, you can do this! It just takes time and planning to make it effective for your business. Try these examples to get you prepared for holiday sales. At the end of the day, you want to make it easy for customers to find what they are looking for, feel rewarded to be there, and encourage them to share their experience with others (to hopefully bring more customers to you).

Need help setting up your website for holiday sales and promotions? Give Zibster a call at 844.353.3412. Our customer care and pro services teams can assist you in turning your website into a powerful sales tool.