A Guest Post by Lily Harris
With the holiday season approaching, many business owners find markets becoming increasingly crowded as competitors battle to attract keen Christmas shoppers. In 2019, the famous John Lewis Christmas advert received 7.7 million views. So, how can your business stand out amongst these large companies and their exceptional marketing campaigns? This article will discuss some exciting festive marketing opportunities that your business can make the most of this festive season.
Pop up Christmas markets
By far one of the most beloved and traditional Christmas events, markets attract visitors from miles around- all keen to spend money on gifts and festive treats. For your business, a pop-up market stall could be the key to reaching customers who may not usually buy from you. Visitors will spend hours browsing amongst the different stalls no matter what they’re selling because it’s all part of the ‘Christmas experience’. Whether you sell food, gifts, handmade goods or beverages, your business is guaranteed to get attention at a Christmas market. Make the most of this popular event and bring your business to an area of the country that you have not been able to reach before. Experts at S Jones suggest the use of a shipping container as they are “fully waterproof, easily portable, and can really stand out with some vinyl wrap branding”!
Pop-up markets offer spaces for all kinds of business from across the country and can be easily accessed by using shipping containers to carry your business from one location to another. Not only will this allow you to reach more potential customers, but it will help to spread your brand name and create more recognition for your products.
Personalised greetings cards for your mail list
If your business has an online presence, it is very likely that you will have a mailing list of loyal customers. For sales, this list is a potential gold mine of people who are ready to buy from you, they just need a little persuasion to do so. Your products have already clearly grabbed their attention, so how do you make that final push and secure an order? You could effectively reach out to these customers by sending them a personalised greetings card via email. Not only will this put a smile on their faces, but it will strengthen their love for your brand and possibly remind those who signed up to your list a long time ago that your business is still up and running! Greetings cards are a great way to spark interest and will certainly increase the number of visits to your website.
Play on Christmas traditions
Everyone knows that a great marketing campaign is a memorable one and playing on Christmas traditions is one of the best ways to get your advertising noticed by the public. During the festive season, people are keen to immerse themselves in Christmas joy, especially when it comes to shopping, meaning that many of the most successful products are those that supply the Christmas spirit that customers are searching for. By creating clever campaigns surrounding well-known Christmas traditions, your products will draw the attention of these holiday shoppers, increasing your chances of sale. Examples of popular traditions that you could incorporate into your campaign are: 12 ‘deals’ of Christmas, a ‘Deck The Halls’ homeware event or an Advent Calendar of discounts and deals. There are a variety of opportunities when it comes to Christmas traditions and finding one that fits well with your business is a brilliant way to engage your customers this holiday season.
Partner with a local charity
For many people, Christmas is a time for giving and coming together as a community. Incorporating this kind of spirit and emotion into your campaign is a great way to capture your customer’s hearts which will in turn lead to greater brand loyalty and more sales. Partnering with a local charity is one of the most effective ways to do this. During the festive season, many become increasingly generous and keen to help those who are in need which means that shoppers tend to seek out ways in which they can donate their money. Providing a charity bucket in your store or agreeing to donate a percentage of your profits to a chosen charity this Christmas will give customers a reason to buy your products or visit your shop as buying from your business suddenly becomes a ‘good deed’. As well as this, you will be using this marketing opportunity to do good in your community from which your business will receive great reviews and more loyal customers.
The festive season really is the best time to go ‘all-out’ on your marketing campaign and can be a great opportunity to establish your brand. The above strategies are all incredibly effective and can be used in conjunction with each other to create a campaign that your customers simply won’t be able to miss!
