Winter is around the corner and so are all the events related to this period. Soon it will be high time to take out Christmas decorations from their boxes to illuminate our houses and streets with millions of flashing lights.It's just a matter of days to go before we see new storefronts and cafes adorned with the holiday accessories. We will hit the stores and shopping malls to buy the presents and get prepared for the holiday time...or at least that's what we would have done normally in recent years.Due to last events, many companies won't be allowed to let customers into their walk-in stores. As a result, many clients might resign from shopping in person and choose to order goods online instead.How to get your ecommerce business prepared for this shift and make the most of holiday season 2020 as well as Black Friday and Cyber Monday?
Switching business online and preparing for the eCommerce winter holiday
The ongoing situation is leaving a deep mark on our private and business lives. Many business owners are having to take up the challenge of moving their stores online. The circumstances are different depending on each country's restrictions. However, there's one common ground - this holiday season will be unique and the digital sphere will play a significant part in the shopping experience.Although changing business tactics might seem to be a hard nut to crack, it's actually easier than ever before. As the pandemic has affected us all, more brands than ever have started to look for intuitive solutions to help them overcome the problems they were facing.Let's talk about this unique opportunity that the most digital-first holiday season offers to businesses.
Why should you prepare your online store for the holiday shopping spree?
Focusing on the bright side of this situation can help us take advantage of omnichannel based marketing strategies. Even in 2018, when no one could've imagined a sanitary order to close the shopping centers,1.8 billion people worldwide were purchasing goods online. This number is expected to reach 2.05 billion this year - accounting for around 26% of the whole population! Also, in 2020, the number of users who are shopping digitally has doubled compared to 2 years ago - and it's more than just a temporary boost.Keeping that in mind, and the fact that 62% of the shoppers make online purchases at least once a month, opening a digital store is a future-oriented action. Even if companies will be able to come back to walk-in stores, the shift in customer mentality might turn out to be something permanent.There have been many different studies conducted about the influence of pandemic on the amount of money spent shopping. Although people have changed their spending habits during the pandemic, the holiday season has always been a moment when humans are more extravagant with their money.The truth is that there are just as many people who want to buy presents and Christmas decorations as there used to be.Many of them have just switched from traditional shopping to online purchases. This niche is your place to fit in - and there's no better time to get a satisfying ROI than the holiday season.
Why are online sales and marketing the pillars of nailing the ecommerce holiday campaign?
Nothing works better than a case study. We've prepared two examples to show you how connecting a phenomenal marketing campaign with an online store can work wonders for your business.
Search for inspiration and learn good practices
The internet is full of success stories like this one. Although they often might seem to be far-fetched (and sometimes they are), it's a great source of inspiration for your own actions.If you already have an online store - that's amazing! You can focus on developing your strategy and making the most of what you already have. As the holiday time is always a busy period and many companies want to break through with their content, the costs of digital promotion might be a bit higher than usual. That's why it's essential to estimate how much time and money you can spend on marketing. Focus on realistic actions that can be implemented and give you a satisfying ROI.
Know the market and adjust your eCommerce sales strategy
According toGoogle Trends data, interest in Holiday topics starts to rise from the end of October and reaches its peak in the second part of December every year. To schedule a campaign properly, it should last much longer than just the Christmas season itself. However, we're already in the middle of November and so you should act right now.Let's consider what you can do if your online store isn't quite ready yet, but you still want to have a slice of the holiday sales cake. Honestly, there will never be the right time to start - so don't hesitate to set up your eCommerce website even during the busy period.Of course, in a perfect world, you would have endless resources and time to create an online store that attracts clients, converts, and is combined with an amazing marketing campaign. But what if the reality turns out to be different?
First things first - boosting your online store
If it turns out that there's not enough time to adjust your online store with an elaborate campaign, no worries - many brands are facing the same problem right now. You can create an attractive sales offer and make a basic digital advertisement that costs less (and is often more eff ective) than traditional PR actions.Think about this season as an opportunity to track your competitors' actions and learn how to forecast upcoming trends. This is valuable knowledge that you can make use of later, after taking care of your online store. You don't need anything more than our platform to optimize your page for browsers. Another good practice is creating special landing pages and lead magnets to redirect your clients to the relevant places with URLs.
Accelerate the digital retail experience
The recent events have surprised many business owners and accelerated the process of moving online. Those who had already ran digital campaigns and ecommerce shops were one step ahead of the rest.However, you too can still make it before the holiday season. If you want to save time and money, you still can hire a website developer and choose a hosting platform such as Shopify, BigCommerce, or Magento. By picking one of these systems, you can later integrate it with our website to make it more customized and leverage your store's SEO.Focus on the convenience of the shopping experience. Once a client is attracted by your offer and visits your website, you should make the buying process as smooth as possible. Even the best advertisement won't work if your page loads slowly or bugs occur during shopping, and the customer is likely to abandon their cart. Your website might also appear lower in SERPs, as the speed limit is one of the factors that is rewarded by search engine botslike Google.
The benefits of creating an online store for holidays
There are many things you can do before the holidays come. This season will be focused on the digital sphere more than in any other year before. Investing in eCommerce seems to be a future-trending move that will last even if we come back to traditional walk-in stores in the future.No matter how the current reality has changed and challenged the business industry, the holiday season is still a time for big spenders. To earn profit from the December shopping spree, you have to show your clients that you're going to meet their expectations.This moment is one of the most important during the whole year for salespeople. Keeping in mind that this year's events have made us all appreciate how meaningful social relationships are, customers might be likely to spend money on holiday goods to feel the connection with loved ones to show their gratitude.
Wrap your online store like a gift
Although the prices of software developers, online advertising, and the IT industry in general might increase a bit up during this besieged season, they might still be more profitable than traditional selling methods. Keeping in mind the restrictions that some countries have implemented, running your business online is a safe move and a step forward into the future.No matter what point your business is at, you can take progress into your own hands by customizing and adding changes with an intuitive software system. Don't wait for Santa Claus - give yourself a present today and integrate your online store with our optimization tool to boost your sales.