It's almost 2 weeks since we started this series on planning your strategic online holiday marketing. Many of the ideas we presented need to be implemented on your website before Friday THIS WEEK in order to have the highest chance to work before November. Clear your schedule and get it done this week.
Tomorrow is our final nugget in this series, but before we wrap it all up, let's talk about the online frenzy that takes place in the USA the final 7 days leading up to Christmas.
During those last 7 days, the home page of your website should display all types of gift ideas for her and for him. Most of the merchandise listed on your home page should stay below the $487 psychological price barrier. Your photography is especially important since many will gravitate to that.
To increase click through rates, add some red color to the backgrounds of your photography. Years of tracking show us that any hint of red color increases clicks. BlueNile.com even adopted this strategy on their home page with their red ribbon.
Brick and mortar stores need to announce their convenient extended hours that week. Make sure you clearly state that the items shown on your home page are in stock, will be gift wrapped, and they save the last minute shipping costs when they buy locally.
On the other hand, online purchases during those last 7 days increase drastically, as well as shipping costs, since everyone needs overnight shipping.
If you do sell online, make sure your home page changes every day with new shipping information. In fact, you may consider posting the specific shipping prices for orders placed between 3pm and 7pm each day.
Consider offering "no-service-fee" telephone ordering to make sure an item is shipped out on time.
TODAY'S ACTION PLAN:
Think ahead to which items you will have in stock those last 7 days. If it's something you plan on reordering through the season, make sure to ask your vendors now if stock will be available then. You might also consider showcasing an old dog item. Create a page about each of those items, or sets of items you will showcase. Make sure to include important phrases like "last minute gift ideas," "holiday gift," "Christmas gift," "Hanukkah gift," "Kwanzaa gift," as well as any other holiday specific phrasing that is common for your region. (Example: Some people say "Happy Christmas" whereas other say "Merry Christmas.")
Publish these pages to your website now because the search engines will need at least 30 days to find them. In the frenzy of mid-late December, local consumers will search online for "last minute gift ideas" and find your website. They will think your website is perfectly-timed when in fact it took more than 30 days of planning.
DISCLAIMER: The above information is based on statistical data and attempted consumer psychological reasoning. Please review your own data for your site if you have it. Do not make any financial judgments based off this information; it's only meant to help you strategize your advertising efforts. Hindsight is always 20/20 and what we see from previous years does not mean the same thing will happen in 2010... Google TFYQA and have a great day.
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