Timing for your holiday marketing has always been important, but it might be critical this year. Large economic and political impacts are coupled with the probable loss of last-minute in-store shopping. Remember people who used to do all their holiday buying on Christmas Eve?
It’s no secret this year, that e-commerce will dominate. Click & Collect is expected to hold the line for the small, hometown retailer (okay Target is betting on that also) while Amazon wants to walk away with the majority of the e-commerce pie.
Consider:
- 39% of consumers typically start their holiday shopping before November
- Prime Day, Oct 12-13 is the expected kick-off of the 2020 holiday season; and over-achiever Amazon is hoping to corner the online market for your holiday budget
- Election day hoopla will impact the price and volume of holiday advertising, reaching a fever pitch November 3
- In 2019, Cyber week (or Cyber5) had 3 of the top holiday e-commerce days
- 2020 predictions are that 50% of online holiday shopping is expected to be finished by Cyber Monday – November 30.
- Click & Collect will likely peak in the seven days before Christmas.
- And interestingly, 68% of shoppers plan to continue buying after December 25.
Clearly there is going to be increased digital competition and consumers are still less confident with the ongoing economic impacts of the coronavirus, albeit bored from long-term social restrictions. And some pundits say with holiday travel down, holiday gift budgets will be up.
Does that mean that 2020 crushed our FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out)? Or will FOMO morph into FONA (Fear of It Not Arriving – yes, we just made this up)? With a gargantuan online holiday expected, shipping cutoffs and a potentially overwhelmed delivery system could offer opportunities for those with brick and mortar locations.
So, with Prime Days and little-to-no holiday travel, Christmas is expected to come early. Buzzgen has some ideas to help capture the holiday magic:
- Getting ahead of the curve and offering your promotions and products early.
- If you are budget constrained, take a short break in ad delivery during the election.
- October product searches are expected to soar, so it’s a great time to start collecting your retargeting audiences
- And, it’s a great time to invest in retargeting ads
- Do you have abandoned cart emails set up? These emails usually see very high open rates, good click through rates, and bring in potential lost revenue
- Going to offer a December flash sale? Tease the promo as an email collection tool. For example: Sign up for our list and be the first to receive our holiday promotions
- Don’t have a Click & Collect strategy? There’s probably an app that works with your e-commerce engine. It might be as easy as installing new software.
- Don’t overlook at home celebration ideas, including food, alcohol, decorations, games, and family activities.
And as always, don’t forget about the basics:
- Fix any problems in your e-cart (when was the last time you ran a test?)
- How’s your site speed?
- You know we have to ask: Are you *really* optimized for mobile? Find out here.
- 67% of Consumers say good product images are “very important” in selecting and purchasing products, even more important than reviews and ratings.
- If you aren’t offering free shipping, now might be a good time to start.