The turkey is almost carved and the trees are quickly going up, which means it’s time for you to ramp up on holiday marketing efforts.
The key is to capture your customers’ attention, and with local and big-box competitors fighting for as many consumer eyes as possible, you’ll want to make sure you’re diversifying your efforts.
We know it can be hard to figure out what exactly to post, so here are 5 ways to work one form of holiday promotional and take your customers from browsing for gift inspiration to making a final sale.
We’ve even added an early gift from us to you — a hefty 13 more holiday promo ideas to try on your own.
Holiday Marketing Promo: Offer a Freebie Discount
Everyone loves a free gift. This is especially true when the value of the gift makes the offer seem irresistible.
Give customers the incentive they need to shop at your business by running an exciting special on certain services and getting the word out on various platforms.
1: Tweet your sales
2: Share the news on Facebook
3: Light up their email
4: Hit their texts
5: Work your website banners
Want more?
Try to use these examples on other amazing holiday marketing ideas for any budget.
These holiday marketing ideas are cost-free:
- Send general thank you emails to current customers. Thanking and sharing info about holiday events, specials and loyalty programs is a great option when you don’t have much to give. Be sure to personalize the message.
- Send encouraging emails to push customers ahead. Rather than focus on getting in their pocket, you can focus on gaining their loyalty by sharing kind words or inspiring messages.
- Push discounts your customers’ way with text message marketing. After all, text messages have a 98% open rate compared to email marketing.
- Provide gift inspiration for those shoppers hoping to avoid wandering aimlessly through aisles looking for a good gift.
If you have a little flex in the budget, try these:
- Run a “12 Days of Christmas” giveaway if you do have a bit to give. Something as simple as picking one random customer per day to receive a small gift could be the push your clients need to stop in for a visit.
- Blow customers away with holiday-specific rewards for their loyalty to your brand, like double points for Black Friday weekend. Pushing great loyalty rewards could be what turns a potential customer into a loyal customer.
- Offer customers free gift wrapping when they shop with you. You might even consider offering a virtual gift wrapping class as another way to interact with customers on a personal level.
- Offer pre-booking special discounts if the holiday season is your off-season. There’s no reason your lawn service should miss out on the opportunity to offer holiday discounts because of a little snow in the coming months.
- Offering gift certificate discounts can turn your current customers into advocates. Plus, shoppers will often seek benefits for themselves while shopping for others. Opportunities to snag a $5 off gift card for every $25 gift certificate bought are sure to get the ball rolling.
If you want to have big-gift energy, use these:
- Tempt shoppers with bulk purchase discounts. Creating packages for the holiday season, like 10 sessions for the price of eight throughout the month of November, is one way to work this promo.
- Give your referral program a holiday twist by turning it into a contest. Maybe every referral gets their name into a drawing basket for a handsome prize. Or perhaps you let the customer with the most referrals takes all.
- Gather loyal customers with a themed get-together. This is one way to spread cheer and even make your customers feel like insiders. Offer samples of new products or services and get their feedback while you’re at it.
- Team up with another business to create fun packages that benefit you both and your customers. Did someone say a spa gift certificate, hair care products and vino in a cute basket? Customers will appreciate the ease of a grab-and-go gift and all businesses involved get exposed to a fresh audience!
Keep In Mind
While you work to get your holiday marketing running, don’t forget about one of the best ways to amplify your offers and events — your Google Business Profile.
Tap into the Posts feature to grab the attention of potential customers. Post pictures of the shopping action to give searches a sense of FOMO. While you’re there, tweak your holiday hours so customers know exactly when they’re able to stop in and shop.
There you have it — 14 ideas to help get customers buying with you this holiday season. By using even just a few of these marketing and promotion ideas, you can increase your holiday sales. All you need to do is bring that holiday magic into your plan.
