Holiday Marketing Trends:

It’s already September. Thanksgiving décor, Christmas ornaments and pumpkin-themed everything has already hit the shelves. People are preparing their holiday bucket lists, and planning is underway, whether we’re ready for it or not.  

Brands need to be on top of their game if they want to stay ahead of the hustle and bustle that comes with the season. The holidays don’t wait, and consumers rely on us to know our stuff. Marketing strategies can become daunting as we move into the last quarter of the year, but early preparations will launch us into a successful season! 

Never fear, marketers! We’re bringing you some of the best marketing advice of the season. 
 

Do Your Keyword Research 

Regardless of industry, consumers rely on search engines to find exactly what they’re looking for, especially during the holidays. Keywords must be searchable; they are vital to the success of your website. Otherwise, your products will get lost in the vastness of the internet as customers struggle to find you.  

In fact, 85% of consumers plan to include online shopping in their holiday plans. Leveraging SEO can look like adding applicable holiday-specific keywords in addition to focusing on existing phrases and taking them to the next level. Besides, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel if what you’re doing already works! You can also elevate pre-existing rankings by linking to appropriate holiday-themed landing pages and updating your pay-per-click (PPC) ads.
 

Invest in Paid Social 

To put it simply, paid social gets you in front of more people (That’s it. That’s the tweet). Don’t believe us? It’s reported that 56% of people use social media to research products or services during the holidays and social posts influence 58% of all purchases. However, while paid social may get you in front of consumers, it won’t do the work for you. A strong social strategy will be key if you want to be successful. This includes: 

• Creating consistent campaigns to represent your brand
• Cohesive creative and graphics
• Engaging with your followers
• A steady posting cadence

Embrace Email Marketing 

Since the bulk of shopping happens online, email marketing is one of THE easiest ways to keep consumers updated on sales and product releases. Consumers who make purchases sparked from an email are likely to spend 138% more than those who don’t receive holiday email offers. Plus, it’s an easy way to bring shoppers back to abandoned carts or items they may have been browsing. We know what you may be thinking: but won’t people get annoyed? How many emails are too many? You may be surprised to hear that consumers don’t really mind during the holidays. They’re looking for sales and advertising, with 91% of consumers reporting having no problem with promotions in their inbox.  
 

Understand Your Buyer Personas 

What’s the use in marketing if you don’t know who you’re marketing to? Every brand should understand their target audiences inside and out and having buyer personas set in place can help with that. Buyer personas allow you to gauge the demographics and behaviors of your customers, which enables you to nail down appropriate messaging. Research shows that buyers are 48% more likely to consider buying from companies that personalize their solutions. In short, create campaigns catered to your audience and listen to your customers. And if you’re unsure how to create buyer personas, we wrote a whole blog just for you! 
 

Add Value and Be Human 

Lastly, the best advice we can give you is to add value to everything you do. Sometimes brands get caught up in the potential revenue that holidays bring, leading them to fall into cash grab strategies. You can avoid this by staying true to your message and what your customers want to see from you. Create a genuine reason for consumers to buy, not false urgency. 
 

Staying true to who you are as a brand is key in any campaign, not just during the holidays. So, embrace the last half of this year, meet with your team to get a game plan in place and have fun! Marketing during the holidays doesn’t have to be stressful as long are you’re prepared (and reward yourself with some much-needed time off!).