Marketing
Top 8 Actionable Holiday Marketing Strategies
Nov
It’s the best time of the year! Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s. The holiday season is upon us.
It’s a time of giving, and brands are no exception. Brands have the opportunity to promote themselves while giving their clients what they need creatively. Competition is fierce, though, so how can you stand out and get your share?
We’ll detail for you tried and tested top holiday marketing strategies to help your brand shine!
Holiday Marketing Campaigns – Why They Matter
Holiday season marketing campaigns can be beneficial for your brand. The season is already festive, with an overall joyous feel. Associating yourself with this will likely create a positive association for your brand in your customers’ minds. Another significant advantage of the holidays is that you have room for creativity.
Depending on your brand identity, your product, and your customer, you have the opportunity to leave a long-lasting impression. For example, nostalgia is a big winner during the holidays.
Take the 2018 “Home Alone, Again” campaign done by Google. By creating nostalgic and relevant content, the campaign got 70.7 million views in just a few days. Add to this the campaign’s shareability appeal, and it’s pure genius if you ask me.
Then, you have the option of just going all-out festive. Starbucks “Red Cups” is the perfect example of this. Some of my friends don’t feel the holiday spirit unless they get their morning coffee in the holiday cup. Now that’s good marketing!
Top 8 Holiday Marketing Strategies
Employing the right marketing strategies and techniques for your brand is vital for a successful campaign. Maybe you’re looking to build customer loyalty for your brand. Or, you just need to boost your sales. No matter what your aim is, these marketing tactics should be useful for you.
1. Plan Early, Plan Well
We know this may seem intuitive, but not everyone does it. The beauty of the holiday season is that you know when it is, so you have ample time to plan. Launching your campaign early gives you the edge of standing out from the crowd. You won’t have to compete for your customer’s attention. Another perk of early planning is that it gives you the perfect opportunity to integrate all campaign tactics for optimum results.
2. Utilize Digital Platforms
One of the aspects that make digital advertising effective is the ability to target your desired segment more accurately than traditional forms. Here are three ways you can utilize digital platforms for your holiday campaign.
Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, they all use hashtags to get exposure for marketing campaigns. Using this feature wisely, it can significantly increase your campaign’s organic reach. You’ll need to do a bit of homework to discover the trending holiday hashtags on each social media platform and use them with relevance to your brand.
Word of mouth has translated itself to a single share button. Take the opportunity of the holiday season and get your audience to promote your brand for you. So, how can you do so? One of the best ways you can do that is to opt for video content instead of static images and text. According to Wordstream, 92% of users who watch videos on their mobiles share them with others. Creating video content and sharing it on relevant digital platforms can raise your ranks and change your plans for Christmas.
Invest in Online Ads
Almost all social media platforms offer you the option to put up a paid or sponsored ad. These can be a great opportunity for your brand during the holidays as you can use those to deliver targeted messages. You can utilize the ads to integrate some holiday keywords; we’ll address this bit later on.
3. Enhance the Shopping Experience
Not all marketing tactics can be done online. The need for human interaction is still there. If your business is one where you can get your customer to visit your store or venue, then you’re lucky! You have an excellent opportunity to connect with your customers and leave them with a positive impression.
- Personalize shopping experiences by offering free shopping advice
- Place useful guides like holiday gift guides for him/her
- Giveaway holiday-themed foods or festive keepsakes
4. Schedule an Events Calendar
The holidays are spread across, which gives you the perfect opportunity to plan a calendar of events that will have your customers coming back for more. Themed activations, concerts, and giveaways; these are all great ideas that will create hype around your brand.
5. Consider an Influencer Partnership
Pairing up with an influencer can do wonders for your brand. The investment can be as big or small as you want. Influencer marketing is on the rise, so it can be the ideal holiday marketing strategy for your brand. Tip: Always make sure that your choice of influencer resonates with your brand image.
6. Be a Trendsetter
Start a trend. Ride a trend. Or be ready for either. The fast-paced nature of today’s world makes it crucial that you think on your toes. That’s why you need to keep your eyes and ears open for opportunity. Capitalizing on a trend can make your brand look quick and witty.
7. Capitalize on Customer Loyalty
The holidays are an emotional time. Creating a marketing campaign that taps into your customer’s emotions can effectively retain your loyal customers. Not only that, but you may also gain some new loyal customers! Here are some tactics that will help with creating and reinforcing customer loyalty.
- Create emotional content that resonates with your target customers
- Double the loyalty rewards during the holiday season
- Add a gift with purchase
8. Know Your Keywords
One of the most straightforward tactics you could do for your brand is to find the right keywords. That’s where search engine optimization, or SEO for short, comes in. This marketing tool aims to increase your brand visibility by moving it up to the search engines’ results list.
Firstly, you’ll want to study your current rankings and site traffic. You may find a couple of pages performing exceptionally well without knowing it. Then, it’s the keywords’ turn. You should aim at integrating keywords related to holidays and fitting them with your content.
Google trends and SEMrush are tools that can help you with keyword research. They’ll let you view the trending holiday topics, along with some information about trending products that customers are looking for. Holiday keywords can be Christmas sales, holiday offers, Christmas gifts, and so on.
Next, it’s time to create a content strategy that cleverly includes the keywords. Remember to stick to your brand’s vision and stay authentic. You don’t need to squeeze in unrelated terms to raise your ranks.
For e-commerce companies, offering holiday deals is the way to go. You can also create gift guides for your audience and use them as a chance to highlight your best products. That way, you’ll be able to use the keywords and promote your products. It’s a win-win situation.
Final Thoughts
The holidays are a great time to create customer loyalty, build brand image, and boost sales. When done right, a holiday marketing campaign can have a long-term effect. To stand out from the crowd, you can create a unique experience with personalized content for your customers.
Whichever marketing tactics you use, make sure they communicate a unified message across all executions.