Holiday Marketing: Capitalizing on the Shopping Season

Sales and specials are synonymous with the holiday season. Between gifting culture, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, the opportunities for sales are endless. Whether it's the person who's been eying your product/service for most of the year, or someone who might just stumble across your brand while searching for the perfect gift, people are looking to buy. Shopping begins early, and so should your marketing efforts. This is true now more than ever, since the pandemic has created a backup in the supply chain.

The collective mindset around shopping shifts in the fall, from conservative and budget-strict to Eager and uninhibited.

Not adjusting marketing strategy to keep up with the seasons is a missed opportunity, to say the least. The collective mindset around shopping shifts in the fall, from conservative and budget-strict to eager and uninhibited.

Society has decided that for these few months leading up to the new year, we all have the green light to go a little crazy in treating ourselves and our loved ones to the luxuries we deserve. Individual consumers aren’t the only one’s thinking this way; businesses often share this mindset and use the holidays as a time to purchase new products, services, and softwares for the new year. 

Potential customers are primed for consumerism, which makes the holiday season a marketing dream-come-true for B2C (business-to-consumer) and B2B (business-to-business) companies.

Potential customers are primed for consumerism, which makes the holiday season a marketing dream-come-true for B2C (business-to-consumer) and B2B (business-to-business) companies. Once this realization has been made, sales during the holiday season should be higher than the rest of the year, with just a bit of extra effort.

For B2B, customers are driven by logic and potential ROI, whereas for B2C, customers are driven mainly by emotion.

One of the major differences between B2B and B2C is purchase motivation. For B2B, customers are driven by logic and potential ROI, whereas for B2C, customers are driven mainly by emotion. Understanding what drives the purchase decision gives you a huge upper hand in your marketing efforts. 

Here are some of the ways in which you can step up your B2C and B2B holiday marketing efforts to capitalize on the shopping season.

B2C

• Run Paid Ads 

  • This is probably the best time of year to incorporate paid ads into your budget. Since people are a lot more generous with their purchasing power, there’s a good chance that a single ad could be enough to seal the deal. Especially if that ad is a solid piece of video content that clearly conveys what makes your brand stand out.

• Tag-Comment-Share Campaigns   

  • Social media is the best tool for giveaways, raffles, and competitions. Not only does it get people excited about your product/service and open the door for potential new customers, but it also helps boost your social media engagement stats, thus making your content favored by the algorithm. In order to maximize that effect, make sure to add requirements such as “To enter the giveaway, like, follow, and tag your friends who would love this product. Each tag must be in a separate comment, and each tag counts as an additional entry!”

• Sell Your Brand, Not Your Product

  • Since B2C customers are driven by emotion, they’ll likely be receptive to a compelling brand story. Allow your marketing strategy to be the voice of your brand, telling your unique story piece by piece. If you’re fresh out the gate and still trying to find your brand’s purpose, check out this blog for some tips and tricks.

• Make the Most of Cyber Monday

  • Cyber Monday is a major opportunity to send sales through the roof. Everybody loves a good discount, and nobody has an easy time walking away from savings. Make your deals irresistible, and make them known. Start your Cyber Monday marketing early so that people know where to go when the day comes: your online shop. Whether that’s on your website, or on instagram, or anywhere in between, be prepared with seamless mobile integration. 

B2B

• Utilize Email Campaigns

  • Build out an email campaign centered around holiday cheer and the giving spirit. Include email-exclusive offers and time-sensitive deals. A well-planned email series is much more effective than a single outreach effort. Consider timing as much as you consider the content and design. 

• Segment Your Audience

  • People in your audience are likely at different stages in the marketing funnel, so be sure to segment out lists and tailor your messaging. This  maximizes the odds of your message resonating with each particular group. For example, segments can be broken down by new vs returning customers, cold vs hot leads, old school vs new school, and so on. You can even offer unique incentives based on the segment type, such as a free ___ for new customers and 10% off for returning customers.

• Step Up Your Customer Relations

  • Whether you sell a product, service, or software, customer relations can make or break a deal. With the focus on humanity that surrounds the holidays, going that extra mile can show how much you really care. Making current and potential customers feel valued goes a long way, especially in an industry (B2B) that is so relationship-dependent. It’s also important to note that, despite the inherent sense of cheer, the holidays also bring on an added layer of stress. Being there for your customers when they need it the most will promote trust and reliability for years to come. B2B buyers report that only 20% of sales reps are valuable. Since these buyers are more proactive than B2C buyers in seeking information, it’s critical to have that information readily available and easily accessible. Be quick to address incoming questions, comments and concerns across all channels from email to social media comments and DMs. 

• Focus on Social Media 

  • It’s a common misconception that social media marketing is only effective for brands marketing directly to consumers. Any B2B company that makes this assumption is automatically at a disadvantage. You might be surprised to learn that 85% of C-level decision makers use social media in their decision making process regarding B2B purchases.

While you may be spending more on your marketing budget during the 4th quarter,  you’re also likely to see a higher ROI if you're being strategic about your holiday marketing efforts.

This holiday season is the perfect opportunity to step up your marketing strategy and see tangible results from your efforts. Whether you’re marketing B2C or B2B, it’s always important to make sure your website is up to date and up to par. Branding should be consistent across the board, from emailers to social posts to paid ads. Lastly, fostering long-term relationships is an important step in retaining loyal customers for both B2B and B2C. While you may be spending more on your marketing budget during the 4th quarter,  you’re also likely to see a higher ROI if you're being strategic about your holiday marketing efforts. If you feel like you need a little extra marketing help this holiday season, schedule a complimentary consultation with Social Canvas.