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    10 ways to make sure your Christmas campaign counts

    Guide
    by Stacy Parr Finance Manager

    Christmas is just around the corner and every year it can seem like a challenge to compete for business. Here are some top tips on how to make your Christmas campaign stand out

    1. Don’t get lost in the crowd

    Think about when everyone will send their Christmas campaign. If you send it when everyone else sends theirs, bear in mind that your recipients will likely have many to sift through and could either miss yours, or become fed up of receiving them.  It goes without saying that campaign timing will vary depending on the industry, but the premise remains the same: stay ahead of the curve and plan your campaign to go out the week before you’d initially think.

    2. Grab attention

    You don’t have long to do this… especially for mobile users. Two-thirds of emails are opened on mobile devices so consider that many of your readers will be on the move when they open your email. Consumers opening emails on an iPhone or iPad dedicate the least amount of time to each email, with more than 40% spending 3 seconds or less.

     

    3. Get personal

    The stats have been reported enough by now for us to know that personalisation pays off. Even if it’s something as simple as personalising the name field.

     

    4. Capitalise on exclusivity

    People love anything exclusive, feeling like they are special and are getting something that not everyone can access. Just look at the success of VIP loyalty schemes such as Starbucks Gold Card. Consider including an offer that is exclusively for recipients of that email

    Limited time offers, or limited-edition products also heighten the sense of urgency that is already experienced by shoppers during the lead up to Christmas. Using the example of Starbucks again… their festive drinks range that is only available over a limited time period.

    5. Hold something back

    Readers won’t click through to your website unless you give them a reason to! Tease something in your email but leave them wanting more, whether it’s the start of some content, a link to a video, or ‘more products like this’.

     

    6. Build brand loyalty

    You don’t want your customers just for Christmas, you want them for life. Use this campaign to build loyalty with customers by giving discount codes that are valid for after the holidays, or encouraging recipients to sign up to your loyalty scheme.

     

    7. Sell your brand not just your product

    Make sure that you have the means to cope with any increased traffic that your campaign might generate. Ramping up business interest and website visitor numbers is great but a) can you handle it technically? And b) do you have the resources available to support customer queries? Failure to be responsive could result in failure to convert those that display interest into buyers. Engage with people on social media as well as phone and email to offer multiple channels of support.

     

    8. Use Black Friday and Cyber Monday to capture your audience

    The weekend of Black Friday and Cyber Monday promises significant increases in web traffic, particularly if you as a business are getting involved. Capitalise on this by encouraging visitors to sign up to your mailing list ahead of your Christmas campaign to pad out your mailing list.

     

    9. Follow up!

    Sending out a great campaign and getting a decent amount of business from it could be a wasted opportunity if you fail to follow up and you could miss out on opportunities to create loyal customers. Cart abandonment rates average out at 69.89% – imagine how much this business would be worth to you? You can help recover some of this business by doing follow-up marketing to those who almost purchased.

     

    10. Don’t limit yourself

    Christmas is great there are many dates in the year that you can celebrate. Don’t forget Hanukkah! A Jewish holiday that is widely celebrated by the exchange of gifts (much like Christmas) at the beginning of December and is often overlooked in the run up to Christmas.

     

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