Conduct a social campaign
Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2025 5:47 am
Engage your social media followers with content similar to what you might run in an email newsletter. Start a countdown or offer your followers special discounts.
Also, consider running an ad campaign to attract last-minute shoppers from a wider network. Facebook ads are very cheap, can reach a very targeted audience, and can be set up in minutes. For the greatest success, keep your targeting very limited. If you're a brick-and-mortar store, make sure your regional targeting is 20-50 miles from your location.
While you’ll likely want to use a coupon as a call to importance of peru phone number list for marketing action on all of the ads you run, you may want to segment your campaigns a bit based on who you’re targeting. You’ll likely be able to target your regular customers best since you know them well, so be sure to run a campaign like, “Looking for last-minute gifts? Save $15 on X!” If possible, you should also target those who are looking to buy gifts for your regular customer. For example, a women’s clothing store might want to run an ad that’s targeted at the partners of their regular customer: “Looking for a last-minute gift for that special someone? Save $15 on the perfect gift for her!” However, targeting an ad to someone who isn’t your regular customer may be more challenging since you’re less likely to know their interests, activities, etc.
Check out this example from my own feed of a great ad targeting someone's partner. (There's no way I have anything on my Facebook that would make sense to target this product to me. But my husband would love this product. So offering it to me as a gift is genius.)
Last Minute Ways to Boost Holiday Sales
5. Give your customers a positive experience to encourage word of mouth.
The truth is, it's hard to know who's shopping last minute, but your customers probably know quite a few other people. Make sure they recommend your store to their friends and family as a place to go.
The best way to keep word of mouth going is to simply give your customers an experience they can’t forget and can’t stop talking about. Make sure your sales teams are trained to provide a seamless sales experience for every customer, but also do their best to surprise and delight . Many stores simply go into survival mode during the holidays, making it easy to stand out from the (usually literal) noise.
Put up some pretty displays to take people's breath away, and try to keep them clean. (Mission: Impossible, I know.)
Offer refreshments. And make them irresistible. Take the time to bake homemade baked goods. Offer vegan, gluten-free, and/or lactose-free options whenever possible to wow dieters or intolerants. And remember, everything should be labeled and nut-free. (Try this vegan banana chocolate chip bread that’s lactose/gluten- free . To make it truly irresistible to any dietary preference, double the applesauce and add banana. And maybe double the chocolate chips.)
Make seating/entertainment available in your store. Seating is often forgotten by stores, but you won’t believe what a great idea it is. Most shoppers shop in mixed groups, especially during the holidays. Dad walks in with his kids; Mom walks her brother through the stores; Grandpa drags his teenage granddaughter through the mall. It’s a hodgepodge. And usually, at least one person in the group absolutely does not want to come into your store. By offering them a place to sit and relax, and even entertainment materials (magazines, children’s books), you take the pressure off your actual customers. And who knows, you might even get some angry people to drag you into your stores so they’ll like you.
Another way to really spread word of mouth is to run a promotion for friends/referrals on social media or via email. Send a landing page with a coupon code that can only be claimed if you enter a friend's email to send a matching discount. Tip: Give your customer a bigger discount the more emails they enter, up to a certain amount.
Also, consider running an ad campaign to attract last-minute shoppers from a wider network. Facebook ads are very cheap, can reach a very targeted audience, and can be set up in minutes. For the greatest success, keep your targeting very limited. If you're a brick-and-mortar store, make sure your regional targeting is 20-50 miles from your location.
While you’ll likely want to use a coupon as a call to importance of peru phone number list for marketing action on all of the ads you run, you may want to segment your campaigns a bit based on who you’re targeting. You’ll likely be able to target your regular customers best since you know them well, so be sure to run a campaign like, “Looking for last-minute gifts? Save $15 on X!” If possible, you should also target those who are looking to buy gifts for your regular customer. For example, a women’s clothing store might want to run an ad that’s targeted at the partners of their regular customer: “Looking for a last-minute gift for that special someone? Save $15 on the perfect gift for her!” However, targeting an ad to someone who isn’t your regular customer may be more challenging since you’re less likely to know their interests, activities, etc.
Check out this example from my own feed of a great ad targeting someone's partner. (There's no way I have anything on my Facebook that would make sense to target this product to me. But my husband would love this product. So offering it to me as a gift is genius.)
Last Minute Ways to Boost Holiday Sales
5. Give your customers a positive experience to encourage word of mouth.
The truth is, it's hard to know who's shopping last minute, but your customers probably know quite a few other people. Make sure they recommend your store to their friends and family as a place to go.
The best way to keep word of mouth going is to simply give your customers an experience they can’t forget and can’t stop talking about. Make sure your sales teams are trained to provide a seamless sales experience for every customer, but also do their best to surprise and delight . Many stores simply go into survival mode during the holidays, making it easy to stand out from the (usually literal) noise.
Put up some pretty displays to take people's breath away, and try to keep them clean. (Mission: Impossible, I know.)
Offer refreshments. And make them irresistible. Take the time to bake homemade baked goods. Offer vegan, gluten-free, and/or lactose-free options whenever possible to wow dieters or intolerants. And remember, everything should be labeled and nut-free. (Try this vegan banana chocolate chip bread that’s lactose/gluten- free . To make it truly irresistible to any dietary preference, double the applesauce and add banana. And maybe double the chocolate chips.)
Make seating/entertainment available in your store. Seating is often forgotten by stores, but you won’t believe what a great idea it is. Most shoppers shop in mixed groups, especially during the holidays. Dad walks in with his kids; Mom walks her brother through the stores; Grandpa drags his teenage granddaughter through the mall. It’s a hodgepodge. And usually, at least one person in the group absolutely does not want to come into your store. By offering them a place to sit and relax, and even entertainment materials (magazines, children’s books), you take the pressure off your actual customers. And who knows, you might even get some angry people to drag you into your stores so they’ll like you.
Another way to really spread word of mouth is to run a promotion for friends/referrals on social media or via email. Send a landing page with a coupon code that can only be claimed if you enter a friend's email to send a matching discount. Tip: Give your customer a bigger discount the more emails they enter, up to a certain amount.