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With Christmas and New Year just around the corner, it is time to assess whether your business is already geared and set for the holidays. For businesses, this means one of the most profitable times of the year with people set on finding gifts for themselves and their loved ones.
While the habit of shopping in physical stores has changed to conducting shopping online, there are still plenty of opportunities to grab for any business owner wanting to appeal to their customers for the holidays. Here is what you can do to prepare for the most exciting time of the year.
Stock up on inventory
It would be a nightmare to find yourself out of your bestselling goods. This is why the right planning and estimation must be done to ensure that you don’t run out of the products you want to sell. Also in the event of having some damaged products or other emergencies, you would need to have spare products to meet your customer’s demands.
Aside from products, also be sure to check out the holiday-related supplies you might need such as the Christmas-themed packaging, gift cards, and other decorations you will be using for the season. If you anticipate that you will be using these a lot, there is no harm in getting them in larger quantities from your supplier.
Determine your operating hours
Plan your operating hours especially during the holiday season. Will you be open longer than your usual operating hours? Will you close for a few business days to make room for your employees who wish to have days off? Make sure to take into account not only your customers but also your own employees and ensure that your customers are well informed about your new operating hours so that they can plan their shopping times at the right date.
Deck up your e-commerce website
If you have an ecommerce business website, then it is best to put your best foot forward and make it suited for the holidays. Revamp the look of your site and add some holiday-themed flair to remind customers of the season. Have it updated with your latest offerings and products and have them front and center when customers land on your website.
Outside the aesthetics, it is important that first and foremost your website is functional and serves its purpose. Is it easy to navigate for customers? Is your check-out process seamless? Are your payment options enough? Can your website handle high amounts of traffic?
Having a bad website can ruin your customer’s online shopping experience so it is important that there are no issues in your site especially as the holidays draw nearer. Run some tests if you have to and ensure that there is as little downtime as possible.
Plan a holiday marketing campaign
Just as you are getting ready for the holidays, chances are your customers are too. Make them see that you are just as excited about it as they are and plan a marketing campaign that spans across your different channels from your website, your email subscriber list, and your social media pages.
This is the best time to think outside the box and be creative when it comes to your promotions. Think in terms of your customer and what they would like to see from your business. Think of the relevant and trending keywords that you wish to target in your blogs and social media posts. Think of what products you wish to highlight or offer up in a bundle. Think of the different giveaways or promotions that you can do such as free shipping vouchers or a discount coupon to make your products even more enticing. Try to recap the best that your business has to offer now that the year is closing.
There are many ways to show the spirit of the holidays and for consumers, and being present online is practically a non-negotiable today. Ensure that your marketing plan for the holidays is well planned out and your channels in perfect shape throughout the coming months.
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