How Retailers Can Prepare for the Holiday Shopping Season
With the activity spurring the economy’s growth in the fourth quarter of the year, it’s time for retailers to prepare for the holiday season with specialty markets insurance and tips to help boost your business for the holidays.
This time of year is an important time for retail businesses. You’re likely to see a noticeable surge in business. However, with this influx of new customers comes potential new opportunities and potential risk exposures. It is important to have a concrete plan to take advantage of this business opportunity while not falling victim to any of the common issues associated with it.
Learn from the Past
Look at analytics from last year and create a strategy. What drove the most traffic to you in the past? Examine trends from your normal sales seasons as well as past holiday seasons. Take notes and have numbers handy so that you’re not piecemealing bits of information together from memory. Create a “Holiday Sales Season” journal for notes and stats around your sales and marketing activity.
Look to Online Marketing
The holidays are a time for you to amp up your reach and try getting more customer attention than usual. Consider paid traffic as part of your promotional strategy. It can be a good investment since it enables the ability to target customers in an extremely precise manner. Facebook ad marketing has powerful targeting capabilities and works well for retailers with physical locations, too. You can also drive traffic by targeting prospects in your state or by zip code through these ads.
Online marketing is a large part of retailers’ sales strategy, but it can’t be willy-nilly. Adhere to a specific content calendar, providing a mix of education, inspiration, and call-to-actions that drive sales. Consider engaging online influencers to spread your message.
Create a content calendar of ads, emails, and social media posts that tell a story and build up to the “most wonderful time of the year.” Educate your audience and build trust so that the ask (for sales) converts much better.
Go the Extra Mile with Holiday Specials
Create a well-crafted customer experience for the holiday shopping season by:
- A simple return and exchange process
- Online ordering
- In-store pickup
- Gift wrapping options
Promotional pricing is a big deal during the holidays. Work with vendors to aggressively price items in order to save customers more money. Try and offer your best prices of the year. If dropping prices is scary, then you might want to consider the gift guide approach, to make it easier for customers to purchase gifts.
Choose a few items where you have pricing flexibility. Consider offering discounts or even testing different price points.
Stay Fully Staffed
Having enough help is crucial. Hire temporary employees who can help to ship out orders or answer customer service queries. Start with small tasks and then move up as they display competence and helpfulness.
There’s also the extra help needed to customize landing pages for events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It’s an all-hands-on-deck approach to make sure the customer experience is smooth.
Get into the Holiday Spirit
A simple hello and a smile can go a long way! Make your products and experience unique and the reason people shop with you. The sensory experience of the holidays can bring back good memories that can influence customers. Don’t be afraid to undergo a dramatic change this time of year to reflect the mood and joyous feeling people have. Spruce up your sales space, whether it’s online or consists of a table in a corner. Holiday decor goes a long way to show your customers you’re excited about what you offer.
About Moody Insurance Worldwide
Moody Insurance Worldwide, a division of Moody & Associates that was founded in 1914, is a leading provider of risk management programs and insurance coverage to individuals and businesses across the East Coast. We write all sizes of businesses, with technical expertise in many key industry areas, and provide personal insurance programs for estates and high net worth individuals. Our licensed, experienced commercial account managers can work with you to determine the coverage that you need at a competitive rate. Contact us today at (855) 868-0170 to learn more about what we can do for you.