The holiday season is upon us! It’s no secret that this year online shopping is at its historical high.
As a small business, it may be daunting to face a busy online holiday rush. With all the challenges and changes small businesses have faced this past few years, meeting the demand of holiday shopping may be both exciting and stressful. You may be wondering if you’ll be able to keep up with the demand or meet the need of your target market, or if you’re able to keep up with your competition.
Thankfully, there are some things all small businesses can do to get ready for the holiday season.
1. Start your digital marketing early
Consumers begin holiday shopping sooner than the Halloween candy gets eaten, so the best thing you can do is get your marketing online as early as possible to hit those early shoppers. Another great thing about getting a head start on your digital ads is that you can test content and offers and see what gets the most engagement. This way, you have data to make informed choices closer to the holiday rush in December.
2. Work out any kinks in your distribution flow
Canada Post is doing their best to meet the shipping needs of the new circumstances, but as with every holiday time, chances are they might be a bit backed up. Take this time before December to price out all your shipping options, test a few shipments, and see what works best for you while finding a Plan B before you need to. Also, crunch the numbers and make sure your pricing and shipping costs make sense for the business so if you are creating any holiday promotions, you won’t be in the red.
3. Amp up your customer service
Good customer service is so essential to every single business, but it can be sink or swim for small businesses where every interaction counts. Make sure you have email support, proper touch points in place if you’re doing shipping with timelines and contact forms, all the information possible on your website for your customers, and your team is ready to tackle whatever comes their way. Quick, friendly service is going to be what sets you apart from your competition.
4. Overcommunicate
It’s important to be present on your blog and social channels so your customers know how to interact with your company and get in touch with you. Make sure that any holiday changes or announcements are listed on every customer touch point. Share exciting news, deals, promotions, and updates about what you’re doing to keep your customers safe during the holiday season. A holiday content strategy will go a long way to ensuring success.
5. Set goals and prepare your team
Setting goals is one way to ensure success this holiday season. Things like fulfillment times, speed of responding to customers, increase of sales, or targets on specific promotions are all good holiday goals. Make your goals well known to employees so they know what to do and how to do it. Ask them if they need any extra support and reward your team. Remember, it’s their holiday season too, so make time for fun and celebration. Ask about holiday time off in advance and plan accordingly to avoid being short staffed at any point.
You will rock this holiday season!
With proper preparation and goal setting, your small business can be set up to have one of the best holiday seasons yet. Yes, a lot has changed but there is still a lot of opportunity to make sales and gain new customers during the pandemic. Thinking outside the box and providing excellent customer service is one of the most important things you can do during this time.
Talk to us today if you need help with your holiday digital marketing strategy, content strategy, or any other small business needs.
