The minute the Christmas season arrives, you know that the next few months will be hectic. After all, every business wants to end the year with a bang.
But once the season ends, isn’t it only right to pause and take a breather? Should you just let your current strategy continue until next year?
The reality is holiday sales experience a slump after Christmas, especially during the lull between Christmas and the New Year. Your customers have already maxed out on their spending, so they aren’t in the mood to buy more.
But a creative post-holiday marketing strategy should keep you afloat during the slump (and keep the sales rolling even if your team is out on a holiday break).
Also read: How to Avoid Logistics and Shipping Problems During the Holidays
What you need to prepare for after the big holiday sales
It’s easy to get lulled into a false sense of security, especially if you’ve hit your sales target for the year. But according to studies, people are still shopping for post-Christmas gifts, New Year celebration must-haves, and utility products.
new year ahead for your business.
Do, instead of taking it easy after the holidays, keep the sales coming by taking advantage of after-Christmas sales. A post-holiday marketing strategy might seem like an unnecessary thing. But consider this: your customers are still in a shopping mood.
This is also the time to take care of other things like returns, and preparing your shop for the new year.
Post-holiday eommerce marketing steps to take
1. Hold a post-holiday clearance sale
Customers probably wanted to buy your product but couldn’t at that time. But if you offer them a discount, they might come back.
A flash sale or a clearance sale on select products can entice customers to return and finally make a purchase. Discounts can close deals as many customers are already experiencing shopping guilt from their recent holiday splurge.
Launching retargeting ads on social media marketing is a great idea, but email marketing might be a better channel since it’s easy to segment and personalize.
Here are some Email Marketing Tips for Your Ecommerce Business.
2. Prepare for returns
With all the shopping that happened during the Christmas rush, there are bound to be some returns here and there. Clothes that don’t fit, items that don’t match the customers’ needs – returns happen and when they do, be ready to deal with them.
Naturally, customers would want refunds for their purchases. However, this could hurt your bottom line. Instead of refunding them, offer exchanges or store credit.
This way, you still guarantee good customer service without hurting your earnings.
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3. Manage customer complaints
Managing customer complaints and providing quick resolutions lead to better customer experience and repeat purchases.
When a complaint comes your way, do the following:
- Listen or understand their concern
- Thank the customer for bringing the matter to your attention
- Apologize for their bad experience or any shortcoming you may have
- Record the details of the complaint
- Discuss options to fix the problem
If the customer’s request is reasonable, act quickly. Don’t forget to follow up; this shows the customer that you really care.
4. Remove holiday-focused ads and visuals
For months of the holiday season, your customers have been bombarded with nothing but holiday-centric ads. It worked, but don’t expect it to work again after Christmas.
Consumers might deal with holiday fatigue or cannot relate to anything Christmas anymore since the holiday is done. Move with the season by removing the holiday-focused ads and other Christmas-related visuals.
5. Prepare new sales and promotions
Usher in the new year with new promotional tactics. For example, your post-holiday marketing strategies can transition into New Year strategies.
After all, many customers finish their holiday shopping early; they could already be thinking about the New Year. Leverage this by creating content centered around your NYE campaigns.
Consider the following steps:
- Send countdown emails
- Launch trailers/teasers of the upcoming New Year campaigns
- Share early access to new year deals to keep customers hooked
6. Review the metrics from the holiday season
Many business owners make the mistake of reviewing just one statistic to measure their success – sales.
Evaluating your sales matters, but this figure alone isn’t enough to paint a picture of the effectiveness of your holiday marketing campaign.
Get a clearer picture by doing the following:
- Track the number of sales from new customers
- Analyze your website traffic
- Determine the number of sales from existing customers
Having this data will guide you on your marketing tactics for the next year.
7. Bring back the favorites
A year-end roundup will remind customers why they love your products. This post-holiday ecommerce strategy involves bringing back crowd favorites for some nostalgia. Many brands are taking advantage of this strategy (e.g. Shopify) so you should do the same and curate products.
Curate products to highlight by:
- Understanding the customers you want to target
- Analyzing previous sales data
- Selecting products that are easy to ship
Start the New Year right with the right courier partner
A good holiday strategy can end your year with a bang. But if you want to start the year with another bang, work with a trusted courier partner. After all, safe and fast shipping is part of good customer service.
the VIP treatment your business deserves!
Ninja Van will give you just that. With our VIP Shipper Program, you can keep your operational costs low and even get customized logistics solutions for your ecommerce business.
As a VIP shipper, you can benefit from the following:
- Low operational costs as you can get exclusive shipping rates, low COD fees, timely COD remittance and no RTS fees
- More savings as your volume increases! Enjoy big rebates and volume discounts when you ship more and increase your parcel volume. You can also join our exciting referral program!
- More value-added services to improve your logistics! You’ll be working with a dedicated account manager, so you don’t have to call customer service.
The holidays might be over, but marketing never stops. Extend the festive mood by enjoying more sales and profits with a post-holiday marketing strategy and the right logistics partner.
Learn how you can be a VIP Shipper today!
More holiday tips for your online business:
Ecommerce Tips to Drive Sales During the Ber-Months
Social Media Tips to Make Your Online Shop Shine for Christmas
Post-holiday Sales: How to Clear Your Excess Holiday Stock
