Just one more day, and it’s officially the last month of the year. Beyond the festive rush of the holiday season, are you ready for the clock-beater shopping rush?
You better be because it’s your last hurrah for 2023! But we’re not gonna let you do it alone, as we’ve got you an advanced Christmas gift—a set of Amazon-approved holiday ploys that can make your business shine brighter than Rudolph’s nose! 🦌
BIG IDEA
The holiday shopping season is already at everyone's doorstep. It's actually been there since Halloween and has just become hotter through Thanksgiving last week.
🎄 Now, Christmas and New Year are in the pipeline, getting people scrolling and splurging online. If you want to sleigh those sales and make this season really merry, here's Jungle Scout's 5-step guide in prepping your business for a grand holiday selling finale:
- Optimize your listings for search and conversion by:
- Tossing in some holiday-themed images.
- Researching for fresh and hot holiday-related keywords. 🔥
- Adding product videos. DIY or expert-produced ones (or both) will definitely do!
- Including clear and accurate product details.
- Shake up your PPC campaigns, as the holiday competition on Amazon is really tough! Aside from tweaking your campaign budget and keyword bids, you should:
- Keep track of your PPC campaigns' performance, including your breakeven RoAS and ACoS.
- Try different ad types that might be more effective for you.
- Incorporate holiday keywords into your campaigns.
- Get more reviews. The more, the merrier, so when the holiday frenzy starts:
- Use tools to automate sending review requests to your customers.
- Make the most of Brand Registry's Amazon Vine to snag reviews from trusted reviewers.
- Be ready for possible Amazon delays. Amazon fulfillment centers can become jam-packed, so you better prepare for some hiccups by:
- Monitoring Amazon's holiday inventory deadlines.
- Setting up Fulfilled by Merchant (FBM) offers if you have some extra space. This way, you have a backup plan to deal with possible FBA delays.
- Gear up for returns, which can be a real headache during the holidays. Note that anything you sell from November 1 to December 31, 2023 can be returned until January 31, 2024. So there's a possible return tsunami in January.
Pro tip: Change your perspective
Don't think that you only have one month to make a difference. Instead, look at it like an additional 4 weeks to turn the wheels of success in your favor. Hence, you can still do plenty to earn sales and new customers for 2024. 🎆
TOGETHER WITH STACK INFLUENCE
Have you tried a micro-influencer-powered holiday marketing?
Tired of spending a lot of money on ad models with low targeting performance? Stack Influence can save your day!
Their cost-effective marketing solutions help you achieve high investment returns at almost zero cost! How? Through micro-influencer marketing!
What’s the process like?
First, they analyze your brand’s personality to match you with the perfect influencer/s. You may think this is ambitious, but their network of 11 million micro-influencers makes it perfectly achievable!
Once you have someone to endorse your brand, you just have to pay them with your products to kick-start your campaign. Not only will this save you money, but it can also multiply your revenue by up to 5x in 2 months!
⭐ But wait, there’s more
Stack Influence asks micro-influencers to buy your product, try it out, and share it on social media. They then receive reimbursement for the item after promoting it.
But if an influencer does not create a social media promotion, Stack Influence doesn’t charge you anything. It’s basically a free sale! 🎉
The only question now is: Are you ready to take your marketing game to the next level?
BITES OF THE WEEK
- ICYMI: Sellers shared their best holiday tips in exchange for bragging rights and prizes.
- Gentle Reminder: Don’t forget that Amazon’s Christmas inventory deadline’s tomorrow!
- Conscious Christmas: Is Christmas shopping online better for the environment or not?
- Positivity is Profitability: According to experts, offering value and positivity is better than discounts.
- Give Gift Guides: DYK making curated lists can better highlight your products?
TRENDING TOPIC
The secrets to running the best Christmas ads
The yuletide season is like the Super Bowl for sellers. But instead of the halftime performance, everyone's looking forward to seeing how kick-ass their sales performance will be.
In 2022, retail holiday sales reached $936.3 billion, 5.3% higher than in 2021. This year, it's expected to increase to $1.54–$1.56 trillion—more than enough to bring your Christmas advertising game face on, right? 🎭
So, how do you run merry Christmas ads?
According to Amazon, holiday ad rollouts started early this year to appeal to 49% of shoppers who dived into holiday shopping in October. Also, the prime time for Christmas ads got earlier, with some starting on November 4.
But the sweet spot for ad effectiveness is late November, as 67% of shoppers plan to finish gift shopping after Thanksgiving. So yes, you're still in time to launch your holiday campaigns!
Of course, you have some work to do to maximize your reach, such as:
- Setting measurable, attainable, and specific goals for each holiday sales event
- Sticking to a fixed, reasonable budget (like a daily budget for a targeted campaign that runs all day)
- Opting for dynamic bids to let Amazon Ads boost your bids in real time when your ad is likely to score a sale and cut them when the odds are slim.
- Refining your ad keywords. Tip: Start by using broad match to cast a wide net, check performance reports to spot the winning keywords, and then target them using phrase match for similar phrases and exact match for precise hits.
- Adding Amazon's Sponsored Products feature to your ad mix.
❄️ Christmas sales are knocking…
Time to get your Christmas ads running!
While you're at it, don't forget to get your creative juices up and have fun building your campaigns. Let your brand's personality show and do the sales talk. ✨
ACTIONABLE ADVICE
How to secure a spot in holiday gift guides in 6 steps
Speaking of sales talk, being featured in the written version—magazines—can be a refreshing and game-changing experience. Not only will this boost your exposure and build your credibility, but it can also make you the 'talk' of the town!
🎁 Launch Grow Joy spilled the secrets to steal a spot in a magazine gift guide in 6 steps:
- Determine your product's gift vibe. Is it for the animal lovers? The eco-warrior? Or maybe the fashionistas? Know who you want to target to create a coherent holiday theme for your catalog.
- Scout the suitable magazines. But don't limit yourself to those within your niche. For example, if you're selling all-natural bath and beauty products, check out first those focusing on "Women's Interests," then explore eco-friendly, travel, airline, and hotel/spa magazines.
- Hunt down the right contact. Get your Sherlock Holme's hat on to get in touch with the editor of the magazines you're targeting. Then, craft a professional but interesting email highlighting why your products deserve a spot in their gift guide.
- Build the perfect pitch—short, sweet, and straight to the point. It should also contain the gift type, some item perks, the price, where to buy, and, most importantly, your website link. 📩
- Follow up. To avoid looking desperate, send a friendly follow-up after a week. If you still haven't received a response, try again after two more weeks. Persistence pays off!
Now that you've got the lowdown, this is your green light to go ahead and rock the gift guide scene! It's time for your product to star in the holiday hustle. ⭐
