How to Get Readyfor the holiday shopping season

An essen t ia l gu ide f o r on l ine re ta i l e r s

Is your store ready?

Let’s look at 5 essential things you can do to get your

online store ready for the biggest retail event of the year.

Get the word out – Now!

C u s t o m e r s a re re s e a rc h i n g h o l i d a y d e a l s e a r l i e r a n d

e a r l i e r.

1

According to research from the NRF, consumers begin researching holiday shopping as early as October. You need to have content ready to meet this demand. Below are a few examples of the content you’ll need:

P l a n b l o g p o s t s a n d e m a i l s t o a n n o u n c e

y o u r s a l e

B u i l d p ro d u c t p a g e s a n d l a n d i n g p a g e s

B u i l d a g i f t g u i d e t o h i g h l i g h t y o u r b e s t

d e a l s

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-Corey Ferreira From Shop i fy

Email marketing drove over 27% of [2014’s] holiday sales. “

Just how important is gett ing the word out about your sa les?

Get your site ready

M o b i l e s h o p p i n g i s g r o w i n g e v e r y y e a r – i s y o u r s i t e

o p t i m i z e d f o r m o b i l e s e l l i n g ?

2

-Pract ica l Commerce

In 2014, Google estimated that half of 25-34 year olds used a mobile phone to shop online. “Just how big is mobi le?

Te s t y o u r s i t e ’ s re s p o n s i v e d e s i g n – h o w

d o e s i t l o o k a c ro s s a v a r i e t y o f d e v i c e s ?

C o n d u c t t e s t p u rc h a s e s e m p l o y i n g a l l

v a r i a b l e s – g i f t c o d e s , d i s c o u n t e d

s h i p p i n g , e t c .

Te s t y o u r s i t e t o e n s u re i t c a n h a n d l e

l a rg e s p i ke s i n t r a ffi c

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Mobile shopping is bigger than ever. Before the holiday shopping season starts, you need to make sure your mobile buying experience is as seamless as possible.

Plan your sales

M a ke s u r e y o u ’ l l h a v e e n o u g h p r o d u c t t o m e e t

d e m a n d .

3

L i s t o u t w h i c h p ro d u c t s y o u p l a n t o p u t

o n s a l e , a n d w h e n .

Re v i e w y o u r f u l fi l l m e n t p ro c e s s e s t o

e n s u re y o u c a n h a n d l e t h e h o l i d a y

s h o p p i n g t r a ffi c

v b

Whether you utilize dropshipping or own your inventory, you need to make sure you’ll have ample product to meet your expected demand. This is why planning your sales early is so beneficial.

Is your customer service ready?

Yo u c a n ’ t a ff o rd b a d c u s t o m e r s e r v i c e d u r i n g

t h e h o l i d a y s .

4

I s y o u r c o n t a c t i n f o re a d i l y a v a i l a b l e o n

y o u r s i t e ?

D o y o u h a v e t h e re s o u rc e s t o h a n d l e

q u e s t i o n s c o m i n g i n v i a s o c i a l m e d i a ?

D o y o u h a v e a s i m p l e a n d f a i r re t u rn s

p o l i c y ?

v b

Great customer service can do wonders to build your brand’s value. The holiday shopping season provides a great opportunity to showcase your stellar service and attract more customers.

- Shopi fy

Be memorable this year and customers will remember to come back next year.“

How important is customer serv ice?

Start advertising

nowWa i t i n g t o s t a r t y o u r

m a r ke t i n g a n d a d s i s a b a d s t r a t e g y.

5

I f y o u h a v e n ’ t a l r e a d y , i n c l u d i n g

r e t a r g e t i n g p i x e l s o n y o u r s i t e t o h e l p

i n c r e a s e t h e e ffi c a c y o f y o u r a d s .

D o n ’ t o v e r t h i n k y o u r a d c o p y – j u s t m a ke

s u r e i t ’ s h o l i d a y t h e m e d .

D o n ’ t b e a f r a i d t o s p e n d m o n e y. A d s c o s t a

l o t , b u t w h e n t h e y w o r k t h e c o s t i s w o r t h

i t .

v b

We already talked about marketing, but the ads you use for the holiday season need to be put into action just as quickly. Promoting your sales early gives you a leg-up over your competition.

- Entrepreneur

By promoting your holiday sale early, you get first-mover advantage. This helps you prime buyers to choose you as their default shopping destination for the holidays.

“Do ads real ly make a d ifference?

Don’t let the holiday season pass you by

G e t t i n g re a d y n o w f o r t h e h o l i d a y s h o p p i n g s e a s o n w i l l h e l p i n c re a s e y o u r s a l e s a n d o u t s h i n e y o u r

c o m p e t i t i o n . Yo u c a n ’ t a ff o rd t o s l e e p o n t h i s o p p o r t u n i t y.

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b

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