The countdown to Black Friday and Cyber Monday is on.
Not only are shoppers already starting to anticipate the holiday shopping season, but online business owners are too. These days, you can’t wait until mid-November to get ready for the holiday shopping season. The National Retail Federation predicts that holiday retail sales this year will increase between 4.3 and 4.8 percent in 2018.
Even more reason why you need to be prepared to beat the rush on Black Friday (Nov. 23) and Cyber Monday (Nov. 26). Here are a few ways to get your website ready for holiday shoppers now.
1. Schedule Holiday Photography
Get your hands on fresh and affordable product photos before the holiday rush by sending your top inventory to Weebly Photo Studio. Don’t wait too long, sessions book up fast.
Holiday-themed imagery is a perfect way to get shoppers in the holiday mood. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are the official start to the shopping season, and a large percentage of customers will buy something during this kickoff weekend.
Make them really want your products with sharp photography featuring your product or service with a holiday promotion.
2. Optimize Search for Key Products
Are there certain products in your online store that you want customers to buy this season? Are you offering special discounts or promotions for Black Friday or Cyber Monday?
Optimize your website for search. Make sure to update meta information, alt tags and content with relevant information. Create a blog post or set of frequently asked questions about key products. Run an online ad campaign if you have the budget available.
While it might seem early to start thinking about holiday shoppers, you want to build search credibility now, so that your product has a better chance of showing up higher in search results.
Are you planning an email promotion for shoppers on Black Friday? Once your holiday photos are finished, create the email and schedule it now.
You will be busy when the holidays arrive. Schedule a few email promotions early so that you are ahead of the game. (Weebly users can do all of this with Weebly Promote. Even if you haven’t created an email before, this drag and drop editor makes it easy.)
4. Create a Sense of Urgency for Top Products
Encourage customers to buy products now by creating a sense of urgency. Limited time promotions, low inventory and even free shipping can make shoppers feel like they need to make an immediate purchase to get the best deal.
Add these tools and elements to your marketing and develop a plan. Once you have an idea of what you want to promote and what deals to offer, plan those promotions now. There’s no reason to add coupon codes the day before Black Friday.
Create appropriate promo codes (and schedule corresponding emails), add inventory counters to products on your website and make sure every product listing includes enough information to make users want it now.
Conclusion
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are not that far away. Don’t cut out of Thanksgiving dinner early because your forgot to prepare your online store for holiday shoppers. Get ready for the holidays now to attract more customers to your shop and increase your sales this holiday season.