Part 4: Reaching Your Customers During the Holidays

There are many ways to reach shoppers online and in-store. So how do you know how to target potential customers? With the rise in technology, consumers will research new products, gift ideas, and stores whether online or nearby..

As a business owner, it is essential to reach holiday shoppers by advertising across multiple channels. These top four advertising channels that have been deemed important to holiday shoppers include direct mail, print ads, email and online advertisements.

Direct Mail

Direct mail is a great way to reach new and past customers that have visited and purchased from your business.

Using a direct mail piece, such as a postcard, can help your business stand out among the rest. According to a survey by Epsilon, 77% of consumer’s sort through their mail as soon as they receive it. This is a great way to reach and engage with customers during the holiday season, as it also gives an advantage over email campaigns because customers do not always open their email. Direct mail increases the chance of your message being read. Remember, your direct mail piece needs to stand out and catch the customers attention. Be unique compared to your competitors.

To receive a return on your investment on direct mail, executing an actionable message is what needs to be done. For small and medium sized business’, this could mean an extra expense during the holiday sale season. By investing in using direct mail correctly, you have the potential to pay it off when reaching current and new customers with a holiday themed, actionable and clear mail piece. A mail piece during the holiday season is used during the pivotal time when consumers are in their decision making process and being influenced by other companies and brands. What drives consumers to these brands is an alternative to in-store shopping and discounts. By bringing awareness to your brand, you are allowing customers to become familiar with your company and product.

Print Ads

Clever and funny print ads pertaining to the holiday season will help capture the audience’s attention and help create brand.

As a business, you may know the areas of your state or the country where you receive the most business from. Targeting these areas through print ads can help drive customers to stop by your store or visit your website. Print advertising has been shown to have an impact in your sales since most publications will have deals and promotions to advertise in their issues. This is a great advertising tool for small and medium sized business’ who may not want to spend much on advertising.

Email

Email is another inexpensive way to reach thousands of people with a click of a button.

It is ideal to show consumers your business’ products and any deals or savings you may have exclusively for them. eBlasts can be a creative way to reach out to customers and drive them to your website by using an accurate landing page. Remember with the increase in mobile device usage, your website should be optimized for mobile to create a user-friendly experience for all customers. This is also important to remember for your eBlasts to make sure they are mobile friendly! You want to make the process of a customer reaching your website as easy as possible. Email marketing is reported to be most effective towards the end of the year with consumers looking for the best deals and promotions from their inbox.

Online Advertisements

When making a purchase online, consumers are researching to make sure they are receiving the best deals possible.

Using online advertisements is a great way to get your brand in front of consumers who may not have known about you. They are just one click away from visiting your site and possibly purchasing your product. Online advertisements should ultimately be engaging enough that consumers want to view your product you are featuring and use a deal or promo code to make their first purchase. Since Americans are driven to make online purchases during the holiday season, this is the perfect way to get your brand and business known. Approximately 39% of younger Americans will purchase online using their mobile phones during this season.

If you are a business owner that has questions or simply wants more understanding of the amount of work it can take to run a successful marketing campaign, please contact us at Big Marlin Group. We are here to answer your questions and show you what it takes to achieve your business goals, get in touch with our marketing experts today!

Data from: Fluent (What’s Trending & Who’s Spending: Holiday Shopping 2016)