The holidays are just around the corner and the stakes are high for online retailers. According to recent data, e-commerce spending reached $46.5 billion during the 2013 holiday season. Big brands have launched seasonal promotions ahead of the 
Thanksgiving holiday, and many online retailers are already competing for customers. Marketing Land reported that product page traffic increased by 32% the first weekend in November. If you haven’t begun mapping out your holiday digital marketing strategy, there’s still time. Here are three tips that can help you jumpstart your holiday digital marketing efforts.
Revise your ad copy
No matter which approach you’re using to connect with customers this holiday season, revising your advertising copy can help you improve your conversion rates. Keep in mind that you don’t necessarily need to launch a special seasonal promotion. Modifying your existing advertising copy to include some language about the holidays may be enough to boost your sales.
Two of the most popular digital marketing strategies of the season are limited time offers and incorporating countdowns into advertisements. Many retailers experience success with these tactics because both approaches create a sense of urgency for consumers. Each are simple to implement with some modest edits to your existing content.
Create structured keyword campaigns
Many digital marketers choose to launch special keyword campaigns for the holiday season. The payoffs can be big if you have room in your budget. If you’re thinking about creating purchasing some seasonal keywords in AdWords, there are a few important things to remember. First, it’s essential to label your campaigns. Labeling can help you set campaign parameters that will make your ads more effective. For example, if you purchase keywords for a Christmas Eve campaign, assign a Christmas Eve label to the ad group.
After you’ve assigned labels to your campaigns, take the time to outline specific parameters. Establishing end dates for your holiday campaigns in AdWords can help improve relevancy. It’s helpful to think of it this way: potential customers probably won’t be clicking on a Black Friday ad that’s still running the Sunday after Thanksgiving. A short-term AdWords campaign may be most effectively managed by an outside firm with the expertise to drive a high return on investment.
Adjust your spending for better return
In a recent survey, 67% of marketers reported that they’d be spending more on their social media marketing efforts than they did in 2013. Since competition among online retailers is fierce during the holidays, many businesses choose to increase their advertising spend for the season. If you own an e-commerce business and your goal is to reach more consumers online, then this strategy makes sense.
If your business is local and you’re interested in reaching customers nearby, increasing your ad spending might not be necessary. Consider simply reallocating your marketing budget, shifting your focus away from large digital campaigns towards the hyper-local. Channels like Facebook’s new Local Awareness Ads relying on geo-targeting to help businesses reach consumers nearby. For companies interested in connecting with a local audience during the holiday season, focusing on channels like Facebook Local Awareness ads makes sense.
The holidays are approaching quickly, and digital marketers have already begun revising their strategies to reach more customers this season. If you haven’t mapped out your holiday campaigns yet, there are a few approaches you can take to help jumpstart your efforts. If you’re struggling to determine what strategy is most effective for your business’ holiday digital marketing, call us today to arrange for a personalized consultation.