See also: Essential E-commerce Tips For Christmas – Part 2
We all know that as retailers, Christmas can be a very challenging time. Not only do we have to worry about the usual day-to-day business, but we’ve also got the festive period to cover.
This can be more stock, more staff and a whole lot more orders (hopefully), so in an effort to try and assist our search engine marketing clients, here is our definite guide to enjoying the turkey without feeling stuffed!
Two issues affect retailers
The main issues for businesses online is the marketing for a festive period and then the logistics problems associated with getting the extra orders out.
Now without the marketing, you won’t necessarily have to worry about the logistics, so let’s start with some basics.
Take a look at last year
Often online retailers worry more about what’s coming than what has happened before, but looking back can be very beneficial to your business.
So, take a look at what sold last Christmas. Is there anything similar in stock this year?
You should even consider looking at what the top Google searches were last year using the Google Keyword Tool and Google Trends to give you some ideas as to what you may need to promote this time around.
Don’t forget your current customers
Very often we forget about the people who have purchased from us previously, so our biggest piece of advice is to make sure you email your customers with your promotions and discounts early! This will trigger some of your previous buyers to visit your site.
Remember, you are looking to get attention in a very crowded market place, so you will need to remind people you’re around.
Boost your PR and off line marketing work but don’t forget about your Search Engine Marketing campaigns. If you’re using PPC then make sure you are co-ordinating your advertisements with your promotions to gain maximum effect.
Time sensitive promotions
Think of the ‘early bird’ who likes to catch the worm and you may get a chance of early sales if you produce time sensitive offers. This could be an extra £5.00 off an order or a discount that is only applicable for those who are shopping early.
Don’t under-estimate this either as it’s a proven method of retail online.
Wind up your resources
If you’re expecting to be busy, never let your customer service slip. It’s time to think about getting in extra pairs of hands or maybe even a bit of customer service training to prepare everyone for the onslaught.
This will pay dividends when you’re working to capacity and need a well oiled machine to keep things moving well.
At Christmas, anything’s possible
During the festive season, you’ll find new customers coming to you – who may only buy from you once a year, so bear this in mind when you’re considering service expectations. If some of your customers buy regularly from you then they’re used to the way things work. A new customer may be less patient and in fact doesn’t potentially have a clue how good you are. So, remember to instil confidence and offer guarantees on delivery etc.
Get your extra stock in now
As you’re looking at selling more (hopefully) then you will want to make sure you’ve got the stock to sustain those orders.
Popular lines should be purchased at double the quantity at least but don’t forget things like packaging, tape, wrapping and labels. Might sound funny, but if you suddenly run out with a week left before Christmas your customers will not be willing to wait!
If you’re really unsure what you might be doing by way of sales, take a look at your figures for the previous year.
Look for the peak in sales and see how much stock you got out the door that week as it will give you a fairly good indication of what you’re going to need this year.
Great service is everything
For many businesses, they forget about the simple things and one of the easiest ways of keeping people happy is to ensure you are a good communicator.
As a rule of thumb, try and answer a phone within three rings and emails within the hour. If you do this you will see just how much people appreciate your efforts.
Remember, people are very impatient and if you leave it too long, chances are they will have found the same product somewhere else because that company answered their enquiry more quickly
Never, ever take an order you know you can’t delivery on
If you can see you’re going to run out and cannot replenish the stock, do not take an order and make a false promise. This is ecommerce suicide.
If you haven’t got something, then find out if the customer is willing to wait. If not, then try and help them find an alternative or similar item if it’s a gift.
There are so many things you should look at in the ecommerce run up to Christmas, with many of the things in this list being based on experience with real clients, who have become seasoned at dealing with the kind of issues that come up year after year.
Remember to come back soon to view Part 2 of our Essential E-commerce Tips For Christmas .
If you need help with your Search Engine Marketing and SEO or you’re worried about how you can better equip yourself for the festive season, remember to contact us for some good, honest advice!
Paul
