It’s the most wonderful time of the year. The holiday season is in full swing, which means holiday shopping is well underway. If you’re a small business owner or marketer, it can be difficult to stand out and get your products seen by potential customers.
However, a successful holiday marketing campaign can help you capitalize on holiday shopping, reach new customers and hit your sales goals. Social media is an important part of every marketing campaign. Here are our top five tips to improve your social media marketing and boost holiday sales.
1. Tailor your brand for the holidays
Deck your brand with boughs of holly. People love the holidays. Don’t be afraid to add a little holiday cheer to your cover photos, content, graphics and messaging.
Make sure you have a cover photo idea hashed out for Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas and New Years. Keep your voice and tone consistent with your brand, but play around with it to reflect the mood and sentiment during the holiday season. If your brand is typically serious, now is the time to lighten up a little and embrace the holiday cheer.
2. Ask questions
People love giving their opinions, and social media is making it easier than ever to interact with your customers through real conversations. People are not interested in overly promotional content. Instead, engage with your audience and create relationships that could lead to sales in the future.
Not sure which products to promote over the holidays? Just post a poll on Instagram or Twitter, and have your audience vote on their favorite option. Spark real conversations with your customers to gain insight into who they are and what they want, so that your holiday sales can meet their needs.
3. Monitor hashtags
Monitoring hashtags is a must during the social listening process. Use Twitter and Instagram trending topics, or tools like Sprout Social or Hootsuite, to see what holiday-related hashtags are trending. Jump into conversations when appropriate and relevant to your business.
4. Utilize social stories
Instagram and Facebook allow users to share temporary content on stories. Stories are great for giving your customers a behind-the-scenes look into your business. Show a quick video of your company’s decorations, holiday sale items being unboxed or different ways your company celebrates the holidays with baked goods or parties.
People like to see brands acting like real people. This builds trust and rapport with your potential customers. Be memorable, keep it authentic and have some fun with it!
5. Product tagging
Instagram now allows viewers to click on products directly from an image, making it easier than ever to shop your products during the holiday season. Posts with tags have an icon that allows viewers to select a featured product in the post and be led directly to your website where they can purchase it.
Facebook also has a featured product function that allows page owners to tag products in the posts through their catalog or shop section on Facebook. It’s easier than ever to post styled photos of your products and tag them, without seeming overly promotional.
Looking for more helpful tips to round out your marketing campaign this holidays season? Check out BigWing’s Comprehensive Guide to Holiday Marketing for insights into content marketing, paid social media ads, PPC, video, influencer marketing and more!
