The holidays spell big business for retailers. While physical stores continue to see customer traffic during the festive months, e-commerce has been steadily eating into brick-and-mortar sales over the years. At the same time, email marketing strategies remains one of the most cost-effective ways to connect with customers online and influence purchases.
If you run an online store, you simply cannot afford to ignore email over the holidays. Read on as we share tips, examples, and insights you can act on right away to boost festive conversions and sales through your email campaigns.
Kick Off Early with Seasonal Teasers
The holiday email push usually kicks off around late October or so. This year, get a slight head start by sending out some seasonal teaser emails in early October hinting at your upcoming winter sales, gift guides, and new seasonal arrivals.
Pique interest and excitement through fall-themed lifestyle imagery combined with subtle callouts like “Our Holiday Collection is Arriving”, “Gifts for the Home Baker” or “Countdown to Black Friday”.
Avoid hard sells in these initial emails – their purpose is simply to hint at festive joy to come and get your brand on the customer’s mind before your major promo blasts.
Email Perks, Discounts and Coupons
The top trigger for consumers to buy this holiday season? Discounts. According to Deloitte’s annual holiday shopping survey, 48 percent of shoppers plan to take advantage of seasonal sales and promotions to stretch their budgets further.
Use email to push holiday-exclusive promo codes, site-wide discounts, and seasonal savings to incentivize sign-ups and purchases.
Offer time-bound discounts like 25% off for the first 100 customers or $20 off purchases over $200 before December 5th to drive urgency.
Segment your list to tailor offers and messaging – for example, send special VIP coupons only to loyal repeat customers. Personalization hugely lifts email open and click-through rates.
Give Sneak Peeks into New Arrivals
Email Marketing is perfect for providing customers with the first look into your new holiday offerings before they hit your online shelves. Send “sneak peek” style emails previewing upcoming products or styles to customers who previously purchased related items.
Build excitement through beautiful visuals and descriptive copy, letting readers glimpse your festive cakes, holiday wreaths, or ugly Christmas sweaters before anyone else. Sneak peek emails pique curiosity and prime future purchases once those previewed products launch – an excellent lead nurturing strategy.
Send Out Holiday Gift Guides
Over 74 percent of holiday shoppers turn to gift guides and idea lists to spark gift ideas for loved ones. Help take the guesswork out of gifting this season by sending themed holiday gift guides catered to different recipient types – like kids, moms, foodies, fashionistas, husbands, and more.
Work these gift idea roundups into your email nurturing cycles 2-3 weeks before peak gifting occasions like Christmas and Hanukkah. Include options at different price points and tie them back to related products on your site.
Pro tip – optimize gift guide landing pages for SEO as well, filling them with relevant keywords. Ranking high on Google searches for terms like “Christmas gifts for golfers” or “Hanukkah presents for grandparents” will lift visibility and drive free additional traffic to these key hub pages.
Promote Limited-Edition and Seasonal Best-Sellers
Every holiday retail season introduces specially themed products available only for a limited window, from advent calendars to ephemeral fall flavors. Craft seductive emails tempting subscribers to buy before these coveted items sell out or the season ends.
For example, Williams Sonoma pushes their exclusive holiday treats in an email with the urgent headline “Hurry – Limited Supply!” and visually delicious imagery. The copy warns, “When they’re gone, they’re gone forever” while a prominent orange call-to-action button invites you to “Shop Now”.
Scarcity and fear of missing out are two of the most persuasive triggers documented by Cialdini’s principles of influence – and perfect for converting sales of limited seasonal offerings.
Send Greetings and Holiday Cheer
Amidst all the holiday hustle, customers appreciate and remember personal touches and greetings. Stand out by taking a brief break from the hard sell to send good tidings and virtual cheer.
Customize holiday ecards for top customers filled with their first names and sincere season greetings. Or try a more light-hearted approach like Brumate’s meme-style email wishing subscribers “Happy Sipping this Holiday Season”. A tiny bit of humor and personality goes a long way.
Follow Up Post-Holidays with Recaps and Reorders
The holiday retail push doesn’t end once the year turns. Use email marketing strategies in the new year to recapture sales by reminding customers of purchases they may wish to reorder.
Analyze your holiday sales data and tag high-volume products. Later, segment out buyers who purchased those items and remind them to replenish favorites like custom holiday candles, gourmet panettone, or decorative wrapping paper to use next year.
Email recaps of the most popular gifts and categories post-holidays also work to inspire reorders or purchases for future events like Valentine’s Day or Easter.
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