The Holidays and Marketing Efforts

By Chris Keenan on November 22, 2017

The holiday season is here and while many think of the holiday season as a time with friends, family, and holiday cheer, for marketers it is also a great time to dig into your marketing efforts and get some great data.

Online searches go into overdrive during the holidays whether it be for a product or service because many people are searching in larger quantities and in a shorter period of time, so you can see where the needs are for consumers are adapt accordingly.

Below are some ideas on how to use this busy holiday season to your advantage as a marketer or small business owner:

Look at keywords being searched for during the holidays

Holidays can be a great time to get a larger amount of data in a shorter period of time. Many people begin planning their needs for both products and services in advance. Whether you are looking for a specific type of gift or are in need of some carpet remediation prior to guest arrivals for the holidays, all are being searched at a higher rate.

This is a great time to pre-plan your keyword optimization or bidding for keywords for paid marketing. Look at what people are beginning to search for and plan for a mad rush during the holidays. Having an advance look at the pain-points and customer needs will put you ahead of the game.

Reach out to your customer base to understand their needs

If you offer products or services, then a quick email blast can be a great way to get back in touch with your customers and figure out how their needs have changed during the year.

Perhaps, what worked and really connected with them last year is no longer as prevalent or needed this year, but you would not know without engagement. Getting in touch with your core audience is an easy and kind thing to do, as a marketer or small business owner.

Knowing your customer needs can then be carried over to paid and organic marketing by knowing where to place your budget and time for keyword bidding, ad writing, and website optimization to prep for the holiday season.

A/B test your holiday offers for ads and website landing pages

The holidays are when people will be flocking to their favorite websites the most, so taking the time to use different phrasing and landing pages can be a great way to see when your customers are engaged the most. Seeing whether or not free shipping or 25% off of a product or service yields better results can be determined during the holiday season.

Furthermore, creating separate landing pages to A/B test what colors, fonts, keywords, and offers also resonate with your customers, both current and potential, can be a great next step to prepping for a lucrative holiday season.

There are many other ways you, as a marketer or small business owner, can get websites, paid-advertising, and other forms of marketing ready in-advance for the holiday season. You just need to keep your target audience in mind, their needs, and be willing to adapt to the busier season in your marketing efforts.