Est Read Time: 4 Minutes
First, I want to clarify that we won’t be doing any sort of Christmas anything until after Remembrance Day because of our values when it comes to that, however, we’re still planning and launching a Christmas promotion after!
Why?
Because people start their Christmas shopping as early as late October, trying to get ahead and spread out the expenses of gifts. And then a huge portion of people start their Christmas shopping in November.
If you’re like me, you’re not a fan of all the in-your-face Christmas marketing –especially this early. So it feels almost ‘icky’ to be running Christmas promotions this early…
Well, I’ve been changing my perspective on this since owning my own business and marketing my spouse’s business and can appreciate thinking ahead and getting the word out about Christmas time specials.
When you start your shopping in November you’re usually keeping an eye out for deals, so it’s important if you’re running a special, offering a discount or an exclusive holiday service/product.
I recently read through an article done by newswire.ca regarding consumer holiday behaviour, particularly after the pandemic and it was interesting!
[If you’re interested in reading newswire.ca’s article CLICK HERE]
In the article, they cite the Retail Council of Canada’s (RCC) 5th annual RCC X Leger Holiday Shopping Survey where they surveyed over 2,500 Canadians from coast-to-coast.
Here is a quick breakdown of some statistics I think we want to pay attention to and it really pushes my point why you should make sure to start your Christmas promotions in November.
- 8 in 10 consumers plan to buy gifts
- 6 in 10 consumers will look for more deals
- They will also consider a wider assortment of retailers to find the best deal
- 6 in 10 consumers say holiday shopping lost its excitement during the pandemic
- 6 in 10 say they will be searching in-store this year
- November will remain the busiest month
- 74% feel it is important to shop locally
- 42% plan to shop at local retailers this year
- Leger’s advanced analytics identified that retailers with lower prices, discounts/special offers, and free shipping will appeal to 81% of consumers.
The sooner people know about your holiday promotions the better so they can plan around all the deals, discounts, and offers.
So if you’re planning any sort of holiday specials, discounts, or offers you’ll want to get onto planning and promoting it ASAP (and then remembering this for next year!).
I know that promoting Christmas stuff in November might seem early or even a little too ‘salesy’, but there are ways you can begin promoting it without having to feel ‘icky’.
I like to just make reels and talk about it in regular posts if it naturally fits in! As we get closer to the end of December I plan to make some more direct posts and even run some ads in December.
Currently, Madisen and I are trying to decide if we’re going to run one or two promotions because we have two in mind! Both are going to be incredible offers, we just aren’t sure if we’ll be able to create one of the two offers in time –in which case we’d do a Christmas promotion as well as a New Year promotion.
Either way, we’ve gotten ahead on the planning this year and it feels good! I cannot stress enough to you the power of planning and looking ahead by a month or two.
Things surprise you way less and when something pops up and surprises you it’s easier to take action rather than being stuck in a ‘reactionary’ mode.
Take action and be prepared so when things come up you’re not stuck in reaction.
In Conclusion:
To sum this up and review why you you should start your Christmas promotions in November:
- November remains the busiest shopping month
- Over 60% of consumers are looking for deals as costs continue to rise
- Consumers are considering a wider range or retailers
- Leger’s believes that brands with lower prices, discounts, special offers, and free shipping will appeal to 81% of consumers
Get on board early and let your ideal clients/customers know what you have in store for them this holiday season so they can plan to buy from you!
And if you aren’t a fan of the idea of starting to promote Christmas deals then just start talking about it naturally in posts or your story. Tease them with a few behind-the-scenes shots of you planning and preparing, add a PS to the bottom of your post telling them to look for your coming holiday promotion, or other ways that feel more natural and aligned with your brand.
You don’t have to be salesy to talk about cool deals or offers you have coming out! In fact you have every right to take up space and talk about you and your incredible services!
As long as how you do it feels good to you and aligned with your brand’s values then you should be talking about you and your incredible services as often as you can.
Don’t feel bad for telling people about what you have to offer because how else will they know about it?
I know you can do this!
Schedule time now to sit down and plan out what you’re going to offer and how you’re going to promote is ASAP. If you’re feeling overwhelmed and don’t have the time to execute the marketing and would like some help we’d love to be the ones to support you!
Just send us an email telling us how we can help you with your Christmas promotion by CLICKING HERE
Alright, good luck friend! I hope this holiday season is a good one for you where you get to enjoy tons of success, prosperity, and of course, happiness.
-Jordan
