Shoppers are already preparing for the holidays and searching the internet for gift ideas. There are several ways to boost your site's listing so you get the most exposure for your business. This increased exposure will result in more sales. The holiday season is the best time of year for marketing your business. The following steps will help your business prepare its digital marketing campaigns for the holidays.
1. Edit Map And Directory Listing Information
Shoppers won't be able to buy from you if they can't find you. Make sure all contact information and hours of operation are current on Yelp, Yellow Pages, Google Places Local, Facebook, Twitter, and any social networking site you are affiliated with. Update the listings with holiday hours if they are different hours for the rest of the year.
2. Attract In-Store Sales By Using Online Strategies
There are online strategies that can attract customers to come to your store in person. You could offer special deals such as free gift wrapping or a discount for online customers that is only valid in stores. You could also offer trade-in deals if you sell seasonal products. For example, if you sell children's jackets, you could offer a certain dollar amount of the purchase of a new jacket when the customer donates the old one. You can provide a drop off box at your store and promote the event on your website and social media sites. Also, ask your followers to share the event info to spread the word and bring in more traffic to your storefront.
3. Use Schema Markup
By using schema markup, you can boost your website information in the search results pages. You should mark up info such as your hours, location, events (such as the jacket donation mentioned above), and any other options your store has exclusively. Schema markup is an SEO innovation that is surprisingly not being taken advantage of. The data entered in this will greatly improve your search results and online advertising.
4. Increase Social Networking Appearance And Reputation
Having a Yelp Business Page is essential in the online marketing field. Make sure you include all information about your business, website, and photos. This will attract more views and look presentable and professional. Also, check out your review ratings. If there are any negative reviews, respond in a professional manner and take notes on how to fix those issues. If there are very few reviews, or none at all, you should encourage customers to post reviews. Offering an incentive for posting a review will drive more people to take the time.
5. Create An Attractive Holiday Promotion Calendar
If you will be offering specials for Cyber Monday or Black Friday, take notes of the dates and hours (if there are any changes). If you will be offering free gift wrap or any other special deals make sure those are noted as well. Plan out all promotions and events in an outline. Once these are lined up you can create your business calendar. The calendars with the holiday schedule can then be posted on your website, social media networking tools, and emails. This is the most important step in the online marketing plan for the holidays. Customers need to know the schedule, hours, events, and promotions ahead of time since the holidays can be very hectic. Making it less of a hassle to go to your store will attract more customers.
These five steps will help your business create a strategy for your SEO program. Starting now will give your customers a heads up on your holiday schedule and promotions. Many customers like to plan ahead and start early. The earlier you get your online strategies out there, the more customers you will have coming to your store for their holiday shopping.