Using Social Media to Cash in on Holiday Sales

February 18, 2018

The explosion of social media sites (to date, there are more than 400 of them) has brought the entire world of consumers to the door step of even the smallest retailer. However, all of these marketing possibilities can be overwhelming. As this year’s holiday season approaches, what can you do to reap the benefits of all of this online social interaction? We have a few ideas:

1. Offer Facebook- (or other site) only specials

Offering online specials to your social media friends is a good way to reward those loyal customers who follow your social media marketing campaigns. It will also get your content shared with their friends and their friends’ friends. Facebook, with its more than 1 billion registered users is difficult to ignore. However, there are scores of smaller social media sites. If your product fits into the demographics of niche sites like Goodreads for book lovers, Ravelry for knitting enthusiasts or Athlinks for amateur sportsmen and women, you can reach a targeted audience of users who area already predisposed to like your product or service.

2. Take a hint from the big guys

Though you may not be able to afford a dedicated marketing department, large retailers have entire departments devoted to finding ways to get their products noticed by online shoppers. Follow their marketing lead without spending a fortune on your own marketing team and develop a loyal social following to generate business. For example, Macy’s Facebook page has more than 13 million followers partly due to the fact they reward loyalty by posting two or three different products each day from a variety of departments, just to make consumers aware of things they feel are special. Macy’s Black Friday deals are also advertised in this manner weeks in advance of the sale. By sharing exclusive information and deals on your own social media pages, you can make your customers feel in on something special to build loyalty.

3. Embrace Pinterest

Pinterest, one of the fastest growing social media sites, has more than 70 million registered users, the majority of whom (80 percent) are women, according to Semiocast. However, the three-year-old virtual bulletin board often gets lost amid its larger competitors like Facebook and Twitter. If your product or service appeals to a largely female demographic, Pinterest offers much less competition than some of the other social media sites. To promote your product there, you can create a board of ways to use your product or offer tips for using your product. Pinterest is largely visual, so it’s a good choice for companies selling housewares, cooking supplies and home decorating items.

4. Have a holiday social media strategy

Social media marketing for the holidays shouldn’t just be about promoting your products. It also needs to include answering customer questions and concerns in real time. Today’s holiday shoppers are armed with mobile devices and will likely post questions about product availability, holiday hours, return policy and other similar issues. It’s important to have a plan in place so that those questions and concerns get answered quickly and accurately.

5. Host a contest

Few things excite consumers more than the chance to get something for free. Hosting a contest on your social media sites can help to generate interest and product awareness during the holiday season. You can tie entry to actions like “friending” your company or signing up for your newsletter.

If you need more help growing your sales, check out the following resources scattered around this site and a few others I operate, such as:

Good Selling,