Not sure if you want to hear this, but… we are exactly 8 weeks away from Christmas Eve! Soon we will start seeing winter holiday themed decorations everywhere we go, justify a hot chocolate with marshmallows and whipped cream every other evening (because we deserve it), hearing Christmas songs that we will not be able to stand by the time boxing day comes, and most importantly, start thinking of presents we are going to give our loved ones.
Small businesses are due for a sales explosion this year. Holly Tucker from NOTHS said so - it must be true, right? With high-street shops most likely closing as Covid makes a grand return, majority of Christmas shopping will happen online. As a virtual jewellery business you are in luck. Throughout 2019 £10.4bn was spent on jewellery and watches in the UK, and after saving quite a bit during the lockdown earlier this year, shoppers will not hesitate to open their e-wallets even wider this holiday season.
I am here to help you confidently slide your brand’s name into hundreds if not thousands Christmas shopping lists. Here are 7 marketing ideas to help you boost sales this holiday season.
COLLABORATE with charities and other small businesses. Christmas is all about giving, right? Find a charity that is close to your brand’s values and dedicate one or more items on your e-shop towards raising money for it. It can be anything from 1% to 100%. Help others make a change it the world that you want to see.
Find a small business you love (a local chocolate maker, stationery designer, independent coffee brewery, whatever you can think of) and drop them a friendly email with an offer to work together throughout December by exchanging discount vouchers or purchasing samples that you can attach to every order as a small gift to your clients.
ORGANISE GIVEAWAYS. There is nothing like getting something you absolutely love for free. However, winning a gift to give feels even better! Create giveaways by encouraging people to follow and share your page as well as tag their friends. A few pieces given away will pay off - I promise.
Don’t forget to DM a cheeky discount code to all the people who have entered the giveaway but didn’t win. Psychologically, they have overcome the mental transaction cost already and are only one gentle push away from making a purchase.
SELL VOUCHERS - If you are not keen on the idea of giving away anything for free, why not start promoting vouchers for your brand’s jewellery! Make them visually appealing and pleasant to receive as a gift - maybe physical voucher is better than digital? If you are wondering if it is really worth it, according to The Guardian, UK’s gift card industry is worth approximately 6bn. a year. Not bad, eh?
EDUCATE. As a general rule, 80% of your content should add value to your followers lives, and 20% should be all about business promotion. It is your time to shine whilst mixing video format and educational content. Short and snappy Insta stories on how to gift wrap, stack your jewellery, style your brand's best-sellers with winter kits, choose a perfect gift for someone from your website, figure out you ring size, find what other presents would make a perfect gift bag alongside your jewellery…
There is so much content to be filmed! You don’t need a fancy camera for that - just buy a £5 phone tripod and you are good to go. Video has become an essential tool in business promotion online, so make sure to film everything, including displaying your jewellery in a nice light or creating new designs at your workshop.
EXPAND your business and make sure your brand is EVERYWHERE. Etsy, Not On The High Street, and Wolf & Badger are the main spots for shopping independent this year, so you will be losing majority of your Christmas profit if you are not selling on these online marketplaces by the end of October. Being an independent business absolutely rock’n’rolls, however, don’t miss out on an incredible client reach these e-shops offer. NOTHS on their own attract approximately 39 million unique users every year. With Christmas shopping moving online in 2020, I bet the numbers will double.
You might only want to get on board with these businesses over Christmas, and that’s OK too!
INVEST IN CONTENT - Make sure you have a gallery full of incredibly strong Christmas-focused shots for your Instagram. Once Halloween is over, that’s all everyone (well, almost everyone) will want to see on their social platforms. Make people feel Christmassy and help them imagine what it’s like to unwrap a present with YOUR branding on boxing day. Let them feel that your product is the ultimate gift impossible not to love and cherish forever.
And oh boy, it does not need to be tacky at all. Forget about red tinsel and candy canes. Have you ever thought about having a high-end, minimal, and timeless gallery of Christmas images just in white or gold with just a hint of Christmas? Or a collection of product shots with your jewellery surrounded by pinecones, dried oranges, cinnamon sticks, fresh cookies, and candles? Every jewellery brand must have a folder with winter holiday content they are excited to share every year. Let’s connect if you have not had a chance to create such folder yet; I still have availability from 30th November, so hurry up!
OFFER GIFT WRAPPING option on your website + a personalised note. Lily and Roo is my favourite place for birthday present shopping as their gift wrapping is like nothing else out there. Talking about gifts, make sure to offer your return customers a small discount as a friendly reminder that you are with them for a long run, and add extra freebies that people can share with their loved ones. Even if it’s a pair of earrings that you stopped selling online last year… Pop that in - trust me, they will never forget about that.
And since we’re talking about the checkout business, don’t forget to up-sell! Update your website to make sure the algorithm suggests ‘You might also like’ items from your shop that catches the client’s eye before they proceed with the checkout.
Some of the marketing tools might seem like a lot of work, but give at least one of them a try and watch your brand grow during the winter holidays.
Let's connect via Instagram! I would love to see how your business is doing after following these tips :)
Are you a jewellery business that has not had a chance to create stunning Christmas-inspired content for your social media and website? Let's connect! Drop me a message to hello@chocianaite.com for stunning jewellery photography from my cosy Bristol-based home studio space.