The winter holidays are unquestionably the busiest shopping period of the year. Capital One estimates that each American holiday shopper spends about $620 every year on gifts alone, generating an enormous total revenue that’s projected to hit over one trillion dollars by 2030.

Such jaw-dropping figures may rouse you to secure your piece of the holiday pie, and you certainly aren’t alone. Businesses in retail and hospitality often depend largely on this spending to buffer their year-round cash flow, and even those outside of timely industries may be eager to jump on this revenue train.

Of course, therein lies the challenge. With so many zealous competitors, how can you attract shoppers and ultimately end the final fiscal quarter with a substantial market share? The key is to strategize your marketing, finances, inventory, and workforce well in advance. Investing in these efforts now may help drive consumer excitement as the holiday season approaches and, in turn, generate record profits to move you into the new year with confidence.

Tinker your marketing

Holiday promotions tend to break from the ordinary marketing schemes followed throughout the year—and in ways that extend beyond simply peppering in red ornaments and snowflake iconography. Primarily, you’ll want to pursue leads outside your typical consumer base for one core reason: gifting. Ahead of the holidays, consumers hunt for products that would appeal to their loved ones, neighbors, coworkers, and clients, which often means researching goods outside their personal shopping routines and what appears in their organic ads. For instance, Mary may prefer to splurge on home decor for herself, but looking for gifts for her in-laws may lead her to explore everything from spa packages and hotel rewards to landscaping tools and high-tech cleaning supplies.

Given the breadth of businesses consumers may be perusing, you may need to devise exceptional efforts to further the reach of your messaging and capture their attention. Consider featuring unique imagery or appealing verbiage that breaks the monotony of other “Save, Save, Save!” holiday ads they will encounter throughout these months. Reflect on what makes your brand unique and your products or services superior to your competitors’ offerings; this is fodder for crafting distinct and enticing marketing materials.

No matter what they’re buying or for whom, consumers will always seek great value, so when planning your marketing imagery and copy, aim to advertise discounted prices, a selection of clearance products, free gifts with a purchase, new loyalty-program rewards, or other potential savings. Prove your promotion gives them more for their money, and they may even be willing to buy outside their budget for it.

What if you don’t offer a gift-worthy product or service? Focus instead on demonstrating to your core audience that your offerings are especially valuable this time of year. For example, a financial advisor could turn to messaging such as “Review your budget now to stay on track for your 2025 goals.” In other words, convince your customers that even though they are focused on investing in holiday purchases, they should still set aside some funds for you too. As always, keep the need behind your marketing at the forefront of your messaging: How can you help your consumers feel happier, more secure, or at greater peace during the holidays?

Regardless of the target audience and focus of your marketing, begin game-planning it well ahead of the festive season. Storyboard social media videos, write email newsletters, design print-advertisement mailers, and brainstorm other omnichannel content. By starting the process of organizing competitive marketing campaigns now, you can arrive at a brilliant strategy by November—one that will appeal to a broad swath of the American public and warm up some fresh, cold leads. You may even wish to invest more in your present marketing to increase brand awareness ahead of the season; your holiday sales will seem more appealing if consumers have already become familiar with your business.

Invest greater

Naturally, these campaigns may stretch your standard marketing budget beyond the typical recommendations of between 2 and 5 percent of your revenue. According to Statista, retailers spent up to 40 percent more on average to advertise in December 2022 than in January 2023. To keep up with the competition, you may need to start prepping funds immediately for this drastic uptick in marketing spending, such as by setting aside revenue now. You could also weigh the benefits of opening lines of credit to support this investment.

You will likely need to budget for other expenses in advance of the holiday rush as well. Depending on your industry, this may involve increasing your spending on supply inventory and materials to produce a greater quantity of goods and keep up with consumer demand. Sure, it may sound appealing to create urgency with “Get it before it’s gone!” messaging, but failing to invest in these resources can essentially put a cap on your holiday revenue. Through top-notch promotion, you can create just as great a consumer rush without actually selling out of products.

Generate internal excitement

The final and possibly most essential step to take ahead of holiday sales is building team motivation. Before you’re hit with a festive rush that may be more demanding on your personnel, remind them that each member is a vital component of your organization’s overall success and that by working cohesively, everyone can stand to benefit from a busier holiday season.

Try organizing team-building events like virtual game sessions to improve communication among team members, holding check-in huddles to boost morale, and setting challenging goals to reward top sellers or producers. As you update your marketing initiatives, share the exciting progress with your staff during meetings or in email announcements: “Check out the beautiful postcards our design team has mocked up for the upcoming holiday sale!” When you build internal engagement, you ensure each member of your workforce can help realize your organization’s revenue goals for the holidays.

TAKE ACTION:
Write up a strategy board that includes what you want to accomplish this holiday season and the steps you can take now to achieve these goals.