Come marketers, advertisers, and PR professionals alike; it’s time to gear up for the holidays! ‘Tis the season to amp up e-commerce sales. In fact, holiday sales are projected to increase by 16.6% from $61 billion dollars made last year. This has marketing professionals and advertisers alike all looking for a strong seasonal campaign idea. In this article, we have included some helpful tips for your campaign and gathered a few of our favorite holiday campaigns from recent years to get your creative juices flowing.
After much debate as to who owns a brand, it is important to note that a company’s employees have a huge pull. REI included their employees in their 2013-2014 holiday campaign titled “Staff Holiday Gift Picks.” The campaign called for customers to ask real REI staff specialists for gift recommendations and receive a YouTube video response.
You don’t need a huge campaign budget to see success. Customers want to feel as if they are a part of the brand. By giving customers options to participate and share created content you initiate a campaign that can be advertised by your customers. The ripple effect is one of the most powerful distribution methods for marketers. I’m sure you are familiar with the ever popular Office Max Elf yourself app. If not, make sure to check out the video below. The app allows customers to get in the holiday spirit by uploading photos of themself, family, and friends then sit back and watch their group perform a choreographed elf dance performance. The campaign provided a novel user experience and created easily shareable content that was quickly sent around.
Coca-Cola also did a great job of getting customers involved with the 2013 Coke Zero Sweater Generator. The app allowed users to choose the tacky sweater’s pattern, shape, color, and images, and then share their creation on social and encourage their friends and followers to vote for their sweater. On December 1, the top 100 sweaters with the most votes were produced and shipped to the design winners.
Let’s face it: this is a time of mobile madness. Smartphones are a great way to encourage both e-commerce and in store purchases. According to Forbes, 74 percent of people use their mobile phone to help them while shopping, with 79 percent making a purchase as a result. Keep your campaign mobile friendly. For example, Macy’s joined forces with eBay to launch their 2012 Black Friday app. The app sent users notifications of big sales and special deals. It allowed people who downloaded the free app to browse items through Macy’s inventory and create and share wish-lists.
