Christmas is exactly two months and one day away and now is the time to really get your website or blog into gear if you run any type of shop or offer any type of service. This even includes all you affiliate marketers out there as November and December are renowned for being the busiest months of the year when it comes to sales. Being prepared for this rush is key!
So what can you do?
1. Start Now
Now is the perfect time to start getting your blog or website in order for the Christmas season. Start writing blog posts to schedule during the period and make sure that all the advertising and marketing that you have been doing this year points back to your website. You want to make sure that as much traffic as possible is being driven to your site.
2. Check Your Site for Spelling/Grammar/Poor Links
If your site looks amateur your potential customers won’t have much trust in you and 90% of the time will look for a similar service elsewhere. Now is the time to go over all of your website pages and old posts and give them a spring clean – check the spelling and grammar, and check that all of your links go to the places where you want them to go. If you are an affiliate marketer using WordPress look into installing the Broken Link Checker widget for constant updates as to which links are working and which are not. If a button says “buy me” and the product has expired, you’ve just lost a customer.
3. Advertise and Offer Promotions
With so many websites and blogs trying to get as much traffic as they can during the Christmas period you need to make sure you stand out. Advertise (but don’t spam) and offer promotions to entice potential customers. Think of things that customers will find useful in the run up to Christmas and consider offering discounts or free items when they purchase so much. Customers love to feel valued so keep this in mind.
4. Convert Your Customers
Make sure it is easy to contact you and that your shopping basket is easy to see. After all, you don’t want your customers to fill up a shopping basket with items and then be confused as to where to go next. The last thing you want them to do is click off your site and onto a competitor’s whose site is much easier to navigate.
5. Keep in Touch
Christmas will end at some point and although if you follow the above tips you are likely to have a good Christmas period, you want to try and keep your customers as you go into the New Year. Encourage your potential customers to sign up to your newsletter or subscribe to your blog. Research has shown that promotional items offered via a newsletter are a great way to encourage customers to give you repeat business.
Make it a good one!
