Autumn is officially here; the kids are back in school, pumpkins and apples infiltrate everything from latte flavors to candle scents, and crisp leaves fall in warm hues. For most people, it reminds them of cooler days and restarted schedules. But for retail brands, it means the start of the holiday shopping season.

Each year, the holiday season brings a swarm of consumers into brick-and-mortar stores and ecommerce sites. Last year, the holiday shopping season started earlier, with the pandemic creating uncertainties around inventory and longer lead times for shipping. As these effects of the pandemic continue, the holiday season is kicking off early this year, too.

We’ve compiled 21 tips for the 2021 holiday shopping season to help retailers tackle what’s expected to be a booming year for holiday sales. From the data you collect, to the channels you sell on, and more, everything needs to be precise before the year’s biggest spending season.

Use your data to your advantage 

Data is critical in today’s world. Brands need to use data to keep up with the competition, and when done right, find competitive advantages.

1. Real-time data is critical 

Marketing in the moment is far more engaging than scheduled blasts. Triggered marketing campaigns based on user actions can lead to more conversions than a segmented email send. Someone adding hiking shoes to their cart and getting a pop-up to add a complimentary hiking backpack is more relevant than an email to someone who exhibited interest in hiking a few years ago.  

2. The more the merrier 

To get the full picture of your customers, you need access to data. However, third-party data is more difficult to come by with the release of iOS 15 and the upcoming end to support for third-party cookies. Your data shouldn’t only come from these sources – contextual analytics are crucial. Utilize first- and zero-party data that consumers want to give to you in order to create engaging campaigns. 

3. Consistency is key 

Connecting with consumers across channels is only valuable if these experiences are consistent and seamless. If someone adds to their cart on a mobile device, this should be reflected in their cart if they switch to a laptop. Similarly, engaging with a product on social media should result in relevant deals for that item or friendly reminders to move forward with a purchase. Ensure there is a free flow of data between your channels so you can create this consistency.  

Profitable touchpoints are everywhere

Craft engaging experiences across the entire customer journey.  

4. Automation is the key to success 

Particularly during the peak retail season, your team is flushed with campaigns and projects and last-minute requests. It’s not feasible to manually send all of your marketing communications to the many channels you touch – especially not messages that are intended to be timely. A powerful marketing automation platform is a necessity.  

5. Avoid cart abandonment 

So many opportunities are lost when a customer abandons their cart, but you don’t know why. Utilize customer experience solutions to uncover pain points in the customer journey, like buttons that don’t work or pages not loading correctly. With these insights, your team can mitigate issues in real-time and encourage customers to complete their purchases. 

6. Make chatbots matter more 

Chatbots shouldn’t just be a tool for customer support, although that can be a great cost-saving measure. Chatbots can also support new revenue opportunities. Cross-sell, upsell, and even directly sell your products through smart, creative chatbot features.  

Segmenting is critical

Without the proper segmentations, your messaging is wasted on the wrong audience. You’ll quickly find an increase in opt-outs and a decrease in conversions without personalized messaging.  

7. Explore generational divides 

It’s common to discuss segmenting based on gender, location, and interests. However, age is just as important too. For example, a recent Accenture survey found that 70% of Gen Z consumers plan to do most of their holiday shopping in-store, while 54% of Baby Boomers plan to shop mostly online (surprising, right?). Retailers should take note: this means crafting your messages, promotions, and in-store experiences must be carefully tailored to be relevant. 

8. Distribution of content and placement 

Along the same lines, the content you create needs to fit the preferences of the generation you’re targeting. For example, COVID-19 has been a driving force for the Baby Boomer generation to shop online, while Gen Z was raised on technology. Given how each of these generations tend to spend their time, you'll probably want to prioritize digital experiences. 

9. Test by segment 

With any marketing campaign, testing is critical. But with generational segmentation, you can create tests based on age demographics to see what performs best with each age group. 

Expand, expand, expand 

The customer journey is no longer linear – there are many touchpoints a consumer can have with your brand. Take advantage of the many channels and tools at your disposal.  

10. Create a multichannel buying experience 

Multichannel commerce is critical in today’s world. You can’t just be a brick-and-mortar retailer or one that only sells only through Amazon. Leverage all the channels and touchpoints available to you: sell through third-party retailers, via marketplaces, on social media, in brick-and-mortar stores, you name it. You need to reach your customers where they prefer to shop.  

11. Virtual selling, locally 

With people tending to stay local and travel less during the pandemic, shopping locally has arisen as a popular trend. In fact, 58% of U.S. consumers aim to buy from local and independent retailers this year. That doesn’t necessarily mean in-person, though. Consumers crave convenience – combine online offers with in-store promotions for a winning strategy.  

12. Teamwork makes the dream work 

Work with your partners! If you sell through retailers, work with paid influencers, or have any other partner relationship, you can market together to reach a broader audience and maximize your marketing investment.  

Community is your best friend

Your brand doesn’t operate in a vacuum. There are other players that can make the holiday shopping season a success if you know how to leverage them. 

13. Shift investments from temp workers to delivery solutions 

The traditional holiday shopping strategy was to hire temporary workers in retail shops. Now, you should expect more digital purchases and foot traffic to be down, freeing up dollars for other purposes. If you’re a large retailer, take cues from others in the industry like Walmart or Home Depot, which have chartered their own cargo ships to help mitigate shipping delays for their customers. By investing in delivery, you’ll create a better customer experience.  

14. Get others involved in social media 

Social media is an important marketing tactic for many retailers. But for those with smaller marketing teams, you may not be equipped to handle every inquiry you receive over social or even keep up with a consistent posting cadence. Outsourcing social media responsibilities to a marketing or PR agency could help alleviate the burden. You should also consider tapping into your internal teams and external partners: encourage employees to post from their own channels to help elevate your brand, leverage popular influencers, have a partner do a social media takeover – the options are endless! 

15. Make your community your brand 

Community has become such an important part of people’s lives during the pandemic. You should create your brand image in tandem with your community. Feature the people that are a part of your brand, utilize customer-made content online, and create brand ambassadors out of the everyday customer. 

Content reigns supreme

Your products won’t be sold online without the content that drives them.  

16. Content that works  

You need to find the right tone with your content while being authentic to your brand. Right now, people want to have fun, get back to some semblance of normalcy, and they don’t want to see content that’s too serious. That said, always be true to your brand – consumers can spot inauthenticity and will call you on it. 

17. Marrying MarTech and AdTech 

Your tech stack needs to work together. It’s not enough for your AdTech to launch digital advertisements across the web nor is it enough for MarTech to launch campaigns on each channel. You need a connected tech stack that relays the product information, messaging, segmentation, and more across each ad and campaign that goes live.  

Don’t fall short in the last mile 

We spend so much time and energy providing the best customer experiences. Don’t fall short just before the finish line.  

18. Modern tracking is a must 

Tracking a package can be a frustrating experience. Searching through your email for an email from the carrier with outdated and clunky tracking platforms isn’t user-friendly. Take control of your own package tracking – better yet, you can use it as an opportunity for further brand engagement and upsells.  

19. SMS and mobile push are must-dos 

Email isn’t your only option for keeping customers updated on the status of their orders. SMS and mobile push notifications can be an engaging and convenient channel for package tracking updates.  

20. Maximize call center savings 

By leveraging email, SMS, and mobile, coupled with sophisticated CX and behavioral analytics, you’ll be able to save on your call center costs. These channels can offer self-service options for customer engagement, which leads to fewer calls into your customer support center.  

The holiday season today

With over a year and a half into the pandemic, it’s clear there’s no such thing as “normal” anymore. 

21. This year is different than last year – don’t treat it the same 

Last holiday season, COVID-19 was in its largest surge of the year, vaccines weren’t invented yet, and people were still quarantining from each other. COVID-19 isn’t gone by any means, but with vaccines increasingly available in most geographies for adults and case rates in decline, people can return somewhat back to normal. Given this, it’s time to stop saying “in these unprecedented times” or anything of that nature – update your messaging to reflect current times and continue being relevant.  

With the above 21 strategies, you can win the 2021 holiday season. If you’re interested in hearing how Acoustic can help with the holiday rush, get in touch with us today.