How to Attract Holiday Shoppers Through Social Media

Social media is one of the largest and most reliable ways for businesses to reach out to their customers and to create brand loyalty that will ultimately keep bringing them back. With the holiday season upon us, it’s time to take advantage of all social media has to offer to increase both brand awareness and overall sales. It comes as no surprise that out of the three holiday shopping trends “eMarketer” expects to see for the 2015 season, social media’s influence landed right at number three. And with more and more people opting to skip the lines and the crowded malls and shop online instead, taking advantage of your business’ online presence through social media can be highly effective.

For those who use Twitter, one of the most important things to keep in mind during the holidays is timing your tweets. A recent study conducted by “Converseon” on holiday shopping trends concluded that Twitter popularity surged by 83% between 8pm and 12am during the entirety of the season; additionally, popularity surged 87% on Sundays during the month of November. Based on this study’s new information, as a business, posts should be going out between those hours and on those Sundays to promote different sales and reminders. Throughout the different months of the holiday season, the promotion given out on a social media platform should change – for example, in October, it’s best to focus on discounted holiday messages, while in December, it’s best to advertise later hours to draw in the “last-minute-shopping” crew.

Twitter’s new social media sister, Periscope, also offers a unique way to engage with your audience and create brand awareness through live video streams. This platform allows users to associate a face with your company and also can allow you to be a resource for information- both huge benefits. Create a video sharing a tidbit of knowledge as it relates to your industry; maybe a cooking demo for food related businesses, tips for dressing for holiday parties if you’re in the fashion or clothing industry, and so on, and be sure to mention any holiday discounts or offers you may currently be running. Sharing a mini “vlog” can attract new customers and create loyalty from your current ones. Additionally, you can upload the video to your YouTube page and/or embed it on your blog after it’s out of the viewable 24 hour window on Periscope, for continued valuable content.

And if you’re not taking advantage of Facebook ads yet, now’s the time to do it! With Facebook’s new mobile feature that allows users to purchase goods directly through the Facebook app itself under development, now is the time to be sure you have an active and engaged Facebook following. Running ads, which either direct users to your website/products or to your Facebook page, is an effective way to attract your specific target market- especially this time of year.

Lastly, Instagram has now opened up its advertising policies to extend beyond mega-corporations and into the hands of small business owners. With Instagram’s users surpassing Twitter at an astounding 400 million, it’s advisable to be sure your business is consistently active on this visual platform. (For tips on how to grow your following and create an effective business account, be sure you’re following us @n2qconsulting). Going above and beyond standard usage and creating an advertisement for your company is an excellent way to bring some more attention to both your brand as a whole and specific products you hope to sell during the holiday season.

We hope you take advantage off all the various features social media has to offer to advertise your business this holiday season! Once you’ve attracted holiday shoppers, use these tips to help make the e-commerce experience run well.

And as always, be sure to follow us over on Facebook to receive lots of tips and tricks for making your business as successful as possible the whole year round.

Happy Holidays!