Planning months ahead for the holiday might sound like you’re jumping the gun in normal circumstances, but to marketers and certified Google AdWords specialists, planning holiday campaigns much in advance is the right thing to do.
As the holiday season has hit us with Christmas and New Year lined ahead, it is essential that your business has the right marketing strategy laid out to boost engagement and skyrocket sales.
We’ve all heard the 2020 “un” words: unprecedented, unexpected, and unpredictable. But as we approach this year’s holiday season, we can still be sure about a few things. Online gift shopping will continue to grow, probably even more than we’ve seen in past peak seasons. Online sales in the year 2020 made up for over 80% of the consumers holiday purchase, and this number is expected to go up significantly year by year as more and more people get comfortable shopping online.
The market is ever-evolving and customer tastes are never the same two years in a row. This is why it is so important to stay up-to-date with the changes happening in the real world, especially the online space. In an effort to help make an all-encompassing marketing strategy for the best Google AdWords experts, here is the holistic 2020 holiday digital marketing guide.
- Starting with Christmas Buzz
Christmas has always been exciting for consumers with everyone getting into the festive spirit and celebrating the festival with pomp and show. This season gives a good boost to the online retail industry every year, and ecommerce business owners start gearing up for the increased sales days in advance. Google is one of the best platforms to target for marketing campaigns during this season as Google Ads work on auction basis. An able Google AdWords expert can help create a winning marketing strategy for your business by looking into previous successful campaigns and studying general market trends.
The important thing to do here is clearly defining the goals for the campaign. Whether it is increasing traffic, increasing sign-ups, or increasing sales, the digital marketing campaign should be tailored according to that. Previous strategies can throw some light on how certain steps worked while others didn’t. The successful strategies can guide this season’s campaigns. Also, if you’re thinking that Christmas has passed and you will do it next year, don’t give up just yet! Cash in on the post-Christmas buzz because people are still in the holiday and celebration mode as they step into the New Year!
- New Year
Chances are that most people will be partying at home to ring in the New Year this time. This year has been all about spending time with family and staying indoors to stay safe and keep others safe as well. In order to launch a successful marketing campaign, it is important to centre it on this idea. Ad campaigns should use keywords that focus the important factors of this year – using facilities from the comfort of your home. Two of the most important things that need to be focused on when designing a landing page for Google AdWords to direct are a visually stunning and intuitive website and a smooth user experience. These aspects go into the fundamentals of digital marketing and none of them should be forgotten or pushed to the wayside during the holiday season.
- Indian Republic Day
As the season ends, people look forward to Republic Day deals that celebrate the spirit of patriotism and pride in the ideals held high by Indian countrymen. Patriotism remains one of the key motivating factors that strongly resonate with the Indian audience and Republic Day along with Independence Day, remains the most important national occasion for brands to leverage. Creating successful ad campaigns that highlight the Holiday and the season is essential for it to be successful. Brands are getting creative and channelling their patriotism through social media platforms to announce various schemes.
Luckily, despite Covid19, the holiday frenzy has not been dimmer this year as was being feared. People are celebrating the holiday season differently, but at its core, the highlights of season remain the same. Online retailers have successfully released a number of ad campaigns in advance to ensure that the news about their latest collection, offers, and discounts reached consumers in a timely fashion. For ad campaigns to be successful, a number of preparatory steps are being followed since early December.
Check the comprehensive list below now to verify if your brand is following the essential steps to make the most of the holiday season this year.
- Evaluate past year performances to build further on the previous best-selling campaigns
- Identify top seasonal Google shopping items and discount schemes being offered
- Check the ad schedule page to identify demand peaks
- Set a budget that is in line with seasonal sales goals
- Define target audience and success measurement guidelines
- Add seasonal keywords to the text in ad groups
- Ensure that the remarketing tags are active for relevant websites
- Adapt text ad content to advertise holiday promotions or seasonal articles
- Ensure conversion tracking is in place for your Christmas AdWords campaigns
- Check your PLA feed to include new products and to ensure no products are rejected
- Apply custom labels to top performance Google Shopping IDs
- Always keep in mind stock levels and your supply chain to satisfy demand
2020 might be an unusual and unpredictable year, but it’s not an unmanageable one. By now we all have a good idea about how to manage business during the new normal. This holiday season is probably the most digital-first shopping period that we all have ever seen. The best way to approach it is with Google Ads. As we are in the midst of the most exciting and eventful time of the year, it is imperative that we are prepared and make the most of what is coming.
Summary: 2020 might be an unusual and unpredictable year, but it’s not an unmanageable one. This holiday season is probably the most digital-first shopping period that we all have ever seen. The best way to approach it is with Google Ads. Create unique Google AdWords strategies to make the most of the holiday season this year.