Deck the Halls: Festive marketing ideas to boost holiday sales

The most magical time of the year is here! Have you decorated your store and your website yet? Christmas presents a fantastic opportunity to captivate customers with creative marketing and stunning displays.

In this article, we share some ideas to enhance both your in-store and social media presence so you can make the most of the holiday season.

• Posts about gift ideas for each family member

Buying Christmas presents is not an easy task, especially when trying to not repeat past gifts. Why not provide your customers with ideas for gifts for each member of the family? You could create a carousel featuring presents for different personalities, such as gifts for the fun dad, gifts for the busy dad, gifts for the outdoor-loving dad, and gifts for the DIY dad. This approach can generate plenty of content to last until Christmas Eve.

• Advent calendar of discounts

This idea works well both in-store and on social media. If you’re planning on offering discounts, why not create an advent calendar where a different product is on sale each day, available only for that day? This can drive traffic to your social channels and website, as customers check daily for the latest deal.

• Decoration-making workshops

If your store has enough space for events, hosting a wreath-making workshop, for example, is a great way to draw people in for a fun family outing. You could even charge a small fee to cover event costs. Promote it through email and social media and consider filming the workshop to create a webinar that will boost your website traffic for weeks.

• Hire a hot chocolate bar

Who doesn’t love a nice cup of hot chocolate? If you don’t have a café in your store, hiring a hot chocolate bar is a wonderful way to attract customers for a weekend of festive shopping.

• Green Black Friday / Boxing Day

With more consumers shopping consciously, sustainability is a key focus. Black Friday and Boxing Day can be seen as excessive, so why not give a green twist to your marketing by promoting eco-friendly products? This allows you to take advantage of these promotional periods while maintaining your values.

• Invite Santa to your store

Another great way of turning your store into a destination, even with limited space, is organising a meet-and-greet with Santa for a weekend, where children can have their photo taken. This budget-friendly idea brings footfall to your store, while helping connect your brand with the local community. To support this campaign, consider filming a video of Santa inviting children to the store and sharing it on social media.

• Naughty Elf social campaign

Everybody loves a naughty elf, and it can be a fun addition to your social media strategy. Hide the Elf amongst products that you want to promote, creating a subtle marketing campaign with playful content for your audience. Bring this campaign to life in-store by hiding the elf and offering a prize to customers who find it.