During the holiday season you can expect consumer shopping behaviour to rise. Here are some tips to consider while you promote your business over the holidays.

Online shopping continues to grow and is expected to account for around 57 percent of all purchases. Brands need to keep up with this upward shift to online shopping, especially around the holiday season to maximize Q4 revenue.

During this time, most products are offered at a discounted price, therefore, for brands to be able to take advantage of this busy shopping season, boosting visibility through paid channels such as online advertising is necessary.

The holiday season is the busiest time of year for spending, and brands need to be aware of their competition. Greater competition means that brands should raise their campaign spending in order to get ahead of the game.

Browsing starts to pick up in November which means brands should start influencing consumers before peak conversion dates.

One key message. That is the trick to a simple but effective campaign. A key message consists of one idea, one benefit (to the user) and one emotion. The idea is the outcome the product/service can supply. The benefit is what the user gets out of it. The emotion is what gets the user interested.

With simple messaging, it is a good idea to A/B test in order to see what consumers are responding to. It is important, however, to be consistent and stand by with a customer experience that matches what they’ve been through when they purchased in the past.

Online customers know how to spot a good deal. Shoppers look hard to find the best deals, especially around the holiday season and they are aware that these kinds of deep discounts only happen once a year.

Incentivizing customers to go visit your store and complete a purchase is a must. This is usually done with a discount or a promotion of sorts. Whatever the incentive, make sure it is a reason for a consumer to “buy now”. For example, if a retailer holds a sale twice a year and the holiday season is one of them, that is a reason for a consumer to buy.

Although creating awareness and gaining new customers is important, retaining old ones and keeping them equally as interested is just as important. Repeat customers are often responsible for a big chunk of sales, so it is worth it to keep them happy.

Showing them that you care – like offering a personalized card or a special discount – is what will garner your customers’ attention.