Who doesn’t love a good online sale? We know, we do! And so do your customers, which is why right now is the best possible time to come up with a plan for your next twelve months of the best eCommerce promotions. Here’s what you need to know.
Why Creating a Promotions Calendar is Important
Creating a launch calendar for the whole year is an important part of achieving success with promos. Why? It gives you a good way to plan out what you’re going to do and how you’re going to tell everyone about it. Plus, it gives you room to ensure you have the right inventory levels before launching a major campaign.
So, what’s the big deal about doing this around July? Well, the summer slowdown is real for a lot of eCommerce brands. Now is a good time to really start thinking about the next twelve months and the various things you need to do to reach your eCommerce goals during bigger shopping seasons, like Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Deciding on the Best Types of Promotions for Your Niche
Every eCommerce niche is a little bit different when it comes to special offers. While beauty brands might consider running a special for June brides, a power tool company probably wouldn’t want to run an identical promotion.
You’ll also want to match your promo type to your target market. Large ticket items won’t be profitable if you offer a BOGO, but they could do well by providing a deep discount. In contrast, small products that have a life cycle, like skincare items or food, would likely work well for this type of promotion.
To find the best ones for your niche, look at what some of the major brands in your industry do. While you don’t want to copy them outright, taking a peek can be a good way to develop ideas on how to find the best offer for your eCommerce store.
Choosing Your Goals
The most important part of creating a promotional success for your online brand is to know your goals before launching a specific campaign. This means working with the end goal in mind and determining what you want to happen if the event is an absolute success.
Is it a set number of orders or a specific profit margin? Are you just trying to get your inventory levels down to a specific amount? Are you trying to build your organic ecommerce strategy? Or maybe you’re trying to target first-time shoppers and have a goal of the number you want to reach?
These eCommerce goals likely depend on where your brand is in terms of size, product catalog, and following. However, it is a good idea when you’re creating the promotion to sit down and brainstorm what matters most before you start planning bigger details.
Creating a Workflow for Promotions
It is incredibly important to have a specific project workflow for your team when it comes to having a solid promotions and eCommerce strategy for your brand. What do we mean by this? Have a set number of steps involved and templates to help you make the process as smooth as possible.
This can be something as simple as a template for sending out teaser emails or branded social media graphic templates in Canva to add to your email & CRM strategy for eCommerce. Or it can even be a plan for when and how you’re going to send automated emails to existing customers about the exciting eCommerce promotions you’re offering.
Key Dates to Remember for Promotions
When it comes to putting together your promotions calendar over the summer, it is important to look at all the various opportunities you have around you to really attract customers. Here are three key areas to consider.
Major Holidays
This is probably pretty obvious, but you should always plan to run specials for all the major holidays. We’re talking Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day/Father’s Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, etc. Furthermore, if you live in a different country, use those that mean a lot to shoppers in your region. And pay extra close attention to those that require gift-giving, as this can be a huge push point for eCommerce brands.
Offbeat Holidays
Next, choose a few offbeat holidays throughout the year to celebrate. These can be really fun if you plan them just right and can really give your customer base something to enjoy. For example, a boutique pet treat bakery might use Take Your Dog to Work Day as a way to promote a special discount. Even retailers like Dunkin and Krispy Kreme use this philosophy for things like National Donut Day as a way to market products.
Other Times of Year
Of course, holidays aren’t the only time of year you should run a promotion. It’s always a good idea to run some sort of flash sale or discount offer on items that you want to clear out of your warehouse before a new product comes in. And you don’t have to play coy with it, either. Just mentioning outright that you’re running an inventory reduction or clearance sale is often enough to get shoppers to take notice.
Conclusion: eCommerce Promotional Success
What is the best part about using the summer to plan promotions for your eCommerce business? There’s plenty of room to adjust as you move forward. But the main takeaway we want you to realize is that promo success starts with thinking ahead and having an idea of how you want the campaign to go.
Need help with planning amazing promos for your online brand? Our CAKE team of obsessed sale shoppers and eCommerce experts is here to help you come up with a plan. Please contact us or one of our ecommerce consultants today for more information.
