Deck the stores with holiday products. ’Tis the season to make money. Don we now our Santa apparel. The holiday season is a time filled with joy… and shopping bags. With every store screaming loud and proud about their special offers, online retailers need to have Christmas campaigns and Christmas ideas executed so that customers shop with them too (or even instead). So before diving into a frenzy to figure out a plan, let’s check out some of 2019’s Christmas campaigns so far to use as inspiration. 

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10 Christmas Campaigns to Use this Holiday Season

1. Chi Africa

The 12 Days of Christmas are supposed to run from December 25th to January 6th. But that’s never stopped online retailers from starting this Christmas campaign much earlier. Chi Africa actually began a 12 Days of Christmas campaign in October. Their Instagram includes promotions on each day of Christmas. However, unlike most brands who have consecutive days for the Christmas campaign, they spread each day of Christmas out so they might be a couple days apart.

christmas campaigns

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Their website also includes the products from their 12 Days of Christmas campaign. So far, they’re on day five of the campaign, so their collection page has the five promotional products included on their website. For the first three days, the number of products included in the set corresponded with the day of Christmas. 

12 days of christmas

2. Carter’s

Carter’s Christmas campaign centers around Doorbusters. Doorbusters are products that have discounts so steep that people bust through doors in stampede fashion to buy right now. Of course, with online shopping no one’s getting trampled over since they’re hanging out on their couch placing an order. But the word has Santa-mental value so it’s used on online stores too. Carter’s offered discounts of up to 70% off. Pretty good deal for customers if you ask me.

christmas ideas

Not only do customers love doorbusters, but they’re great for generating sales or clearing out inventory. Some brick and mortar retailers often want to clear out their less popular items and use it as a way to entice people to buy unwanted goods. This tends to be most common the day after Christmas: Boxing Day. However, if you take a look at some of the products below, you’ll see that the steep discount makes the product more compelling. Only $9 for a two piece reindeer bodysuit? That price point can fit into most parent’s budgets. Meaning they might not only buy that – but more. Thus, increasing average order value. So if you’re looking for a more traditional Christmas campaign, customers are sure to love this one deerly.

christmas products

3. Suzy Shier

Suzy Shier lights up the holiday season with a Gift Guide collection on their top navigation. By calling it out there, they give it more visibility to those browsing their website during the holiday season. Depending on how well they rank for SEO, they may even be able to have their collection indexed by Google so that when people browse the keyword “Gift Guide” the Suzy Shier collection appears in search results. 

holiday gift guides

The gift guide is divided into three categories: Under $25, Under $50, and Over $100. In psychology, things grouped in threes tend to be preferred by others. What’s interesting is that the item in the middle is usually the option people tend to choose. So it’s likely that customers will be more likely to shop the under $50 section. You can also see that the gap between $50 and $100 is larger than the $25 to $50 gap which makes it likely that they’re trying to attract people to the mid-range collection. This is likely because people will buy more items if they’re priced in the $50 or less range than if they were to buy one expensive item. 

holiday gift guides

4. ModCloth

Popular online retailer ModCloth opened up a Holiday Shop on their website for their online Christmas campaign. Their holiday shop consisted of multiple gift guides such as “Stocking Stuffers,” “Gifts Under $25,” “Animal Lover Gifts,” and more. The Holiday Shop also includes a variety of holiday themed items such as Christmas tree earrings, ugly Christmas sweaters, Mr. Grinch mugs, and several other items. By having a collection centered around the holidays customers can find holiday essentials. And since it’s also paired with a group of gift guides, they can also shop for their loved ones on the site as well. 

christmas products

With the “Gifts” tab highlighted in red on the ModCloth top navigation, emphasis is drawn so customers eyes zero in on it and check out that tab first. Historically, the most-clicked links in a top navigation are the first and last and with the “Gifts” tab in the middle, the red helps it capture some extra attention.

christmas gift guide

5. Walgreen’s

Walgreen’s Christmas idea on their website features a weekly “Gifts of the Week” followed alongside ten gift guides. The “Gifts of the Week” are heavily discounted by 50% to entice shoppers to splurge on these gifts. Each gift targets a different audience. For example, the makeup kit targets women, the Squishmallow plus targets young children, and it includes chocolates which is a perfect gift for neighbours, coworkers, teachers, or a boss. Since the gifts rotate each week, there’s a certain level of urgency to compel shoppers to buy now before time runs out. 

holiday campaigns

But if those gifts don’t tickle your fancy, there’s a collection of gift guides directly below so you can narrow your focus on who you’re buying for. From gifts under certain price ranges such as $10 or $20 to gifts for him or her, Walgreen’s shoppers can find a gift for someone they know with this level of personalization on their website. Customers can also find white elephant gifts which are basically gifts that aren’t practical but you can’t really throw them away. The host gifts are perfect for the holiday dinners or Christmas parties you attend during the festive season. And the personalized gifts capitalize on one of the most popular trends right now as personalized products tend to sell really well since they’re unique to you. 

6. Pfaltzgraff

Pflaltzgraff’s 2019 Christmas campaign is absolutely sleighin’ it. Like others on this list, their website is home to a holiday shop. Their collection banners maintain a consistent holiday theme to it with a bright red background and a green banner. Their collection also includes holiday products such as snowflake mugs, Christmas tree dinnerware, and gingerbread on platters. While Pfaltzgraff does offer discounts in keeping with the holiday trend the discount isn’t emphasized. These stunning and vibrant holiday images capture all the attention. 

christmas accessories

To keep their holiday collections on brand, Pfaltzgraff maintained their designs on holiday decorations as well. For example, this season they’re highlighting their floral Winterberry design on their dinnerware. In keeping with the holiday spirit, they added an LED snowman as decoration for the home with the same winterberry design. That way, a customer could collect the entire Winterberry collection from plates to decor. 

seasonal products

7. Mikasa

Mikasa’s online store has a holiday shop that helps customers find the perfect gift during the festive season. They sell holiday essentials such as dinnerware with holly patterns to ornaments to Christmas-themed home accents. The collection designs feature a blue background and bokeh giving it an icy winter theme look to match the festive holiday theme. And with several glass products featured on collections, it really does give it an icy feel. Mikasa also features two price themed collections: one of the gift collections are priced under $10 while the other under $50. 

seasonal campaigns

For the most part these collections feature holiday themed products but also a staple of standard styles you’d typically find at Mikasa to stay true to their customer base. Some products are discounted as you’d find with most online stores during the holiday season. And those products are also featured in a Clearance collection that customers looking for a great deal can shop on. 

holiday launch

8.NCLA Beauty

NCLA Beauty’s Christmas campaign starts with their “Holiday Shoppe.” They’ve included a link to their “Holiday” collection in the top navigation to draw more eyes to it. And once customers land on it, there are countless beauty sets available for purchase. One thing they’ve included that perfectly suits the holiday spirit are Mystery Bags. When Christmas presents are wrapped what’s hidden inside the box remains a mystery which helps you build excitement as you anticipate what’s underneath. But what’s interesting is that they’ve included opaque bags with either mystery nail or lip products so that even the buyer has no clue what’s contained inside. Thus, furthering the anticipation.

christmas campaign 2019

Their holiday shop includes several products in sets. This is likely done to help clear out the inventory they haven’t sold during the year while also boosting average order value. For store owners who buy bulk inventory, combining items into sets can help clear through inventory. Since December is often the end of the business year for entrepreneurs, businesses focus on offering sets and discounts so that they don’t need to sell the items to wholesalers for much less. It’s also a psychological trick to package items in bulk as it makes people feel like they’re getting a better deal by getting more items in their purchase. They walk away from the purchase feeling happy with all the stuff they just got at a discounted rate. 

holiday sets

9. Leif Shop

Leif Shop features a holiday collection of boxed sets, ornaments, and cards. Their holiday collection is especially made for Christmas. They don’t include their standard type of products as the ornaments are for Christmas trees and the Christmas cards are for gifts or mailing out. The holiday themed products match the branding of the rest of the store to maintain a consistent style. And while the ornaments may include an igloo to suit the winter theme, some of the decorative ornaments aren’t holiday themed and include butterflies, frogs and other styles. 

holiday sets

10. Paper Source

Paper Source runs a new Christmas campaign each day during the holiday season. From a flash sale on calendars and planners to 20% discounts on curated collections. Flash sales can be a great way to boost sudden traffic back to your website from social media or from store browsers. Since they’re only for a limited time, they increase urgency which compels customers to shop now instead of putting it off until later. The 20% discount also seems to be chosen for the upcoming 2020 year with the discount being “SAVE2020.” 

flash sale

Paper Source also introduced an exclusive Christmas collection in their holiday campaign. By selling exclusive products, customers will have to shop on their website when they find something they absolutely love. Plus, with all the Christmas themed products in their collection, the seasonality of the products add a sense of urgency to compel the impulse buy.  From ornaments to holiday wreath glasses, the unique collection gives people a reason to browse, shop, and buy. And while few products are discounted, they’re marked at an affordable price to still intrigue those who casually browse the collection.

christmas collection

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Conclusion

Yule be sorry if you don’t join in on the holiday fun with your customers. Crafting a Christmas campaign can really spruce things up for your brand. From driving discounts to increase your average order value to running a campaign that draws customers closer to you instead of a competitor, setting up a playful or helpful campaign can help you make more money this holiday season. With customers keeping a close eye on the best deals, it’s best to make sure you end up on their nice list. 

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