It is almost overwhelming to see the many ways seasonal winter requirements have been analyzed in terms of e-commerce pressure points and effects. The holidays are around the corner, they are upon us, the rush is about to hit the online stores, the 6 months-ahead preparation cycle, and so on. It is indeed a tough test for each business – one that appeals to its entire logistics, but also to the marketing process, one that puts the staff and the technology under pressure, and delivers brilliantly or fails disappointingly. Encouraging your customers’ Holiday Spirit is a bit tougher every year.
It’s all about the present AND the wrapping
The first and foremost present coming from an e-commerce owner would consist in the seamless tuning of the entire online shopping process. An early seasonal Magento article breaks down the main necessary steps for such an efficient experience:
- Mobile optimization;
- Quick page load;
- Personalization and social media integration;
- A simplified checkout process that encourages the conversion rate (easy and clear functional website/app features, and rigorous progress info for your clients);
- Free qualified shipping that encourages clients to purchase a lot of items from your virtual store rather than leave in search for other items;
Moreover, other important elements during the gift season would be:
- Clever, mood enhancing content marketing (offer helpful context, tip lists, advice, guides, comparison landmarks, decision-encouraging quizzes or other narrative/schematic means that improve the choosing process, the validation stage and decision-taking stage).
Alongside these, you should also:
- Underline the special holiday offers and take care to link the offers to your usual social media outlets;
- Prepare for the potential risk factors: have a cyber-security strategy and an active customer support ready to deliver the best customer experience.
The wrapping consists of the entire plethora of helpful details that make the entire purchasing process faster, more pleasant and enjoyable. It consists of the content marketing strategy you have chosen to apply this year, seasoned with colors, positive messages, small treats and bonuses that may prove surprisingly impressive for your customers.
Empathy may well serve this particular part: anyone is a customer at some point or another during the holiday season – and it’s a strong common trait to share with your clients. Think about your personal experience – what is frustrating and what turned out to be absolutely pleasant? The 2015 holiday calendar is pretty much the same for one and all – you may check it here included in an infographic. From 31 October to 31 December the businesses and the customers share a busy exciting time – everybody is bound to be more exigent and anxious, but in the same time we all want the same thing: the feeling that we have celebrated somehow, that things are different and better, that our persons and wishes matter in a unique way. It might be that we dream big, sometimes too big, but nevertheless it is always satisfactory to see that businesses are trying to offer their best. Yes, it is a collective mind that makes all act quite similar and yes, it is seasonality leaving its mark (as the article quoted above mentions). But it can always be fulfilling, revenue-wise and feeling-wise.
Show flexibility in encouraging customers’ Holiday Spirit
Even if some of your customers will not actually need to use this feature during the entire holiday process – it bodes well to offer flexibility and prepare for the possible occurrences.
Here is an example on how flexibility and preparedness apply when it comes to the holiday return policy. When considering your upcoming sales, also consider the projected e-commerce returns. Check the estimates coming from specialists in order to know the most realistic return amount you are to expect. Of course, as a salesperson it is wise to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. Nevertheless, when buying gifts for themselves or other parties under the holiday craze, many are likely to suffer a change of mind and many products fall into the “return” category. Study your options and be prepared – for both your company’s sake, as well as for the sake of customer best practices.
Impulsive shoppers are most likely to return presents, but even so, there will be a significant retention rate. That is why targeting impulsive shoppers comes with e-commerce instructions. This line of action presents incumbent risks. Nevertheless, true as it is, an impulsive buyer would buy in the same manner from your competitor if neglected by you. In addition, once the purchase completed, your product or service might just prove too useful to be returned or cancelled.
There are some fixed checkpoints: once marking them on your list, you will be ensuring space and time for creativity and flexibility. Here is a 10 points holidays list that is meant to help in avoiding chaos and to cover the worst-case scenarios, and it may as well serve in setting up an organized atmosphere in your team.
Cyber-safety is a must
While considering what holiday treats you are about to offer your customers, remember that any gift needs included safety in order to be thoroughly enjoyed. Cyber-criminals are also seeing opportunities once the holiday season begins, but you and your business partners and customers shouldn’t meet their expectancy. Any Trojan gifts (pun intended) would reflect badly on your e-store reputation, therefore pay attention that no cyber criminals take advantage of your clients.
The urgency – a very dear friend of malicious entities when it comes to social engineering – is already a preset of this busy wintertime. However, if all the precautionary cyber-safety measures are taken, urgency need not encourage fraudulence.
As a merchant, revise all your security systems: update your software, establish a security strategy and have a contingency plan to use as a backup.
Remember, starting this October the liability shift holds the merchandisers responsible for any fraudulent card operations if they haven’t updated their systems to meet EMV compliance.
Ensure that all endpoints are covered; be vigilant in regard with your online store safety. Check that no spoofed operations try to double your business. It is advisable to provide a hot-line in customer support for direct online or telephonic contact – in case of spoofed emails, the affected people would thus have an extra chance to check with you before clicking malicious links.
Although, according to surveys, mobile payments are not going to be the preferred payment system this year, this method is on its way to become popular. An e-tailer could provide help by also providing cyber-instructional content on its website. Cyber awareness is always useful – taking care of their accounts data, not sharing banking details via email or choosing multi-factor authentication whenever possible are some of the right choices for shoppers – always, not just during holiday season.
You can see here how lax criteria in password acceptance come from e-commerce sites and establish a low security environment. Stronger password requirements are recommended – it is not an infallible measure, but it helps keeping at bay the less sophisticated fraud attempts.
As long as both retailers and shoppers remember to put caution first, all the merry shopping activities can go on without any unpleasant cyber-security events.
To summarize, holiday e-commerce ideally consists of nice quality offers in a viable, functional online wrapping, with flexible, adaptable terms and a lot of cyber-security features keeping everyone on the safe side. Enjoy!
