It's Christmas Retail Season

For many small retail businesses, the Christmas season provides the much-needed opportunity for increased sales and wider margins.  It’s common for those precious few weeks to represent 30% or more of the year’s revenues. 

How can small businesses capitalize on this festive and potentially lucrative season?Here are a few suggestions to keep in mind as you build your seasonal strategy:

1.  Plan Ahead

Don’t’ wait until November to plan.  Begin thinking about your Christmas season in the springtime, write out strategies in the summer, and initiate implementation in September.  You will have articles to write, specific items to order, people to contact and budgets to prepare.  So although you are not hanging tinsel in September, you are preparing for a great season behind closed doors.

There is hope for you though even if you didn’t plan ahead of time. 

Don’t be discouraged and do nothing.  Get online, search out articles or reports on Christmas sales strategies, or use some of the ones listed below.  Find a few things you can do on a weekend, and get busy.  Don’t get down, get determined!

2. Shop Early

Run promotions on selected specials early.  Get people thinking about Christmas.  You might have some fun offering a coupon you hand out with purchases made from November 5-15.  They can come back in December and get a gift”, or a significant discount on a higher margin item.  They shop early, and they have incentive to come back.  Link it in with an email promotion and remind them in December.

3. Use Demonstrations

If you have some products you can demonstrate – invite customers back for the demo.  If you are a clothing retailer, set aside an evening for your preferred clients to come for a glass of wine and early preview of Christmas stock.

4. Support a Charity

Get involved with the Spirit of Christmas yourself.  Find a local charity that contributes to the community and help to promote their cause.  Show your willingness to give as well as receive.

5. Bring in Entertainment

Don’t pay the pros.  Contact your local schools or kids clubs and bring in child artists, musicians, ballet dancers, and model car builders – anything related to kids.  Parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles will follow.  They tell friends and so on. Be sure you have a few items on special for just that group of customers.

There is no time like Christmastime for the Triple Win Strategy (you win, your customer wins, and someone else benefits).  If you put a plan in place, think like a customer for promotions, share with others and build community, you will insure not only a more prosperous Christmas this year, but build a reputation that you can “live on” throughout the year.

 To Our Success,

Harmony Thiessen

Join My New Facebook Fan Club - HG BUSINESS CONSULTING

Did you like what you read? Please pass it along to your Twitter community by clicking RETWEET below: