It’s December, and the holidays are in full swing! Small businesses must engage as many shoppers as possible, with the holiday season accounting for as much as 25% of their annual revenue. Small business owners with tight budgets need low-cost, high-impact holiday marketing strategies. Fortunately, holiday digital marketing campaigns can stretch your dollars further. Small businesses can significantly expand their reach, engage more customers, and see sales soar.

What is small business digital marketing?

Before we start, you need to know what digital marketing is and how it can benefit your small business.

Digital marketing is any marketing campaign that appears on a smartphone, tablet, or laptop. It encompasses many forms, including social media posts, SMS messages, emails, and search engine optimization (SEO).

Small businesses that use digital marketing strategies will see major benefits, including:

  • It’s incredibly cost-effective.
  • Enables you to reach a wider audience via multiple channels.
  • Digital marketing is measurable.
  • It’s easy for any small business owner to learn.

Now that you know what digital marketing for small businesses is, let’s see it in action.

Here are five digital marketing ideas that will make your holiday campaigns merry and bright. 

1. SMS sales and discounts Consumers are always looking for ways to save money on their holiday purchases. Make it easier for them to save with holiday SMS deals and discounts. SMS campaigns are a great way to reach and engage more consumers effectively.

Do you want more inventory to fly off the shelves? Craft high-quality content that’s impossible to resist. Personalize your text messages by sending relevant content to the appropriate audiences. Use customer demographics and purchase histories to segment subscribers. 

2. Social media holiday marketing contests 

The holidays are a time to give back. Delight your customers by hosting a mini-game or giveaway on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, or Viber. This boosts customer engagement and amplifies brand awareness.

A holiday giveaway contest can be as simple as asking customers to like or share your post and then randomly selecting a winner. Encourage more people to interact with your post with a branded hashtag. You can also ask them to tag their friends or visit your website.

Always include the contest rules at the bottom of your post. This way, participants will clearly understand the entry requirements.   

3. Shipment notifications 

Shipment delays are one of the biggest concerns for holiday shoppers. Nobody wants their gifts to arrive late. Brands that take a proactive approach to their customer support efforts will alleviate these anxieties. Almost all consumers believe a good customer experience makes waiting for their packages bearable.

Let customers know when their orders have shipped via an SMS notification. If any delays occur, reach out immediately and keep customers up to date with ongoing status alerts.

Stellar customer support deepens trust, increases brand loyalty and encourages customers to keep buying from your brand.

4. Holiday packaging packs a punch 

Stand out from the competition by maximizing a customer’s unboxing experience. Many businesses, including Starbucks and Coca-Cola, go above and beyond with their festive holiday packaging.

Sprucing up your holiday packaging doesn’t have to break your marketing budget. A few affordable—yet effective—ideas include:

  • Red, green, or gold packing tape
  • Handwritten notes
  • Custom stickers
  • Printed tissue paper

Spotlight your brand’s festive thinking by posting your holiday packages on your social platforms. 

5. Customer loyalty programs

The holidays are the perfect time to launch a customer loyalty program. An SMS loyalty program shows customers how much you care. It’s also a smart way to drive sales while saving money. Attracting new customers is five to 25 times more expensive than keeping existing ones.

Use your SMS loyalty program to:

  • Send returning customers special offers
  • Let them be the first to know about new products
  • Ask for feedback to improve the customer experience

Mitto makes holiday shoppers smitten

Mitto Conversations makes it easy for small businesses to keep track of their digital communications. Use our unified platform to effortlessly manage messaging across the conversational platforms that matter the most.

Meet customers where they already are, bring conversations to life with rich images and videos, and streamline your support with auto-replies.

 

Contact us today to learn how we can help you engage more holiday shoppers.