For many retailers across Canada, fall is their slow season. Add that to the fact that the COVID-19 crisis continues to make life difficult for everyone and you have a recipe for a bad fourth quarter. With autumn now in full swing and the pandemic not yet behind us, there are some important steps business owners need to take to ensure ongoing profits. Giving their online shops a boost (or a “growth spurt” if you will) is one of them. But how can you pull this off?
Hold a 24 hour sale.
The great thing about having an online shop is that its doors never close. Unlike physical brick and mortar stores, your website is open for business all around the clock. By hosting a 24 hour sale, you’ll encourage visits from shoppers who find it convenient to make purchases from the comforts of their own homes, even at three in the morning! This is especially helpful for people who want to get an early jump on their holiday shopping.
“Send out a newsletter and let your customers know the exact day and hours your 24-hour sale will be running,” advises Caspian Services, “Make it enticing. If there is a favourite item you sell that you can include in that sale – tease it in the emails. Having a few different 24-hour sales (back to back) is also great. This will keep your fans on your website, checking it daily to see if their favourite must-have item has been discounted.”
Conduct an online interview with one of your top customers.
There’s nothing like word of mouth promotion to get people excited about your brand. It’s widely believed that no form of advertising is as valid as the words from legitimate customers. In addition, it’s much easier to direct people who are already online to visit your online shop than it is to get people to visit your website when they aren’t already surfing the net. By conducting a live interview on your social media feeds, you’ll encourage many more visits to your online shop.
On Sellbrite.com, William Harris suggests using Facebook Live to interview your happiest and most loyal customers. “The goal of these interviews is to really let your customers do the talking (and the selling),” he writes, “Ask questions that help your prospective customers understand why they should buy products from you, and what they can expect.”
Play up your love for Halloween.
This year, we imagine that Halloween will be a bit different. With the pandemic still a problem, trick or treating may be at an all-time low. Therefore, people will be looking for other ways to celebrate the spooky occasion. How can your store help out? Consider offering “scary-good savings” or “super sweet sales” encourages Caspian Services.
“Also – this is a great time to have customers enter into a costume contest you are running (with a fun prize for the winner),” suggests their website, “Even better – ask your customers to highlight your product, snap a photo and upload it with a special hashtag to Instagram (let them know you may use the photo in your own account later). Then, pick your winner and announce it on social!”
Is your company website all set up with an online shop? If not, please don’t hesitate to contact Unity Payments to learn about our safe and secure e-commerce solution! Call us at 1-800-661-3761 or email us at info@unitypayments.ca.
