Retargeting For The Holidays: Making Digital Advertising Work For You.

dd blog 11.19.15opens IMAGE file For many, holiday shopping involves hustling and bustling, and beating the crowds on Black Friday.  However, for many, holiday shopping involves a solid wifi connection and a few hours of time.  Online shopping is the new norm for many in our culture and that’s a great opportunity for retailers who want to succeed online this holiday season. The key is not simply having an online store, but using digital marketing to push people to purchase on that online store.

  1. Solid online stores.  Of course, the first step in your holiday strategy involves building an online store and e-commerce platform that allows for easy and safe shopping.  At Data-Dynamix, we are big believers in building solid foundations for your digital platforms.  In the case of wanting to sell online, the safe and sure online store is that initial foundation you need.  Also note, that you should have a secure store online with a SSL certificate and proper security settings on your site so that shoppers feel comfortable entering in their credit card information on your site.
  2. Savvy Advertising.  Once you have your site in place, you need to develop a strategy that employs the use of multiple digital channels.  Social media ads are great for the holiday season, and now with Instagram ads being open to advertisers, there are many choices.  Email marketing is another great digital avenue to use to send targeted ads for your specific holiday campaign.  Of course display and banner ads are extremely effective as well during this holiday season, especially when coupled with a retargeting strategy.  Whatever you choose in your mix, remember that you need to expect to send ads through multiple channels and multiple times.  Most of your audience will not convert to being customers on the first campaign, even in the biggest holiday shopping season of the year.
  3. Sly Retargeting.  Sophisticated marketers today employ the use of retargeting in their advertising strategy for the holidays.  Retargeting is simply a digital advertising strategy that gathers information from an initial offer in the form of a cookie that allows the advertiser to follow you around the internet.  As online shoppers plant seeds in their mind for gift ideas, and go check them out for prices, availability, and other options, you can then serve up additional ads to that online shopper in the coming days and weeks.  For example, if you are eyeing a sweater for your wife on a website, you may see ads pop up on the side of Facebook and other websites in the week to follow.  These are subtle reminders that you need to check that gift off your list, and can with the help of these simple clickable ads!

It’s true that shopping trends are changing as our digital world becomes more ensconced in our day to day life.  That’s why retailers absolutely MUST have a strategic digital marketing strategy for the holiday season.  Retailers and advertisers who do employ a savvy digital advertising strategy this holiday season will reap the rewards with the ever-growing population of holiday shoppers who do so from the comfort of their own laptop!