10 creative Christmas newsletters for online shops
Festive newsletter marketing for e-commerce
Each year, the trade market profits from Christmas shoppers who spend so much money that one quarter of annual turnover is made in those last few weeks of the year alone. And the sales are ever increasing – 2017 was the best holiday season for retailers since 2011, with online retail shopping growing 18.1% compared to the previous year.
Christmas is being celebrated online extensively. Use this potential for your online shop and advertise your product range with creative and festive newsletters that cheer up the Christmas spirit!
Festive newsletter marketing for e-commerce
Before you send your Christmas emails, you might want to think of a concept first. Structure your mails and set up a schedule. It pays to begin early with your newsletters, because the first Google searches for “Christmas presents” already start in October.
Look at the past when planning your Christmas campaign: Which products where especially popular and should be restocked for this season? What’s trend? Gift cards, cosmetics, books, toys and jewelry are common gifts, but also clothing and electronic devices are products that can be advertised in a newsletter gift guide.
Make sure to have all products in stock that are in high demand. Also, communicate your delivery times in your Christmas newsletters – this way, no customer will be disappointed that the gift they ordered did not arrive on time.
10 creative ideas for festive newsletter content
Your battle plan is set, and a Christmas newsletter template has been chosen. Now it’s time to fill it with great content! We collected 10 festive ideas that can boost your shop newsletters:
1. “Wish list” mails: Inspire your recipients with beautiful gift ideas specifically for mom and dad, the grandparents, colleagues, siblings, soul mates…
2. Christmas bundles: Assemble products that go well together and offer these packages at an attractive price.
3. Let your products tell a story: You can put together articles in red and white colors to get your customers in the holiday mood. Or you can create a ski lodge scene, complete with jacquard pattern, knitwear, ski boots and hot cocoa… creatively present products that you sell in your own online shop!
4. Free shipping: Offer your customers free shipping for their Christmas orders
5. Advent calendar: Let your customers open one door of your email Advent calendar after another – you decide, whether you send your emails daily or only on Sundays in Advent. You can fill these emails with various discounts, or you can pick special products that you offer at a lower price for just one day.
6. Presents: Add a small gift to every purchase. For example, a little chocolate Santa is very fitting for the Christmas time and doesn’t cost you a fortune. Alternatively, you can offer to wrap Christmas gifts for free as a service.
Example for free gifts and services: Free engraving at Paul Hewitt (Newsletter 11/2018)
7. Styling ideas: Festive outfits, make-ups or ideas for Christmas decoration can be very inspiring and are creative ways to display your products. Also, you can give your recipients a photo-tutorial on how to take the perfect Christmas selfie!
8. Anti-Christmas newsletter: Not everybody is a fan of the Christmas craze. Create newsletter content, that is dedicated to all the Grinches out there – be it a guide to a comfy evening with Netflix, or a summer themed escape from the holiday season through your newsletter.
9. User Generated Content: Customers like to be part of your journey. With calls like “Share your wish list with our Santa” or “Tell us: What was your favorite Christmas gift of all time?”, you can increase customer retention. Also, your customers create new and unique content, that you can use for your own marketing. These activities are also perfect for contests – for example, you can give away the content of the wish list to the most creative participant!
10. After-Christmas Sale: The time after Christmas should not be neglected. In a final sale, you can boost sales one last time before the year comes to an end.
Boost your sales with seasonal mailings!
Christmas time is a great opportunity for online shops to grow: more leads, more clicks, more sales! When you plan your Christmas newsletter campaign early, and define the messages to be communicated, you can look forward to a nice return on investment!
