10 Essentials Ways Retailers Can Prepare for Peak Christmas Sales

Read on for 10 essential ways retailers can prepare for peak Christmas sales. These are the strategies needed to prepare for the festive sales period.

10 essential ways retailers can prepare for peak Christmas sales:

Prepare for any Black Friday sales you’re taking part in.

• Ensure you create your plan for Black Friday early as it is one of the biggest shopping days of the year.
• You don’t have to discount your products, so check out this blog post about 8 alternative ways to participate in Black Friday.
• Make sure you have planned your marketing in advance so you can show up, be present, sell and send out orders during the Black Friday rush.

Keep track of stock and order levels

• Create a system to maintain close tabs on inventory levels, especially for your best-selling products.
• Have a list of back-up suppliers in case your regular suppliers run out of products or packaging.

Don’t forget to do a comp shop

• A comp shop, also known as a competitor shop is where you go into shops or online to see what similar businesses to yours are doing over the Christmas period.
• Keep an eye on your competitors’ pricing, promotions, and product offerings. This will help you stay competitive and identify any gaps in your own product range.
• You can then use this for your product Development in 2025

Keep on top of customer service enquiries.

• Customer service enquiries will increase over the festive period.
• Use autoresponders to help manage customers expectations.
• Friendly, responsive and helpful customer service experience during peak Christmas periods can turn first-time buyers into loyal, repeat customers next year.

Offer express delivery where possible

• Express delivery is particularly key in December as it captures last-minute shoppers.
• Many customers will be doing last-minute shopping in December and will be willing to pay extra for express delivery to ensure their gifts arrive on time.
• Make sure to prominently feature express delivery options on your social media and at checkout.

Review all last posting dates and adjust if needed.

• If demand for your products is high and/or delivery is taking longer than usual then adjust your delivery times and extend them if needed.
• Communicate any delays upfront to avoid frustrating customers.
• Make sure you clearly display your last posting dates on your social media and your website so customers know when to order by.
• Last posting dates may vary by product if personalised.

Add any products to your January sale.

• Once Christmas has ended Boxing Day and January sales will begin.
• If you are planning to take part in these sales periods then plan ahead and work out what products you will include.
• Slow-moving products or excess stock are key lines to include in your sales.

Keep updating your lessons learnt document for 2024.

• During the Christmas sales season, make notes on what worked well and what didn’t.
• These insights will be invaluable for planning next year’s festive season so you can make adjustments.
• This means less stress, easier planning and a better sales period.

Surprise & delight your customers at your busiest time

• Ensuring your customers love their orders means they will come back in the new year.
• You can surprise your customers with small, thoughtful gifts such as Christmas-themed packaging, sweets, free samples, or hand-written thank-you notes.

Sell, sell, sell!

• The Christmas period is the time to show up and sell to make the most of the golden quarter sales!
• So go and sell, sell, sell!

By focusing on these key areas in November and December, retail businesses can prepare for peak Christmas sales, build customer loyalty, and set the stage for a strong start to 2025.

Book a One-off Strategy Session

Need help with creating your retail strategy to prepare for peak Christmas sales?

Let me help you build a clear plan to create a successful and sustainable product business to make the most of your sales.

Book a one-off Strategy Session now to get personalised advice, honest feedback and action points to go away and implement so you know exactly what to do.

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