How are you preparing for this year’s busy Q4? Are your strategies sharpened, your goals clearly defined, your decisions informed by data intelligence?
With an unsettled economic picture coming into focus for consumers, it will be more important than ever to use every tool available to gain an advantage in what will likely be a highly competitive season.
Our recent webinar, Preparing for the festive season 2022: Smart Strategies to Implement Now, gives you a head start for this important season for e-commerce leaders with answers to the challenges you’re likely to face.
Get a sneak peek at our recommended deadline for confirming your plans, as well as tips for ensuring the best content across all of your digital channels.
Festive Season Challenge #1: Last-Minute Preparation
There’s a new normal for the traditional peak festive season: an October kickoff to consumer gift searching and buying. Shoppers are eager to get their lists checked off, which means creating a prep list of your own.
We recommend setting a deadline of October 15 to:
- Solidify your Q4 catalogue assortment
- Audit your data across all active marketplaces
- Optimise for A+ content to tell a brand and product story
- Review active listings and resolve errors
To meet your deadline, start gathering and optimising the priority assortment you hope to sell during the upcoming peak season. Review last year’s top and low performers, identify your existing and ideal inventory levels through Q4 and widen your net to a variety of marketplaces. Just be sure to activate any new marketplaces by October 1 to account for error resolution and inbound shipments if using fulfilment services.
Festive Season Challenge #2: Increased Economic Pressures
Inflation is at a record high, putting constraints on consumers’ wallets. But that hasn’t stopped them yet. Consumers have continued to spend despite rising costs, but they’re more selective than ever about where they buy. That means you need to outpace the competition with:
- Excellent customer service
- Positive reviews and ratings
- Helpful descriptions and data
- Faster shipping options
Experiencing your own constraints? Overcome supply chain challenges by making note of key Q4 inventory replenishment dates if using marketplace fulfilment services, or try variations and bundles as a second option to keep customers satisfied.
Festive Season Challenge #3: Not Meeting Your Goals
Despite your preparations, it’s still possible to miss your selling goals. But remember: even though the festive season may see the highest sales peaks, the majority of sales occur throughout the rest of the year. Don’t “go dark” after the decorations come down. Instead:
- Extend your seasonality with a more global approach to your catalogue assortment and promotions.
- Continue to provide excellent customer service, particularly in Q1 when holiday returns are high.
- Evaluate your top and lowest performers of the season to make better decisions for next year.
Need help evaluating your festive season performance? ChannelAdvisor Managed Services for Marketplaces offers expert guidance to help you execute and iterate your plans at scale.
Holiday Practice Run?
Amazon recently announced its new Autumn Prime Day, two Prime Day events in one year for the first time ever. The addition is most likely due to Amazon’s slowest quarterly revenue growth since 2001 this past April. Luckily for merchants, the day provides a chance to “practice” for the upcoming festive season.
To prepare, add deals to penetrate new segments or reach for Best Seller status. You can also ramp up ad spend and lower your return goals to maintain positioning. The Autumn Prime Day will most likely be in October, amplifying the “halo” effect of driving organic listing growth considering its proximity to the festive season.
Has your team started planning yet? Watch the full webinar, Preparing for the festive season 2022: Smart Strategies to Implement Now, for a deeper dive into planning and find out how to finish the year strong.
ChannelAdvisor also offers complimentary services like:
- Multichannel advertising analysis. Optimise for success and product exposures across multiple channels.
- Marketplace health check. Leverage all the tools and options available before you hit the busiest weeks.
- Channel expansion analysis. Find out what channels are a good match to add to your bottom line, based on your category.
Contact us today to take advantage of these free services for your business!
