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 SEND CHARITY CHRISTMAS ECARDS

 

As Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” makes its first appearance of the year on the radio, marketers are in the final stretch of planning their holiday campaigns. This period is crucial for any business—closing the year on a positive note will set you up for success in the next one—so coming up with the perfect Christmas ads is paramount. No one wants to waste time on campaigns that won’t pay off, but ineffective ads will not be appreciated by your customers either, losing you massive amounts of money. 

Many pieces have to fall into place for a Christmas ad to deliver the desired result, and due to the massive competition nowadays, it’s easy to get overshadowed if your campaign does not manage to stand out. To make sure your Christmas ads this year don’t waste anyone’s time, here are 6 tips you should keep in mind.

Plan ahead

While a lot of people may oppose premature Christmas decorations, businesses have no choice in this matter. Making sure that you start planning well ahead of time so your projects are ready as soon as the Jack-o’-lanterns are put away is paramount. A lot of planning needs to go into a successful campaign, and it all begins with thorough research. 

You need to determine who you want to reach with your message and what kind of message will effectively resonate with that specific demographic. Not only does different demographics’ taste in ads vary, but their everyday habits also help you determine the most appropriate channels to tailor your ads to. With all this information in your hands, set S.M.A.R.T goals for your ad campaigns. You can also consider creating a test campaign. This is especially important if you don’t advertise year-round. 

Leverage social media

Especially for smaller businesses, social media sites are still going to be some of your most valuable platforms during the holiday season. Social media gives you exceptional opportunities to target just the right audience while not driving your business to bankruptcy. If you are not in a position to produce a full-fledged video advertisement, focusing on your demographics’ favorite pastime social media sites is thus a solid approach. 

Instagram is certainly a lucrative place to start. Make sure you study the current trends and make use of those features that are the most popular at the moment, such as Stories and Reels. Facebook ads are another great way to maximize your exposure. Don’t forget to update your profile images and banners in accordance with the holiday spirit so that traffic coming from your ads immediately knows about your holiday offers. 

Go traditional

While e-commerce is on the rise, traditional means of advertising are still very effective and should not be disregarded as the holidays are rolling closer. Whether you are selling in a brick-and-mortar store or online, leveraging the power of printed ads such as pull up banners is a great way to draw attention. 

Find the right niche magazine for your demographic, or make sure the highest possible number of people see the advertisement you have invested in heavily by renting a billboard. Christmas shopping and holiday discounts still draw large numbers of in-person shoppers to malls, so placing pull up banners in highly visible locations near your establishment is also a must.

Celebrate the holiday spirit

It’s not enough to display your ad at the right time, at the right place. Christmas ads are somewhat of a special category in which they truly need to strike the right chord in order to produce the desired result. If you are planning on producing a video ad, you need to keep in mind that there are several key parts to a successful Christmas ad. Instead of focusing on creativity, you need to focus on retelling a compelling story. Instead of trying to be smart, aim for evoking a warm feeling that will leave a smile on your viewers’ faces. 

Still, striking the right chord is all but easy, and there is a fine line between heartwarming and tacky. Stepping over this line may reach the opposite effect with your Christmas-loving customers. In each case, nevertheless, considering the target audience is the most important. For instance, while Aldi’s playful ad last year was loved by the masses, some regarded it as “stale” and even listed it as one of the worsts. Trying to venture into the territory of humour is also a risky move; however, your knowledge of your audience’s preference should tell you exactly whether they would appreciate that approach or not. 

Keep it on-brand

It should go without saying that each marketing step of yours should be harmonious with your brand identity, and your Christmas ad campaigns are no exception. When focusing on story and emotion, it’s easy to lose sight of your main goal, which is to raise your brand awareness. As brands are going out of their way to produce the most compelling Christmas ad of the year, thus, many fail to stay on brand

Unless the product of your efforts reflects your brand, it might not do much in terms of taking the viewers one step closer to converting. This does not mean that you should not try new things this holiday season but do so with caution.

Consider giving back

Finally, Christmas is the season of giving, so demonstrating your generosity and showing your customers that your brand celebrates the true spirit of the holidays might just be the sincerest campaign of them all. Consider partnering up with a charity that resonates with your brand and raising awareness of it while also raising awareness of your brand. 

Depending on the size of your business, your capacities may vary, but every business can find a way to give back. For instance, you advertise that you offer a percentage of your sales to a charity. Giving the opportunity to your customers to do a good deed through purchasing your products or using your services will evoke positive emotions in them which they will associate with your brand. Every party wins at the end.

 

The most hectic season for businesses is just around the corner, so be sure that your ad campaigns are ready to go out as soon as possible. Hopefully, the aforementioned tips will help you make the most of the holiday rush this year.

 

 

My name is Jacob Braun, a writer and a fan of most things online. I write about web design and development, digital and traditional marketing, small businesses, social media-related subjects and most things revolving around the entertainment industry. 

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