SPONSORED BY BUSINESS WOMEN’S NETWORK (BWN) OF HOWARD COUNTY
It feels a bit early to talk about holiday shopping right now but the truth is, the 2020 holiday season will not be business as usual; and your social media marketing should reflect that. With the economic effects of the pandemic shutdowns, the holidays will look quite different from the past. More folks will be staying home, which means that fewer people will be entertaining, traveling, and dining out. Online sales have already increased 55% year over year in July, as more families are shopping from the safety of their homes. Another expectation: holiday shoppers will focus on supporting local and small businesses to help them survive COVID restrictions.
Is YOUR business’ social media ready for the 2020 holiday shopping season? Are you taking advantage of all the different features on each platform that will support your holiday marketing? Here are a few business features that you might want to explore further.
Facebook Shops
You can now efficiently sell items and checkout directly on Facebook and Instagram via Shopify. Set up your Shop so that folks will get redirected to the e-commerce section of your website to make a purchase. You’ll need to set up a Commerce Manager account and connect your website to your Facebook Shop. Learn more here.
Don’t have a Facebook Shop? Make sure your Call to Action (CTA) button links your followers to the best method of contacting you. Set up automated messages and other actions in Messenger so you don’t miss a lead.
Shoppable Instagram Posts
Shoppers can now buy directly from your feed posts or Stories when you connect your Shopify website to your Instagram account. Add product stickers and tag products in your posts to have your products appear in the Shopping tab in Explore. You can also set up a View Shop button in your bio to encourage traffic to your website. Get started here.
Don’t have an online shop? Be sure your bio reflects your services and your brand voice, appeals to your ideal customer, and sends them to your website. You only have 150 characters in your bio, so choose your words strategically. Use keywords that will make you more findable in Search to the right clients.
Video
Video content performs extremely well on virtually all social media platforms. Period.
Videos capture the eye and stop the “thumb scroll” on your feed. They’re also favored on the Facebook and Instagram algorithms, so they increase your visibility. There are so many video format options available now that you’d be remiss to not try to incorporate videos into your social media strategy this holiday season.
You don’t need a big video marketing budget and expensive equipment. Try some of these tips to get a great quality video from your smartphone.
Social Media Ads
You should also consider social media advertising as a highly cost-effective way of reaching a hyper-targeted audience. If done correctly, social media ads can help drive leads, increase brand awareness, generate web traffic, and even boost revenue. 70% of advertisers say they’ve generated leads with social media ads. Get all the details here.
This list is just the beginning of how your social media marketing can support your holiday sales strategies. It takes time to pivot your current business trajectory into other efforts, so NOW is a great time to enact those plans and prepare for the new realities of holiday shopping in the COVID era.
Author: Faith Wachter, owner and founder of Faith Wachter Consulting, LLC. Providing social media solutions for small businesses, nonprofits, and individuals. www.faithwachter.com
email: [email protected]
