Shubhomita Bose says, “Black Friday, traditionally the biggest day for retailers, is losing its sheen.That’s according to the latest forecast by in-store data analytics firm RetailNext. According to the report, Black Friday is neither the biggest nor the busiest day this holiday season.The Busiest and Biggest Shopping Day of 2016In terms of sales, Friday, December 23, is expected to be the biggest shopping day of 2016.Store traffic is expected to be highest on Super Sunday, December 17.“This year, with Christmas falling on a Sunday, most shoppers will want to cut short their shopping... [...]

Tracey Wallace says, “The holidays signal a change in consumer behavior. Buying increases near parallel with a little R&R and family time. This means more people are watching –– just like Santa does all year –– to see which ads strike their festive chord.Holiday marketing campaigns run by brands aren’t kept on any psychic naughty-or-nice list, but consumer memory might as well be just that. Get your holiday campaign just right, and consumers will begin to associate your brand with the start of the season.Others have done it –– both brands expected, with large marketing... [...]

Nikki Gilliland says, “With Thanksgiving just around the corner, many online retailers are preparing for one of the biggest days of the year – Black Friday.However, with increasing backlash over the ‘Black Friday creep’ – is it still all it’s cracked up to be?Here’s a closer look at the opportunity it presents, as well as how retailers can best capture consumer interest through organic search.What happened last year?Despite murmurings that consumers are becoming fed up of Black Friday madness – and some retailers like Rei even taking a stance against it – last year’s... [...]

Rob Wu says, “The air is beginning to cool. We’re decorating with pumpkins and gourds, spiders and witches. Fall is definitely in the air. And for organizations that rely on year-end fundraising to round out their budgets, it’s “go time.”According to the 2014 Digital Giving Index, over 30% of giving occurs at the end of the year, meaning that it’s absolutely necessary for organizations of every shape, size, and mission to schedule fundraising campaigns to capture those dollars. One way to amplify your year-end fundraising efforts is to run a #GivingTuesday campaign.Since #GivingTuesday... [...]

Matt McGee says, “Amazon is telling online retailers that are new to its Fulfilled By Amazon shipping service that they won’t be able to send their inventory to Amazon warehouses until December 19.One merchant affected by the new policy posted the text of Amazon’s notification in the seller forums:Hey everyone, I got my amazon account and I got all the items I had for sale up into their system, and I wanted to send in my first FBA shipment, and I get this message: “We are restricting shipments from new-to-FBA sellers to ensure we have the capacity necessary to receive and store inventory... [...]

Frances Donegan-Ryan says, “With the summer over, many companies have begun thinking about capturing consumer attention in the run-up to the holidays.With e-commerce sales during the 2015 holiday season having grown 13.3% year over year, this year is set to be a bumper holiday season for retailers, and they are busy kicking off campaigns even as we speak.If pay-per-click (PPC) advertising on search engines like Google and Bing is in your marketing plan, here are a few tips to help you get ahead (and stay ahead) of your competition this holiday season.1. Start putting your campaigns together... [...]

Susannah Morris says, “Pumpkin spice is reappearing on menus and fantasy football is now the hottest hallway topic – fall is finally here. With the change in the leaves comes the inevitable countdown to Cyber Monday for ecommerce marketers.In 2015, one out of every six dollars spent over the holiday season was spent online. To capture your share of that revenue, you need to plan early (and often). To help you get started, we’ve put together a three-part guide to help you succeed this holiday season. The first part, 1. Before the Season, kicks off the series by helping you reflect on... [...]

Ann Smarty says, “Ecommerce marketers are already starting to go through their Holiday marketing checklist — that is, if they’re smart. Because they know, as you should, it’s never too early to start planning.Holiday Marketing ChecklistAvoid Abandoned Shopping Carts by Using Mobile WalletsThe use of mobile wallets continues to grow exponentially. It’s got to be consumer-friendly to the nth degree to avoid massive checkout abandonment. Just look at the league third party payments are in:Apple Pay is coming to the mobile web by December.Amazon Payments is rolling out new third-party... [...]

Ben Davis says, “We’re getting to the part of the year where people start to moan about tinsel appearingalready in stores.Retail was ever this way – preparation is everything.Here are five search marketing tips for the holiday season, to get ahead of the game.1. Prepare landing pages early like Currys, and keep them year-roundMany retailers make mistakes with their seasonal landing pages, whether for Christmas, Hannukah or Black Friday.When we looked at UK Black Friday retailers in mid-November 2015, Littlewoods and Richer Sounds were making basic errors.Richer Sounds had... [...]

Saima Alibhai says, “What tactics can retailers use to make the most of seasonal shopping opportunities?Autumn/fall is now upon us. And although Christmas might seem a long way away, some shoppers are already stocking up with gifts for the festive season.According to some recent research from shopping channel QVC, 1.5m Londoners have already started their Christmas shopping.That’s a substantial pre-season opportunity, but you must act now to engage with early bird shoppers or risk missing out to the competition.The traditional Christmas shopping season has seen upheaval in recent years,... [...]