Christmas Sale in e-Commerce – How to Do It Right?

The Christmas season is a time of intense shopping and an enormous opportunity for online stores. It’s that moment of the year when the sales figures of many e-businesses (and not just them) break records. However, to achieve this, your Christmas sale in e-Commerce needs to be well-planned. How? You’ll read all about it in this article.

Christmas Sale on the Polish Internet (and Beyond!)

There’s no denying that December puts us in a shopping frenzy, and we buy almost everything—baking ingredients, Christmas decorations, and gifts from various categories. This is a critical period for all businesses operating in the B2C sector. However, Christmas shopping isn’t confined to December. Some prefer to stock up earlier to spread out the costs over time. This isn’t surprising, as the sums we spend during this period are significant.

According to a survey commissioned by the Polish Bank Association in 2023, the average Pole planned to spend 1,490 PLN on Christmas. This year’s figure will likely be even higher with prices continually rising. However, we’ll have to wait a bit longer for precise data.

There’s no doubt that Christmas is one of the biggest sales seasons and a highly lucrative yet challenging time for entrepreneurs. To ensure your e-Commerce business can carve out as big a slice of the holiday pie as possible, you must prepare your sale correctly. After all, you won’t be the only one—your competitors are also sure to organize their Christmas promotions. Therefore, you must do everything possible to make your offer more attractive and better executed during this period.

Develop a Christmas Sale Strategy

Every successful promotion starts with a plan. You can discount your products however you like or give your customers a universal discount code. But will that pay off? Could it result in losses because your discounts mean you’re selling “at a loss”? Or will it fail to drive significant sales because of the lack of an effective marketing campaign?

Many online stores make such mistakes. They discount their products simply because their competitors do, without any plan to ensure their campaign is profitable. Without proper analysis and a solid concept, it’s challenging to achieve a satisfying return on investment for the efforts you’ll inevitably make to organize a sale in your e-store.

So, what can you do to plan your holiday promotions effectively?

Analyze Your Past Activities

If you’ve been running your e-Commerce business for some time, you’ve likely organized sales campaigns before, possibly even Christmas ones. Review what you did last year, what results those efforts brought, and conclude that data.

If this is your first holiday promotion, don’t worry. The internet contains reports and case studies to help you design a sale tailored to your business. You can also (and this is highly recommended) ask others in your industry about what works best for them during this period.

Your Christmas sale will improve the more valuable knowledge you gather on the topic. And as a result… the more profit you’ll make.

Define the Goals of Your Holiday Campaign

It’s essential to know where you’re heading. A vague goal like “increase sales” won’t cut it here. For instance, what if your promotion results in a 1% increase in sales compared to the previous month? Would you consider that a success or not? Exactly…

Business goals should follow the SMART criteria—be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Instead of saying “increase sales,” set a goal: 1,000 orders within three weeks (the promotion’s duration). You can also include secondary goals, such as December revenue of 100,000 PLN, 30,000 PLN profit, 350 new customers, or a ROAS of 20%.

Set the Rules of the Game

Plan the duration of your holiday sale, the products to be discounted—all or just a select few—and the size of the discounts. Here’s a critical point: remember to calculate everything precisely.

If product X has a 50% margin, you can’t unthinkingly slash it by half and offer a 25% discount to your customers. That’s not how it works. When calculating the discount for a product, you must consider all other costs affecting your net profit, such as expenses for your Christmas marketing campaign, return costs, shipping, packaging, production, payment fees, and marketing agency fees. Contrary to popular belief, simply calculating ROAS isn’t enough. Only when you account for all costs related to the sale can you determine the profitability of your promotion.

Understand Margins: Levels I, II, and III

In financial terminology, there are three levels of margins:

• Gross Margin (Level I) = Revenue – Production Costs
• Operating Margin (Level II) = Revenue – Production Costs – Indirect Costs (e.g., distribution, advertising, logistics, warehousing)
• Net Margin (Level III) = Revenue – Production Costs – Indirect Costs – General Business Costs (e.g., office rent, IT equipment, management overhead)

When planning a Christmas sale, you should base your calculations at least on the Level II margin. Why? Because it’s the only way to determine the actual profitability of your sales.

This is critical. Only by calculating the profitability of your Christmas promotion can you be confident that your campaign will generate profit instead of losses.

Christmas Sale and Logistics

Large promotional campaigns always pose a significant challenge for an online store’s logistics and warehouse operations. Several key areas should be addressed before the sale begins to avoid chaos and disruption during the campaign.

What are these areas?

Stock Levels

This is one of the most critical factors to manage. Since you aim to sell more than usual during your Christmas promotion, you’ll need more products in your inventory than normal. Imagine what would happen if customers eagerly purchase your products at promotional prices, only for your stock to run out after just a few days. Trust us, they won’t wait for you to restock (which can be especially difficult during the holiday season). Instead, they’ll head straight to your competitors to complete their gift shopping, and you’ll lose a potential customer.

To avoid this, estimate how much stock you’ll need during your Christmas promotion and ensure you restock early.

Warehouse Throughput

Your warehouse has a daily shipping capacity determined mainly by how many orders your staff can process in a given period. With increased sales, your warehouse workers will face a heavier workload during the holiday season. Consider how you can support them. For instance, you might hire seasonal workers to assist with order fulfillment. You could also optimize your warehouse operations by relocating discounted products to more accessible areas.

However, remember that introducing new systems or automation requires proper timing—right before a significant promotional campaign is not ideal. Improve your warehouse throughput, but do so wisely. The last thing you want is for something to go wrong during the holiday rush.

Here’s a protip from Wojciech Nowak, Managing Partner at Sente S.A., who specializes in optimizing client warehouses:

Packaging

Stocking up on inventory is pretty straightforward—if you want to sell, you need products in your warehouse. However, the packaging issue is less evident yet just as crucial. To ship orders to your customers, you need something to pack them in. Whether it’s branded boxes, poly mailers, paper envelopes, or simply stretch wraps, you’ll need a sufficient supply of packaging materials in your warehouse during Christmas promotions.

The last thing you want is a situation where customers are buying in droves, warehouse workers are picking orders, and packers are left idle, staring at the ceiling because there’s nothing to package the orders with.

Customers don’t care why their order didn’t arrive on time. They’ll be furious if they don’t receive their products when expected. As you can imagine, this leads to numerous complaints and a flood of negative reviews online.

Ensure that your warehouse is well-stocked with packaging materials.

How to Prepare Your Online Store for the Holiday Season?

Christmas sale bring increased traffic to your store, which is excellent—provided everything goes according to plan and technology doesn’t play tricks on you. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. It’s essential to prepare in advance to avoid costly mistakes during your promotion.

How can you get your e-Commerce ready for the holiday rush?

Ensure Your Servers Can Handle the Traffic

Increased website traffic can be a significant challenge for your store’s servers. When servers can’t keep up, your platform might crash—like Mario encountering an enemy mushroom. Game over! Your e-Commerce site goes down, and your customers can’t shop so much for your carefully planned Christmas sale.

You can avoid this situation by preparing your platform for higher traffic. If necessary, purchase additional server space, switch from shared hosting to VPS, or upgrade to a hosting provider with better performance guarantees. During your holiday promotion, make sure to monitor your platform closely. The last thing you want is to wake up on a crisp winter morning only to discover that your store has been down for hours—or worse, days.

Test Everything Thoroughly

Technology has a habit of acting up when you least expect it. Before such a significant sales event, ensure your store is error-free. Start your “holiday cleaning” by testing your website. Go through the entire customer journey—check if your platform loads quickly, all website elements are displayed correctly, and payments are processed without issues. The more thoroughly you test your store before your Christmas promotion, the fewer problems you’ll face during it.

Prepare Your Customer Service Team

The holiday season means extra work not only for warehouse staff but also for your Customer Service team. During this time, support teams typically see a significant increase in inquiries. Unsurprisingly, everyone wants to find the perfect gifts for their loved ones. And since many people shop at the last minute, they often ask for product details to avoid making a poor gift choice.

Before launching your holiday sale, create a catalog of potential customer questions and answers. This will speed up response times and allow you to set up a dedicated FAQ section or page. Customers can find answers to common questions themselves, reducing the burden on your support team.

If you expect a high volume of inquiries, consider hiring seasonal staff to help your team manage the increased ticket load during this busy period.

By addressing these key areas, you’ll be better equipped to handle the challenges of the holiday season and ensure a smooth, successful shopping experience for your customers.

Christmas Sale in E-Commerce Store

The type of promotion you offer your customers for the holidays is entirely up to you. Here are some ideas to consider:

1. Storewide Discounts Up to X%
In this case, you must ensure that every product has some discount, with at least a few items marked down by the maximum percentage advertised. Otherwise, you risk being flagged by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) for unfair market practices, which could result in a financial penalty.

2. Promotions on Selected Products
This option is more straightforward. Since you’re informing customers that the sale applies only to specific products, they won’t expect discounts across your entire range. It’s also a safer choice because, as long as you comply with the Omnibus Directive and display the lowest price from the last 30 days on your site, UOKiK will have little ground for complaints.

3. Create Special Product Bundles
This type of promotion works particularly well for e-drugstores (and many other niches). By offering a better price for a bundle, you make it easy for your customers to assemble a gift without having to decide on each item individually or add them to the cart one by one. Plus, they save money in the process.

4. Offer Gift Wrapping Services
This type of holiday offering is more of an add-on but plays a significant role in customers’ purchasing decisions. Many people don’t have the time or the skills to wrap gifts neatly. Providing an additional service where orders are wrapped in festive paper or placed in holiday-themed boxes won’t bring in millions. Still, it will make gift preparation easier for your customers—something they’ll surely appreciate.

5. Add Gift Cards to Your Offer
Now’s a great time to start if you’re not already doing this. Gift cards are a fantastic option for those who aren’t sure what to buy as a present. You can offer:

• Physical gift cards delivered via courier,
• Printable gift cards,
• Digital gift cards emailed directly to the recipient.

You could also offer all three options to cater to different customer preferences.

These ideas can help you craft a successful and customer-friendly holiday promotion that boosts sales and builds goodwill.

Best Practices for Holiday Sales

Regardless of the type of promotion you offer during this season, there are a few fundamental rules to follow to increase the chances of success for your Christmas sale.

Be Fair

Don’t raise prices before your holiday promotion just to make the discounts appear larger. This is a terrible idea. Online consumers are becoming increasingly aware of such tactics and will avoid shopping at stores that engage in these practices—not just during the sale but afterward as well.

Additionally, this practice is illegal. The Omnibus Directive has introduced significant changes to how businesses must inform customers about discounts. Familiarize yourself with its requirements (if you haven’t already) and make the necessary adjustments. Avoid risking a UOKiK inspection, as the penalties imposed by this authority can be severe.

Deliver Orders on Time

In December, most purchases are time-sensitive and intended to arrive before Christmas. Whether it’s a gift for a child, an outfit for Christmas Eve dinner, or something else, time is of the essence. The problem is that customers often delay shopping until the last minute. If they place an order on December 23rd, it’s practically impossible for you to deliver it by the next day.

To manage expectations, include precise information in your online store about the latest date customers can place an order to receive it before Christmas. For example, add a message to product pages: “Order by December 20 to receive your product in time for Christmas.” This ensures customers know the deadline for timely delivery.

Add a Small Gift

It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant. Small extras like product samples, a festive cookie, or a Christmas card will suffice. While it might seem like an unnecessary expense, such gestures leave a positive impression, making customers feel appreciated. And they’ll remember these small acts of kindness when considering future purchases from your store.

Inform Customers About the Promotion’s End Date

Christmas sale in e-Commerce can last as long as you like. You can start right after Halloween and end on Christmas Eve or begin after Black Friday and run through the end of the year. However, the end date of your holiday sale isn’t always apparent. Let your customers know how long they have left to take advantage of your deals. Adding a countdown or clear messaging about the deadline shows consideration and encourages last-minute purchases, giving your sales a little extra boost.

Spread the Word About Your Christmas Sale

Nearly every online and offline store runs promotions during the Christmas season. This shouldn’t be surprising, as it’s the year’s busiest shopping season.

From the customer’s perspective, this is fantastic. Wherever they look, they’ll find discounted products. From the seller’s perspective, however, it’s more challenging. The more businesses running sales simultaneously, the harder it is for your promotion to stand out.

This is where effective marketing comes in. You can’t expect significant results if you don’t inform your potential customers about your sale. With many other companies shouting about their holiday offers, your promotion will struggle to gain traction without a well-executed marketing campaign.

Yes, you’ll need to invest in advertising during this period. Customers will shop at the store they’ve heard about, so plan a robust advertising campaign. Create engaging social media posts, allocate a larger budget for Google Ads, design festive ads for Facebook, and do everything possible to get the word out. The more people know about your holiday sale, the more traffic your store will generate—solid profits.

Take Care of Your Loyal Customers

You likely have a customer base that has already purchased from you—perhaps even multiple times. You might also regularly send them newsletters to encourage repeat purchases, which is excellent. During the holiday season, however, it’s worth going the extra mile to show appreciation for your loyal customers by preparing a special offer just for them. This will deepen their love for your brand, encourage them to buy from you more often, and even prompt some to recommend your store to their friends.

How Can You Reward Your Loyal Customers?

• Give them early access to your holiday sale ahead of other users.
• Offer an additional discount, such as $50 off every order.
• Include a special gift with their holiday purchases.

You don’t need to reward every customer who’s ever shopped with you. Focus on the most loyal ones, such as those who’ve purchased from you at least three times in the past six months.

To implement this effectively, you’ll need a well-segmented customer base. This shouldn’t be a problem, as most sales systems collect customer data. Segmenting this data is now easier than ever, thanks to the availability of AI tools.

Remember that you can only send promotional emails to customers who have consented to receive them. Before proceeding, make sure your store complies with GDPR regulations!

Help Your Customers Make Decisions

Many people struggle to choose the perfect gift for their loved ones. Step in to solve this problem and help them find the right present. How? Through content marketing!

• Write blog posts with titles like “The Best Christmas Gifts for Mom, Dad, or Your Partner.”
• Create rankings like “Top Christmas Gifts for 2024.”
• Produce video guides or host live Q&A sessions to offer personalized advice.
• Add labels to your products, such as “Perfect Gift for Her” or “Most Popular for Christmas.”

These tactics subtly guide your customers and relieve them of choosing the right gift for someone special.

Why Is This Worth Doing?

1. SEO Benefits: Blog posts and content like this perform well in search engines, and during the holiday season, retailers fiercely compete for the top spots on Google.
2. Customer Appreciation: People value such advice because it simplifies their lives. Linking specific products in your content eliminates the need for hours of research, which customers will especially appreciate during this busy time.

Add Buy Now, Pay Later Options

The Christmas season can be financially challenging. People spend on numerous gifts, decorations, and festive meals, straining their budgets. Many even take out loans to fund holiday shopping. Offering buy now, pay later options can ease this financial burden, allowing your customers to spread the costs over time—something they’ll surely thank you for.

Summary

Christmas is a tremendous sales opportunity for all e-Commerce businesses. However, your holiday sale must be top-notch, and your business must be well-prepared to capitalize on it. Without preparation, an attractive offer, and a robust advertising campaign, success is unlikely.

If you plan to launch Christmas promotions in December, start working on them as soon as possible—don’t leave it to the last minute. There’s a lot to organize before your sale goes live, and if you delay, you may run out of time, which could lead to your holiday campaign falling flat.

Don’t wait! This article has provided plenty of tips on preparing an outstanding holiday sale for your e-Commerce business. Now it’s time to take action 😉. Good luck!