It seems like every year, the holidays creep closer and closer up the calendar. You may have even walked into a big box store recently to be greeted by a display of trees and lights—all before Halloween.

But whatever your thoughts on premature cheer, the early displays might have one upside. It’s a good reminder that you should already be planning your strategy for reaching your customers this holiday season.

Before the weight of anxiety settles upon you, let us say that this doesn’t have to be complicated—but you should do it. Q4 is a key time for many businesses, and a little foresight, combined with creative thinking and simple execution, can make a big difference for your bottom line. Here are five quick and easy ways you can reach customers this holiday season, whatever your strategy.

Social media

This tactic probably isn’t a surprise. People these days spend so much time scrolling on their phones, and social is a natural way to reach customers. But your efforts don’t have to stop with plenty of organic posts touting your product or end-of-year sale. Put on your thinking cap and come up with a creative campaign themed to the holidays. Dive into the season of giving with giveaways, partnered with favorite brands or influencers. Or, run a retargeting campaign so your customers see your product at every turn and can quickly check it off their gift list.

Email marketing

You (hopefully) use a robust email list all year long to reach your customers. But, at a busy time like the holidays, it doesn’t hurt to up the messaging and try to stand out. Plan a countdown campaign, with gift ideas every day leading up to Christmas, or launch a contest with eye-catching, lucrative prizes people actually want to win. And don’t forget to segment. Offer tiered discounts and perks to your best customers to drive serious sales and nurture those relationships.

Traditional PR

Don’t sleep on the power of true PR. Having your product included in a gift guide, whether it’s an influential trade publication or a popular website, can be a grand slam in terms of holiday sales as people are searching for ideas. Even sending samples to great influencers or bloggers in your space for a gift guide feature can help you both reach new audiences and bolster SEO, which can support the bottom line.

Holiday cards

You get them every year from family and friends and maybe send your own. Why not do the same for your business? Especially if you’re on the B2B side of things, a card from your team can add a personal touch and let clients and prospective clients alike know you’re thinking about them this holiday season. Like this idea? Now is the time to order.

Personalized gifts

When it comes to holiday marketing, it’s easy to think about customer acquisition. But don’t forget about some of your best customers—your current clients! For those involved in business to business industries, a personalized gift to some of your best contacts, or even some highly qualified leads, can help you stand out among the noise in a highly busy, highly competitive season. Whether it’s a gift basket, piece of marketing swag, a digital gift card (perfect in the time of COVID) or even a donation to charity in their name, a personalized gift is a high-touch show of customer service and can bolster your relationship.

With a little planning, the holiday season can be a huge opportunity for any business. But you shouldn’t let it stop there. While you’re at it, work to incorporate these tactics into a 2021 marketing plan, pinpointing key dates that make sense for your business—and keep the holiday cheer rolling throughout the new year.

Need some extra bandwidth to make it happen this year? Wellons Communications is your Orlando marketing agency, and we’re here to help. Give Will a call at (407) 462-2718 or shoot him an email at will@wellonscommunications.com.