4 ways to engage with consumers this Christmas season

1. Offer excellent customer service

From delivery dates, to stock availability and general product information, customers are sure to have plenty of questions when shopping over the Christmas period. Ensure that you have knowledgeable staff walking the floor in bricks-and-mortar stores, and have extra staff available to answer online queries by email, phone and social media. 

Martin Newman, UK-based board member and consumer insights expert suggests managing the busy period by providing tools that allow store staff to respond to customer queries in their downtime. This is a good way of keeping on top of queries and engage on a more human level with customers.

2. Send personalised emails

A great way of keeping your most loyal customers in the loop is with personalised emails. Use this channel to communicate new product launches, delivery dates, special Christmas shopping events and discounts and inspire them with gift guides. You can also use this as an opportunity to ask for feedback with the offer of a personal discount in exchange for filling out a questionnaire or survey. What do they like about your product offering, what do they want more of and how is your overall shopping experience?

3. Encourage excitement with polls and competitions 

Encourage customers to get excited for Christmas by running fun polls on Facebook and Instagram stories. You can ask users to vote between products, or on topics unrelated to sales such as the best ever Christmas movie or favourite festive chocolate. Competitions are another great way of helping more people discover your brand. Offer the chance to win store credit, a desirable item or hamper or experience and consider collaborating with a micro influencer to help gain engagement.

4. Offer plenty of options at checkout

Research shows that in March 2020, 88.05% of online shopping orders were abandoned. This can be for a number of reasons, but slow or complicated checkout procedures and unexpected shipping costs are two of the most common reasons reported by Baarilliance this year. 

Retailers can reduce the amount of abandoned baskets by communicating as much information as possible before checkout - from delivery times, shipping costs and options to pay. Click and collect, gift wrapping and quick home delivery are all good incentives for customers to complete a purchase, as well as Buy Now Pay Later options such as Clearpay that offer flexible payment options.