It's 85 degrees without a cloud in the sky. Where are you most likely to find yourself? Outside soaking up the sun with a nice fresh lemonade in hand or your fingers glued to your keyboard inside your living room? I'm going to go with the first option -- which seems to be the scenario of choice during the beautiful summer months. While this may be a joyous time of the year for many, online retailers may not exactly share the same excitement. According to Internet Retailer sales tend to decrease by nearly 30 percent from December during July along with a 5 percent decrease on the average annual order value during the month of August. A few simple steps can help draw a few rays of sunshine your way:
1. Get those Newsletters Out: While people may not be browsing online as often, one thing you can guarantee is that they are checking their email. Depending on how often your company sends newsletters, it may be wise to send short monthly newsletters during the months of June through August. Don't make the mistake of sending out lengthy, content heavy messages. Take this opportunity to create a summer focused newsletter sharing information pertaining to discounts, new products and special promotions. Try to relate your product or service to "summer themes", if you are falling short of ideas take a look at suggestions for "Hot Summer Newsletter Topics" on Business 2 Community. Newsletters are an essential marketing tool in the world of online retail. It gives you the opportunity to connect with everyone in your database to keep them up to date and convert readers into customers.
2. Increase your Social Media Activity: No matter what time of the year it is, you can always count on heavy usage of social media, especially among millennials. Many love to post pictures of their summer adventures on various social media channels, Facebook and Instagram being the most popular for sharing imagery. Take advantage of this opportunity to constantly update your social media channels to engage with your customers whether you are showing off a new product or providing a discount code. Post several times a day to increase your chances of engagement. Remember, timing is everything. While this may slightly differ while the weather is at its finest, it's important to keep these peak times in mind. One day to focus your energy towards is Wednesday. During the summer Wednesday accounts for the highest number of sales throughout June to August. Retailers collect 16.1 percent of weekly revenue on this day.
3. Keep the Daily Deals Rolling: Who doesn't love a good deal? Keep your visitors coming back by providing deals on a daily basis. If you are looking to add some excitement add a contest or flash sales to enhance your chances of customer engagement. Spreading the word about your offers has become a hundred times easier with social media. Think about splashing some summer colors and themes on your homepage and inner pages. Summer graphics get people engaged and excited. One of the top sales tactics that work really great during the summer months are to feature deals on your most popular items/service for a limited time. Provide a countdown on your webpage and social media channels as a reminder. Stay ahead of your competitors by taking a few minutes out of each day to scout the deals they are offering. This is one of the best ways to determine how you should position your offers. Keep a close eye on customer reviews and questions, while this may seem like second nature to many, during the summer months some tend to slack and loose drive. The more you engage with your customers the higher the chances are of increasing your sales no matter what time of the year it is!
Summer may not be the most lucrative time of the year but it doesn't have to be your down spiral either. Take some time now to come up with fun creative ideas that will flourish into sales. Create a weekly calendar with the type of content and offers you wish to post. This will not only help you from an organizational standpoint but will save a significant amount of time on a daily basis. Remember to let that positive warm summer time vibe shine through in your content. Let the summer sales begin!