“He knows if you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake!” Coots and Gillespie were of course talking about Santa Claus when they wrote this lyric, but the same rule can be applied to your customers too.
There’s a lot of competition out there when it comes to getting noticed at Christmas, but the good news is that you don’t have to have a budget of John Lewis proportions to get your share of voice.
Experian Hitwise stats showed that Christmas 2012 was the busiest in history for online retailers in the UK, with consumers making over 80 million web visits on Christmas Eve and over 100 million on Christmas Day! Typically, we see a huge peak in online traffic to dating sites over this period too.
With all that extra traffic heading to your site, it pays to offer potential members something special when it comes to your social media campaigns. So what can you do?
Add a little sparkle.
Whether it’s your homepage or a social page, welcome your customers with open Christmas arms. Don’t let them arrive at the same page they see all year, let them know you want them to feel special this holiday season. Show them you’re willing to go the extra mile to build a connection.
Engage.
When it comes to social media platforms, there are still those who are afraid to engage with online dating services publically. This is the one time of year when those boundaries come down. You can extract great, actionable feedback from your customers by talking to them about dating at Christmas. This can then can be used in blog posts and for specific campaign targeting in the future.
Launch a competition.
There’s a reason every brand gives away prizes at Christmas time… it works! What’s more, it’s a cheap and effective marketing tool. You don’t have to give away the world – a simple ‘Like’ and ‘Share’ Facebook competition to win one Christmas Hamper worth £100 can bring you hundreds of new fans, brand recognition and a fantastic boost in traffic to your site if you include a link to a custom landing page.
Tell a story.
This is the most effective type of Christmas campaign. Take a look at what the big brands are doing – from John Lewis, to Marks & Spencer, to Match, to eHarmony, etc. They’re all telling stories that people want to talk about. Find the story that’s right for your brand and you’ll be in for a very profitable Christmas indeed.
Whatever you do this Christmas, don’t be invisible. Your customers will be within your reach more than ever before so take advantage of this opportunity to build a relationship with them!
If you have any questions about how to grow your social campaigns, get in touch with the Partner team.
Jenna Keating, Content & Marketing Executive, WhiteLabelDating.com Commercial team