If you think a seasonal gifting strategy is a final push to increase Christmas sales, you’re missing out on year-round opportunities that will boost your profits and increase brand visibility.
Calendar events like Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Halloween and New Year are all prime motivators for extra spending and should be scheduled into your marketing plan well in advance.
With a wheelhouse that includes an extensive range of gifting merchandise, we consider ourselves experts on the topic, so read on to learn more about how to make the most of key dates in your diary.
What consumers spent on gifting in 2024
Think it’s a waste of time? Well, with a gifting culture that has boomed since the Victorian era, here are some UK-based figures from last year that will change your mind.
Approximate spends in 2024:
- Valentine’s Day: £2.1 billion
- Mother’s Day: £1.4 billion
- Easter (chocolates and alcohol): £1.3 billion
- Halloween: £1 billion
- Christmas: £28.6 billion.
We're sure you’ll all agree, those numbers are nothing to sneeze at. So, if you want to rake it in during 2025, good planning is essential.
8 Steps to enhancing seasonal sales
Success in the retail world is all about reading your audience, perfecting your brand image and creating experiences that attract those all-important buy-ins. Here are eight things you can do to make sure you have every big date buttoned up.
1. Plot your calendar
Tracking and planning top marketing opportunities will ensure that you conceptualise each campaign well in advance, allowing you to make better profits year-round.
Aim to get your advertising underway at least a month before the event. Why? Because with stiff competition (especially in the food and drinks arena), tailgating other people’s strategies simply won’t cut it.
2. Do some research
Before you make any big decisions, take a look at the analytics from previous years. These will help you to figure out consumer patterns and gifting bestsellers, allowing you to home in on key objectives for the upcoming season.
And listen to your sales team. As the face of your business, they (should) have their fingers on the pulse in terms of shopper’s needs, popular product selections and fun merchandising concepts that will attract extra attention.
3. Exploit multi-media advertising channels
If you don’t have a budget for formal advertising, optimise your campaign with social media posts, emails and flyers.
With a high buy-in from the public, platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn pack a punch when it comes to increasing brand visibility. Get your messaging perfect and you’ll initiate user-generated content (UGC) as well as your own input.
Updating your website for each occasion with a seasonal landing page, relevant blogs, ecommerce options and a gift guide is also an excellent idea.
4. Pay attention to your in-store merchandising
From great window dressings that will attract passers-by to beautiful displays that spotlight your bestselling gifts, a well-designed shop is a surefire way to impact your success.
These quick conversions will do the trick without having to reshuffle your entire layout:
- Augment your countertops with food and wine parings, freshly baked goods and ready-to-go hampers.
- Use the ends of your aisles for must-sell items – they have the biggest footfall in any retail outlet.
- Make sure your key products are at eye level.
- Invest in modular furniture and use it for standalone displays year-round.
- Put promotional items in dump bins at your till points to encourage impulse buying.
5. Personalise your packaging
Personalisation is the key to enhancing brand visibility, building a following and creating memorable unboxing experiences that will have shoppers coming back for more.
Aside from regular food and drinks packaging, you can also put seasonal messaging on your ecommerce boxes, gifting accessories, hampers and fabric bags.
6. Commit to your deadline obligations
If you offer a next-day delivery service, make sure you commit to it. Consumers ordering online will want their seasonal gifting to reach recipients on time and no-shows will be remembered, losing brand loyalty.
To help you manage the last-minute rush, decide on a cut-off deadline for orders and stick to it. Especially if personalised branding is part of your offering.
7. Keep them coming back for more
Think ahead by popping a voucher for your next seasonal gifting campaign into customer’s shopping bags. Everyone loves a good deal, so it will keep them revisiting your store throughout the year.
8. Adapt as you go
Marketing isn’t an exact science, so monitor and assess your seasonal gifting campaigns and adapt them as you go.
You’ll find a lot of value in things like key performance indicators (KPIs), foot traffic, sales volumes, conversion rates and, of course, feedback from your customers, allowing you to make quick adjustments as you go.
Partner with us for all your gifting needs
With a massive range of wholesale food and drink gifting solutions to suit any budget, WBC will have your seasonal campaigns sorted in no time. Chat to us about sustainable options, personalisation opportunities and curating collections that will spotlight your brand.
