End-of-year sales are, for many businesses, responsible for a majority of their revenue for the year. It’s also a time when marketers reap the rewards of a well-planned campaign for the seasonal rush.

What do customers think about their brand buying experiences during the holidays?

Right now, customers have the luxury of choice. When they feel like one company would serve their needs better, there isn’t much stopping them from leaving. A Forrester report found that from the 90,000 customers surveyed, 20% rated their brand experiences as “good.” The other 80% ranked their experiences as “OK,” “poor,” or “very poor.”

The path to brand loyalty is a lot rougher for businesses. Now brands have to work harder to attract and keep customers fully connected, engaged, and eager to buy.

Frustrated customers and abandoned carts
The Baymard Institute found that 69.57% of digital carts were abandoned, leading to e-commerce stores losing $18 billion in sales each year. Getting to the bottom of this indicates businesses need to understand why buyers left in the first place.

According to Forrester, one of the biggest causes stems from friction in the buying process. Not being able to easily find products and a slow checkout process are only some of the issues causing customers to hit the back button during the holiday season.

But what about branding problems?

When so many businesses seek to get the sale during the holiday season, inconsistent offers and messaging are a common frustration amongst many customers. And as studies have noted, consistent branding across all sales touchpoints is responsible for increasing revenue by up to 23%.

Delivering a better experience during the holidays

To mitigate these frustrations, companies have to ensure they’re following through on the promises made to customers. People are excited to buy online during the holidays but often feel rushed by the short window to purchase.

By plotting out their experience ahead of time, you can communicate the brand to customers to leave them feeling connected with the business across all of your platforms and on your site.

A few ways to deliver a positive buying experience for customers and turn them into long-term brand advocates include:

• – Using high-quality product images and videos
• – Incorporating visual merchandising and search on the site
• – Reviews and ratings
• – Clearly defined shipping and delivery information
• – Mobile storefronts
• – Up-to-date digital catalogs
• – Live inventory updates
• – On-call customer support

Clear communication that provides updates about inventory, service, and delivery of products during this busy time keeps shoppers informed. It takes the pressure off of an already hectic time of year.

Plus, it reinforces the relationship businesses want to have as they incentivize buyers to return again and again.

Think about how people start their search during the holiday season

A majority of people start their holiday shopping in November. More of these buyers are seeking out personalized experiences with brands, and it’s an opportunity to give them more of what they’re looking for.

It’s an opportunity for you to gain brand exposure and heighten the experience of your buyers since:

• – They appreciate getting emails from brands acknowledging a less than ideal in-store or online purchase.
• – Want the brands they buy from to keep them updated—especially during the busy holiday season.
• – Almost 50% of US buyers begin their search on Amazon. Businesses without Amazon stores have to work harder to bring customers in.

As you enter the planning stages of your next seasonal campaign, look for ways to build stronger connections with customers flocking to your store.

Conclusion

Many retailers attribute their success to seasonal sales, with almost 40% of online sales made in the final quarter. As you get ready for the end-of-year rush, it will be chaotic. Your customers don’t have time to wait for you to give them details about their purchase when they’re in the middle of buying.

Getting a head start on your marketing’s creative assets at least 3-6 months in advance will make it easier to meet their expectations. When people know what to expect, the entire buying and selling process goes more smoothly, leading to more sales.