Much like trends and styles change throughout the year, so do consumer shopping habits. As an Amazon seller, are you taking advantage of all the ways to boost seasonal and holiday sales?
In this blog, we’ll cover 5 simple ways to help you stand out on Amazon with small creative refreshes. And stick around to the end, we have extra insider tips that go beyond the design and copy.
Question: Should your business be making seasonal updates on Amazon?
The long answer: Know your product, know your target audience, and know your competition. If you’re in an industry affected by seasonal trends, the answer is yes.
While some sales are inherently seasonal (we’re looking at you, Christmas trees), others are greatly affected by the time of the year. For example, swimwear and pool equipment are more popular during the summer months, while all things pumpkin spice latte reign during autumn.
Even regular candy and chocolate sales fluctuate for holidays like Halloween, Christmas, and Easter (yes, all of the above).
Outside of the obviously seasonal items, lie the not-so-obvious products affected by the season. A few examples include moisturizing lotion during winter when skin gets extra dry or sunscreen during warmer spring and summer months when families spend more time outdoors.
Consumer needs change, and so does demand. Other unexpected seasonal inventory includes backpacks and school supplies towards the end of the summer, indoor exercise equipment in the winter, and sustainable alternatives around Earth Day.
A good way to make sure your creative aligns with seasonality is to make updates according to the holiday.
Here are 5 creative ways to refresh your creative content to boost Amazon sales during the holidays and changing seasons:
- Research Seasonal Trends and Keywords
- Identify popular products and keywords for the upcoming season or holiday using keyword research tools, Google Trends, and Amazon Best Sellers.
- Analyze historical sales data to understand past performance and anticipate future trends.
- Bonus tip: Don’t forget to look at competitors to see what they’re doing. You don’t want to miss out on sales opportunities.
2. Update Product Listings
- Based on your research, incorporate seasonal keywords into the front end of product listings to improve search visibility and attract relevant traffic.
- Make small tweaks to the product title, a bullet point, and the product description copy. Focus on highlighting seasonal features or benefits.
- Bonus tip: These copy changes can be as small as adding a keyword or 2 into the title, adjusting only 1 bullet point in the listing, and adding 1 new line into the product description. Remember, you’ll have to change the copy back once the season is over, so keep it simple.
3. Update Backend Keywords
- Based on your keyword research, update backend search terms with relevant seasonal keywords to improve organic discoverability.
- Include variations and synonyms of popular holiday or seasonal terms to capture a wider audience.
- Ensure backend keywords comply with Amazon’s guidelines and avoid keyword stuffing to maintain listing integrity.
- Bonus tip: Take advantage of relevant keywords and their increased search volume but remember to adjust these once the season is over. There’s a character limit count, so make it truly count.
4. Update Product Images
- Update a supporting image or two with seasonal variations or themes to grab shoppers’ attention.
- Include lifestyle images that showcase your product being used during the season to drive engagement or add a holiday-themed background where applicable.
- Ensure images comply with Amazon’s image guidelines.
- Bonus tip: Don’t go overboard. Capture the essence to make a connection, but maintain your brand’s authentic feel at every touchpoint.
5. Update the Storefront
- Duplicate the storefront and add some relatable and timely fun with light design updates to reflect the time of the year.
- Craft seasonal messaging with a headline and holiday-specific language to resonate with shoppers and encourage conversions. You don’t have to tweak too much content in the storefront, but you should adjust the look and feel to reflect a particular season or holiday.
- From an imagery standpoint, this is the most important place to update and where the creative juices can flow. Adjusting your storefront’s aesthetic to reflect the time of year won’t affect anything negatively from an algorithm standpoint, so have some fun.
- Bonus tip: You can reuse the storefront design or incorporate certain elements for the following year.
Remember: Timing is Key
Seasonal and holiday refreshes take time, so plan months in advance to strategize and implement your ideas. Most people don’t think about holidays until they come around, but for Amazon sellers, that approach is all wrong. It’s too late because the event has already come and gone!
The good news? There are more holidays and season changes right around the corner, so now is the perfect time to start planning. By implementing the above steps (one or all of the above), sellers can optimize their Amazon presence and capitalize on seasonal opportunities effectively.
You can potentially improve your Amazon sales in other ways outside of just creative copy or design:
A/B Testing
- Create A/B tests to identify which seasonal variations resonate best with your target audience.
- Use these insights to guide future content refreshes, stay competitive, and capitalize on seasonal sales opportunities effectively.
Amazon Advertising
- Consider increased traffic and searches to create targeted advertising campaigns focused on relevant keywords and products to increase visibility.
- Update campaigns and budgets, if necessary, based on holiday trends and competition.
Holiday Promotions
- If appropriate, gain a competitive edge with holiday and seasonal promotions that attract attention and enhance overall visibility.
- Limited-time offers and seasonal promotions create a sense of urgency and excitement among customers, encouraging them to make purchases and capitalize on special deals.
Inventory Planning
- Anticipate seasonal demand and adjust inventory levels accordingly to avoid understocking or overstocking.
- Plan for restocking to meet ongoing demand and capitalize on sales opportunities throughout the season.
Post-Season Analysis
- Evaluate the performance of seasonal changes using Amazon’s sales reports and analytics to identify successes and areas for improvement.
- Use insights gained to inform future seasonal strategies and optimize performance for upcoming events.
The best part is that you can learn from this and be ready to follow a similar strategy for the following year. So get ahead by planning today.
Hinge Commerce: Your Amazon and eCommerce Partner
Your business is not one-size-fits-all. Your marketing strategy shouldn’t be either.
Know your market, know when you need to make content changes, and know how to make it happen. Don’t miss the opportunity to capitalize on seasonal trends and holidays due to a lack of strategic planning and execution. Failing to adapt product listings, imagery, messaging, and advertising for different seasons can result in missed sales opportunities and decreased visibility among competitors.
Hinge Commerce combines eCommerce expertise with proven strategies to drive growth on Amazon and beyond. Don’t just sit on the digital shelf. Stand out.
In addition to our creative services, we offer:
- eCommerce Management
- Retail Media + Advertising
- Digital Marketing
- Digital Shelf Services
- Fulfillment Services
Contact us to set up a free consultation.