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Whether online or in-person, the end of the year is when shopping reaches its peak in America. That’s also when businesses compete at their heaviest. There are indeed affiliate marketing strategies you can utilize throughout the year. However, the holidays would require you to implement even more and detailed tactics that will help your company stand out from the others. You don’t want your advertising to blur into your competition’s, lest your potential consumers will ignore it. Here are seven tips to help your products and services get ahead during the holidays.
Additional Incentives
You might already give your affiliates incentives throughout the year. Giving them a few more can help encourage them to advertise for you during this busy time. Planning, family, shopping, and other factors might occupy your partners for the holidays. If you want to get their attention, you could offer them a bonus. There’s also the incentive for free stuff from you. You could even combine that with advertising by asking them to do unboxing videos.
Using the Term “Best” for SEO
Consumers are looking to purchase top-rated products, so they put the word “best” before the type of item they want. Some examples include the “best phones,” “best cameras,” “best makeup,” and more. According to Google analytics, this word’s popularity can also depend on whether consumers are searching on their laptops or mobile phones. Be sure to ask your affiliates to use this word when writing about your products in their articles. They could create a blog titled “The Best Gadgets of 2020” and mention one of your technological devices, for instance. Don’t forget to remind them that your top products don’t necessarily mean the most expensive, lest their target audience is individuals buying on a budget.
A Shift in Tone
Changing your company’s theme to match the holidays can be appealing. However, it’s not enough to separate yourself from your competition. Having your affiliates create content that gives off a jolly mood will allow the audience to feel the holidays rather than just see it. That might be a shift in tone that could be jarring for your potential customers, but that doesn’t make it a bad idea. Such content could stand out more. You could ask your affiliates to tell their audience why one of your products makes for an unforgettable gift.
Look for Trends
Sometimes you’ll find patterns in the market that are consistent each year or unique to this holiday season. One example is e-commerce. More people might make more purchases this year online for your type of product. This knowledge can help you determine how much to invest in marketing for your website and physical locations. Finding and identifying trends can be tricky, though. You’ll have to utilize as many tools as possible to discover them, like social networking and magazines.
Affiliate Metrics
Determining trends among your partners is not as difficult. Metrics can reveal to you which audience members of an affiliate buying your product more, who’s clicking on the links the most, and which of those content makers are more effective in general. Use this information to strengthen the tactics that do work. If you have a partner with an audience that buys more products of yours than the others, then have them advertise more for you during the holidays. You could also use the metrics to reduce any unnecessary strategies that don’t work. That will help you save money and resources that could go to the more effective approaches.
Trust Your Affiliates
The fact that your partners make user-generated content saves you a lot of time and money. As such, let your affiliates be as creative as they want to. Don’t tell them how to make their content beyond what you want them to say about your products. Each of them will have a unique way of advertising for you. You must keep in mind that they, too, are trying to set themselves apart from other creators. Affiliate marketing companies allow you to choose different partners if you’re uncomfortable with the way someone is advertising your business.
A Heads-Up on Sales
Remember to tell your publishers about upcoming discounts long before they happen. Sending them an email one day prior would be too soon, as they might not see your message until the day of the sale. You must also consider how long it will take for them to produce their content. A blog might not take as long, but some people create videos with a production time that could take somewhere between one week to one month. An affiliate management program can help you keep track of these vital details. The best times to let your partners know would be before Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, or any other time before any of your end-of-the-year sales.
Even though the holidays can be competitive, it’s one of the best times to gain new consumers. The right affiliate marketing can help you get ahead of other businesses. You can use the tactics you’ve been utilizing if they work well for you, but the economy and buyers are different at this time of year. That’s all the more reason to change or add to your strategies. Doing so might allow you to discover a new method that you can use every year. Just remember to be honest in your advertising and give your affiliates space to create.