How to use social media to your advantage this Christmas

Christmas is almost here, which means everyone’s getting jolly and probably ducking off work for that last minute round of shopping. What does this mean for social media?

Many companies may consider that maintaining a social media campaign over the holiday season a waste of time as potential customers are “off”. However that’s not how we see it. After working through the advent calendar chocolate and huge portions of Christmas dinner people are more likely to relax on the sofa and be checking in on social media, far more so than on a work day.

This means more chances of people catching your posts and actually reading what you have to say. So why not take advantage of this Christmas pudding induced opportunity.

As a company we try to contact people through different social media platforms, during quiet periods we introduce ourselves, letting companies know who we are, what we do and what we can do to help their business succeed. This is because people are more likely to reply and not miss your messages as there won’t be a thousand others in their inbox!

So my six pieces of Christmas social media advice are:

1. Look at what your competitors and doing, look what posts have got them the most likes and engagement, it’s not copying, it’s research. A good example is Marks & Spencer. They created the #loveMrsClaus hashtag to accompany their Christmas advert to reinforce the emotional connection with their consumers.
2. Identify the hashtags you can use, both company as well as Christmas related. A combination of your own unique and popular hashtags will help to engage a wider audience. We used #ecceChristmas and #webdesign. These get us noticed but are also a bit more unique (it also turns the Christmas lights on at Ecce HQ).
3. Everyone loves a competition over the festive period and the chance to win something whilst the Christmas hangover takes its toll. Ask them to link to your website, share, comment or like your post for a chance to win. This will likely increase your following. Word of mouth is one of the best ways of advertising.
4. List & tips are always popular at this time of year. So blog your own “handy hints”. For example this could be based on your “New year party do’s and don’ts” or tips on your “Biggest style predictions for 2017!”. A interesting and entertaining read will engage and hopefully encourage people to share it further.
5. Emoji is the fastest growing language and what’s even better the new emoji’s updates have finally arrived. Use these as a way of helping to express what you want to say whilst adding a little fun to your post, a dancing salsa girl goes a long way. And who doesn’t love the poo emoji?
6. Use time sensitive vouchers. This can help to generate quick interest or orders. For example, Urban Outfitters released a voucher code for express delivery on their last delivery date just in time for Christmas.

So as it’s quiet around this festive holiday spend a little time on your social media and see how it pays off. Perhaps schedule some of your posts so as not to interrupt your enjoyment of “Morecombe & Wise Christmas Special”. See in 2017 with a social media bang!

If you would like any advice or looking to plan your 2017 social media campaign, please give me a call on 01959 525717 or email me at fiona@eccemedia.com

Finally #MerryChristmas & a very #HappyNewYear!