The holidays are the perfect time to treat your loved ones and customers. For your e-commerce business, it's a can't-miss opportunity to level up and make your sales experience extra special.
In this blog post, we'll look at 5 creative ways to spice up your e-commerce holiday efforts. Let's get into it.
🎄 Heads up: I've included several real-life examples of English and German copy in this article for inspiration (perfect for your international online business).
1. 'Tis the season to be jolly … and save
Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year – great occasions for consumers to get a good deal. So why not offer an array of discount options? With the right on-site, ad, and social media copy, you're halfway there.
Let's dive into some examples:
Tiered discount to promote a minimum spend, e.g.:
English: Get 10% off if you spend over €100
German: 10 % Rabatt ab einem Bestellwert von 100 €
Flash sale to create a sense of urgency, e.g.:
English: Christmas sale: Find your ideal last-minute gifts!
German: Jetzt im Weihnachts-Sale die perfekten Last-Minute-Geschenke finden!
Discount code to match a seasonal theme, e.g.:
English: Use the discount code NEW at check-out for 15% off
German: Rabattcode NEU beim Check-out einlösen und 15 % sparen
→ Use holiday-themed codes like "SANTA" or "ELF" to spread extra cheer.
Image source: Tamanna Rumee on Unsplash
2. Eye candy
Treat your website more like a physical store around this time of year. Including a seasonal design theme in your online shop is a great way to create some holiday buzz.
The same logic applies to your social channels. An appealing, value-packed social media feed will grab your customers' attention.
Nothing says jolly like seasonal emojis and fun wordplay. Here's an example of some holiday copy I translated for the footwear and apparel brand allbirds:
English: Fa-la-la-la last call for holiday delivery
German: Kling, Glöckchen, klingelingeling: Letzter Aufruf für die Feiertagszustellung
→ The "Kling, Glöckchen, klingelingeling" is the title of a traditional German Christmas song. It also alludes to the "last call" bit from the original English copy, like a pub bell to inform guests that it's time to order the last round.
Image source: John Lewis
3. Give the gift that keeps on giving
Why not create a blog or video showcasing your products in use? This could be in the form of a gift guide, a 'how to wrap' video or even a Q&A session on Instagram stories or reels (or TikTok, if you're Gen Z). You could even have a dedicated "gift ideas" section on your website all year round.
🎁 Extra tip:
Providing gift ideas inspires (free!) user-generated content on social media. Get the ball rolling by suggesting a holiday hashtag, e.g. #GiftingWith[brand-name]!
When it comes to copy for your German customers, be careful with the word "gift". Why, you ask? Because "Gift" means "poison" in German. And you don't want to give people the wrong idea, right?
Here's an example of a gift-related e-commerce translation from my client Urban Outfitters:
English: You are gifted
German: Lass dich beschenken
Image source: Urban Outfitters
4. International holiday customs
When selling to an international audience, there are not only languages but cultural holiday concepts to be aware of. "Secret Santa" in the UK also exists in German-speaking countries, but it's called "Wichteln" (no Santa reference).
Image source: Living at Home
But some popular American or British holiday concepts aren't a thing in other countries, such as stocking fillers. Germans have their beloved advent calendar and "Nikolausstiefel" (St. Nicholas boots) which they place outside their door the night before 6 December. When they wake up the next day, the boots are filled with a chocolate Santa Claus and other little holiday treats.
Do some investigating to figure out which cultural concepts exist in your customers' countries. This will enable you to market to them by providing culturally applicable content in every language version of your online presence.
5. Let's get personal
The holidays are a great opportunity to let people get to know you and your brand better. You can do that by sharing stories of your employees or customers. Social media is the perfect format for this type of storytelling.
For instance, you could talk about your brand's
founding story and purpose (the so-called why)
struggles and successes throughout the year and
values, for example, by talking about charities you care about and work with.
Image source: Sabri Tuzcu on Unsplash
Ready for some holiday spark?
Your customers deserve something extra special for the holidays. With a themed website, fun holiday copy and valuable, personal content, you can do quite a lot to spice up your e-commerce efforts. This will help strengthen your connection with your audience – now and beyond the holiday season.
Wishing you happy holidays, online and off! 😊
I hope you found these tips useful. 🙌
But of course, you and your brand are unique!
That's why you deserve a unique approach to your marketing translation – for the holidays and year-round.
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