The Digital Product Seller’s Guide to Impactful Holiday Marketing
Author: Chantell Collins | Editor: Cassie Bailey
Wondering if holiday marketing is worth the investment for your digital products and online courses? Absolutely!
In this guide, we’ll share why Q4 matters for digital product sellers, demystify the holiday shopper, offer ideas on crafting inspiring holiday offers, and outline how to choose holidays that resonate with your audience.
Plus, we’ll explore why Pinterest is a trusted platform for promoting digital products and how to create a full-funnel holiday marketing strategy using an Inspired Pinterest Funnel.
With eight years of experience in searchable content marketing and Positive Pinterest Ads, I’ve seen online businesses achieve remarkable success through both organic and paid holiday marketing strategies.
And since the last quarter of the year is a season of transformation, a time when your audience is eager to invest in personal growth, relationships, and financial well-being, it’s the perfect time to review your holiday advertising ideas.
Your digital products or programs could be the catalyst for that change.
Set yourself up for a successful Q4 with our guide to impactful holiday marketing for digital product sellers.
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Why Q4 matters for digital product sellers
You might believe the holiday season is an exclusive playground of big retail brands, but that’s a misconception. Your digital products and programs offer compelling selling points, such as the gift of transformation and skill-building without shipping costs or delays.
According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), holiday sales during November and December have consistently risen in recent years. In 2020, holiday sales in the United States grew by 8.3% to $789.4 billion. Online and other non-store sales, which are included in the total, increased by 23.9% to $209 billion.
But what about 2023? The NRF reported that core retail sales rose 3.8% year over year in July, suggesting that consumers are still willing to spend, albeit more cautiously. This is an opportunity to position your digital products to appeal to conscious, values-based customers.
Understand holiday shoppers who buy digital products
Your audience is unique. They’re not just looking for another gadget; they want something more meaningful.
Here are a few reasons why people purchase digital products for the holidays:
- Instant delivery makes you a hero to last-minute shoppers.
- Digital products offer a meaningful, clutter-free gift option.
- The sustainability aspect appeals to eco-conscious consumers.
- The convenience of sending gifts overseas makes digital products a go-to choice for international families and friends.
- Your courses or eBooks can be the driving force behind someone’s New Year’s intentions.
Craft your inspiring holiday offers
Your digital products can be the high performers of the holiday season. With the New Year around the corner, many people are seeking ways to fulfill their personal and professional growth goals.
To make sure that you show up when your potential customers are searching for possibilities, you’ll need to strategize how you position your offers.
PRIORITIZE AND BUNDLE
- Prioritize your bestsellers: Use data analytics to identify your most profitable digital products. Highlight these on your landing pages and social media bios.
- Create holiday bundles: Package related digital products and courses together at a special rate. This adds value to your customer’s purchase and increases your revenue so it’s a win-win.
FLEXIBLE PAYMENT AND SPECIAL OFFERS
- Limited-time discounts: Provide genuine, time-sensitive discounts or coupon codes to new and returning customers in celebration of the holiday season.
- Gift cards and custom offers: Personalize your gift cards with holiday themes to make them the perfect gift.
- Flexible payment options: Offer payment installments to make your courses more accessible, allowing customers to invest in their growth and pay in more manageable chunks.
By crafting themed, values-based offers, you’re not just selling digital products—you’re providing the tools for meaningful change. So this holiday season, go beyond the standard practices and create holiday offers that inspire action.
Plan seasonal content 90 days in advance
We recommend planning creative content at least 90 days in advance. This lead time allows for your content to be indexed by search engines like Google and Pinterest.
When you examine the search term ‘holiday gifts’, both Google Trends and Pinterest Trends show a build-up in searches starting from early October.
By starting your holiday content marketing early, you have the opportunity to connect with potential customers while they’re still in the planning stage and open to new ideas.
Decide when to promote your offers
Choose your holidays wisely. While major holidays like Christmas are obvious choices, don’t underestimate the power of events like ‘Friendsgiving’ or long-lasting trends like ‘engagement season.’
Life is a blend of milestones and everyday wins, and your brand can inspire customers to celebrate both. For a fun list of out-of-the-box holidays and events, download our Clever Content Calendar, which includes dates for Q4, 2023.
If you’re in the B2B sector, consider focusing on Cyber Week, office holiday parties, and the New Year. However, remember that participating in Black Friday is a choice. Always consider what aligns with your brand values.
IS BLACK FRIDAY RIGHT FOR YOUR BRAND?
When it comes to creating holiday marketing plans, Black Friday often dominates the discussion. Taking place on the last Friday of November, this date marks the official start of holiday shopping and generates significant worldwide revenue.
However, it’s crucial to note that while digital products may not contribute to landfill waste, they aren’t entirely without environmental impact. The energy required to host, download, and use digital products does have a carbon footprint.
Moreover, even if your digital products are more eco-friendly, your values-based customers may still have reservations about the consumerism associated with Black Friday. Align your sales and promotions with your brand values.
Here are six alternatives to Black Friday for digital product sellers:
- Green Friday on 24 November: Encourage users to either shop from sustainable brands they believe in or abstain from shopping altogether with an anti-Black Friday campaign.
- Small Business Saturday on 25 November: Celebrate the impact of small businesses and encourage community support. If you’re in the US, consider offering special deals to attract locals.
- Green Monday on 27 November: This Chinese shopping holiday has become one of the biggest online shopping days of the year in North America, just behind Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
- Giving Tuesday on 28 November: Instead of running a sale, consider donating a portion of all sales made during this period to a charity that aligns with your brand’s values.
- Customer-loyalty bonus: Offer a free bonus to your existing customer base during the Black Friday or Cyber Monday season. This can enrich your relationship and encourage brand loyalty.
- Branded month-long offer: Create your own Q4 offer with a fun, branded name. Extend the promotional period with special deals, exclusive content, and value-driven initiatives that resonate with your brand and audience.
By considering these alternatives, you can make choices that align with both your brand’s values and the expectations of your customer base.
Plan holiday marketing content on Pinterest
Planning your holiday content on Pinterest is a strategic move that can lead to impressive results. Pinterest outperforms other platforms when it comes to spending during the festive season.
Users on Pinterest are often referred to as ‘super shoppers’ because they spend more, buy for more recipients, and shop across more categories.
Given that 60% of festive shoppers on Pinterest discover new brands during the season (source: Pinterest), this platform offers a golden opportunity for digital product sellers to reach a new audience.
By understanding the specific behaviors of Pinterest users, you can craft a more effective and impactful holiday content marketing strategy.
- Start by pulling up your Google and Pinterest analytics for the past 12 months.
- Look for dips and spikes in traffic and conversions, such as sign-ups and sales, to identify peak months.
- Find those peak dates for the next 90 days in your Clever Content Calendar.
- Choose holidays around the peak dates that are relevant to your ideal customer and aligned with your brand values.
- Use the Pinterest search bar, Pinterest Predicts, Pinterest Trends, and Google Trends to find keywords for each content idea.
📢 When creating graphics for Pinterest, avoid using the year so your content remains timeless. It could appear in Pinterest search results for years to come.
Build a full-funnel strategy throughout the season
Understanding the customer journey is essential for any effective marketing strategy, and a ‘marketing funnel’ provides a useful framework.
Here’s an overview of a traditional marketing funnel:
- Top-of-funnel: At this stage, potential customers may not even know your brand exists, or that they have a problem you can solve. This is your largest audience and the widest part of the funnel.
- Middle-of-funnel: As they move down the funnel into the consideration stage, they recognize they have a problem, but they’re not yet sold on a solution.
- Bottom-of-funnel: Finally, they know their problem and are deciding on whether to buy your offer. This is the smallest yet most targeted segment of the funnel.
On Pinterest, you can see the marketing funnel in action based on the unique holiday shopping behavior of Pinners:
- Discovery (i.e. top-of-funnel): Pinners start planning for the festive season as early as June, open to new ideas but are not yet ready to commit.
- Decision (i.e. middle-of-funnel): By September, they’re in decision-making mode, narrowing down their options and considering specific purchases.
- Do (i.e. bottom-of-funnel): This behavior continues through the end of the year, capturing both early planners and last-minute shoppers.
Given that, up to 66% of monthly Pinners say Pinterest helps them find inspiration for gifts (source: Pinterest), the platform offers a rich opportunity to engage with your audience at every funnel stage.
See the Inspired Pinterest Funnel for content ideas, Pinterest formats, and Pinterest features for every stage of your full-funnel holiday marketing strategy.
Inspired Pinterest Funnel Planner for Organic Growth & Sales
Believe that a full-funnel marketing strategy is only possible with paid ads? Think again! The Inspired Pinterest Funnel Planner is your gateway to organically reaching and resonating with your audience at every stage of their journey. Craft a powerful Pinterest strategy from scratch in just 90 minutes.
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About Chantell Collins
Chantell Collins is a veggie-lover, proud night owl, and Founder of Pin Advertising dedicated to helping online brands #ScaleWithIntegrity on Pinterest.
She has 8+ years of specialized expertise in searchable content marketing and Positive Pinterest Ads, having been featured in media like MailerLite and Skyscanner.
Is Pinterest the right place for your online business? Book a free evaluation and find out.
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