Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Holiday PR Trends

Tis the season!  The article "5 Holiday PR Trends You'll See This Year" by Mickie Kennedy informs us about what kind of PR trends we should expect this season from companies and organizations.

What's the most common you ask? Going online.  Most people hate the long lines, disheveled stores, cramped parking lots, and probably the people hounding you to buy something as soon as you step foot into their loud and heavily fragranced store.  Not to mention the people ready to kill you to get the hot-button item at Wal-Mart.
The crazies definitely come out during the holidays

It's not totally shocking since they've created a black friday for cyber shopping, but the numbers will probably be increased since most people will buy some of their holiday gifts online.

Don't you just love getting e-mails from your favorite stores telling you that you can get free shipping with a certain coupon code? Well, this season it will be very odd if any online retailer isn't offering free shipping with purchases.  Technically, from a marketing standpoint, it would be REALLY stupid of them not to because it will dramatically increase sales, even if the customers have to spend a certain amount to get it.  People, even me, are guilty of purchasing that extra little trinket to get the no-added cost at the end of the transaction.

Gift cards are the next trend.  People may think they're a cop-out gift for men who do last minute shopping, but retailers have learned that gift cards tend to lure customers back to their stores even after the cards are empty.  When I worked at Barnes and Noble, gift cards were our main revenue earners.  During the holiday season, we'd easily rake in a couple hundred thousand dollars in gift cards, and yes, it was from men, and yes it was the day before Christmas Eve. (Sorry!)

Even though the economy hasn't been really great lately, a surprising trend is toys!

Now that's what I call a Nerf Gun!
Toys will be placed at the store fronts and near registers in stores with the hopes of you picking up one for your kids or maybe even for yourself.  People really do try to make it "the best holidays ever!" in their kids' minds, so having the toys within eyesight will probably make us buy them.

Last but not least, and once again beating the dead horse, SOCIAL MEDIA! Yes, everyone is talking about social media, but it really is not a passing trend.  Retailers and companies want direct contact with their customers, and what is a better way than via Facebook or Twitter?  If you follow any companies, expect an influx of posts related to sales and promotions.  I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'.

1 comment:

  1. Alyssa, you have excellent blog posts! I especially liked your post on holiday shopping. My wife and I are planning on buying many of our gifts through Amazon. Not so much to avoid the crowds, but more because of the convenience. The prices are usually right, too. Keep up the great blogging!

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