9 Thanksgiving Marketing Ideas for 2022 Blog
7 mins read
A few weeks after the trick-or-treat candies have been eaten and the Halloween decorations have been packed away, retailers, big and small, turn their attention to the next big holiday on the calendar: Thanksgiving. And in this article, we’re going to show you how you can do just that with different Thanksgiving marketing ideas and tips that can help you kickstart your game plan.
For online retailers, this can be a make-or-break time. After all, the whole Thanksgiving season is one of the busiest shopping times of the year. In fact, over 179 million Americans have been reported to shop during the five-day weekend in 2021. This means that if you want your online store to stand out and get noticed, you need to start planning your Thanksgiving marketing strategy now. Let’s begin!
What’s Thanksgiving All About?
Before we head into the Thanksgiving marketing ideas, it’s important that we first understand what the holiday is all about.
Thanksgiving is a national holiday in the United States that is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. It’s a day when family and friends get together to share a meal and give thanks for the year’s blessings.
Thanksgiving is a time for family, friends, and of course, food. This day also signals the start of the holiday shopping season, with Black Friday and Cyber Monday being the two biggest shopping days of the year.
Thanksgiving Marketing Ideas to Make Your eCommerce Store Stand Out
With all the other retailers and print-on-demand stores vying for attention during the Thanksgiving season, how can you make sure that your eCommerce store stands out?
Well, here are some marketing ideas for Thanksgiving you might want to consider for your online store:
- Launch Sentimental Interactive Posts
- Share Thanksgiving Stories in Your Newsletter
- Create Autumn-Themed IG Filters
- Launch a Thanksgiving IG Story Bingo
- Make an Autumn-themed Pinterest Board
- Post Thanksgiving Outfit Mood Boards
- Get Involved in Brand and Influencer Collabs
- Create Your Own Brand’s Thanksgiving FB and Twitter Hashtags
- Launch a Thanksgiving Landing Page
1. Launch Sentimental Interactive Posts
“What are you thankful for?”
Sometimes, asking your followers a question as simple as this can create a powerful connection. These types of posts help promote a sense of togetherness and community, which is what Thanksgiving is all about.
You can also use this opportunity to show your followers what your brand is thankful for. This is a great way to humanize your brand and connect with your audience on a more personal level.
For example, you can create an interactive post on Instagram where your followers can comment the things they’re grateful for. Or, you can encourage them to post their own Thanksgiving photos with a branded hashtag.
Not only will this help promote a sense of belonging and solidarity, but it will also give you valuable insights into what your followers are thinking about during this holiday season.
2. Share Thanksgiving Stories in Your Newsletter
If you want to make your Thanksgiving marketing efforts much more personal and sentimental, you can collect stories from your own team, customers, or even your friends and family, about what they’re thankful for this year.
Then, you can compile these stories into an email newsletter and send it out to your subscribers. This is a great way to show your appreciation for their support, as well as to remind them of what the holiday is really all about.
Plus, it’s a great opportunity to show off your brand’s culture and values. When your shoppers and subscribers see that your team is made up of real people who care about the things they’re grateful for, it can make them feel more connected to your brand.
To make sure you get enough entries, you can offer incentives like discounts or free shipping for people who submit their stories.
3. Create Autumn-Themed IG Filters
As we all know, Thanksgiving is an autumn holiday. So what better way to get into the Thanksgiving spirit than by creating some fun and festive Instagram filters?
You can design filters that feature autumn leaves, pumpkins, turkeys, or anything else that’s related to the season. This is a great way to engage with your followers and get them excited about the holiday. This will also let you drive more UGC (User-Generated Content) since people will be more likely to use your filters and share their photos if they’re enjoying them!
4. Launch a Thanksgiving IG Story Bingo
Another way to utilize IG Stories and generate more UGC is by launching a Thanksgiving bingo game.
For example, you can create a board with different “Thanksgiving things” like “Wore stretchy pants to dinner” or “Ordered pumpkin spice latte” and encourage your followers to cross them off as they go and share their own bingo cards on their IG Story.
Not only is this a fun and interactive way to engage with your followers, but it’s also a great way to get them talking about your brand. As people share their bingo cards, they’ll also be promoting your business to their followers!
5. Make an Autumn-themed Pinterest Board
If your business caters to the younger, fashion-savvy generations who are into those aesthetic-driven trends, then you’ll want to consider creating an Autumn-themed Pinterest board.
Let’s say you have a Thanksgiving collection of beanies, sweatshirts, and home decor. You can style your products with Fall-themed props like leaves and cinnamon sticks then take photos of them to post on your Pinterest board.
This is a great way to show off your products in a new and unique way while giving your potential shoppers an idea of how they can style your items for the Autumn season.
6. Post Thanksgiving Outfit Mood Boards
Similar to Pinterest boards, Instagram outfit mood boards are a great way to show off your products in a creative and stylish way.
You can put together different Thanksgiving-themed outfit mood boards featuring your clothes, accessories and other products. For example, you could style a cute Thanksgiving shirt with a plaid scarf, leggings, and boots. Then, post it on your IG feed or Stories and tag the products you used. You can also include it in scrapbook-style collages and highlight the different products available for purchase.
This is a great way to give your shoppers some outfit inspos while promoting your products at the same time!
7. Get Involved in Brand and Influencer Collabs
Thanksgiving is one of the best times to partner up with other brands and influencers for collaborative content. Not only does this give you the chance to reach a whole new audience from different segments, but it also helps you create high-quality content that’s relevant to your brand.
For example, if you sell kitchenware and home essentials, you can work with a popular food vlogger or chef who can use your custom aprons, cutting boards, and bakeware as they film their Thanksgiving recipe videos.
8. Create Your Own Brand’s Thanksgiving FB and Twitter Hashtags
Any business wants to be part of their customers’ conversations during the holidays. So take advantage of this by creating your own Thanksgiving-related hashtags that you can promote on your social media channels.
This is a great way to increase brand awareness and expand your share of voice (SOV) on social media. Not to mention, it also helps you track any UGC (User-Generated Content) that’s being shared about your brand.
9. Launch a Thanksgiving Landing Page
If you’ve got a Thanksgiving collection or a set of bundles you’re promoting exclusively for the holiday, then you’ll want to consider launching a Thanksgiving landing page. This can be done on your website or through a microsite.
With a separate landing page, you can control the user experience and better highlight your Thanksgiving products. You can also use it to drive traffic from your social media channels and other marketing initiatives. Plus, it’s a great way to track your Thanksgiving-specific marketing efforts and see how they’re performing.
5 Bonus Thanksgiving Marketing tips!
Hmm, still feeling a bit lost on where to start with your Thanksgiving marketing? No worries, we’ve got you covered! Here are some general tips and ideas to help make this holiday season the best one yet for your online store:
1. Plan Ahead for Black Friday and Cyber Monday
The thing is, the influx of shoppers doesn’t just start and stop on Thanksgiving Day. In fact, lots of consumers actually begin shopping only after they’ve had their turkey dinner with family. This is why it’s important to have your Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions all lined up and ready to go before Thanksgiving even arrives. This way, you can make the most of the post-holiday shopping rush!
2. Get Into the Holiday Spirit With Festive Visuals
From your banners, website design, social media posts, and even email newsletters – make sure everything has a touch of the Thanksgiving spirit. This means using warm and inviting visuals that capture the essence of the holiday. Think rich Autumnal colors, cozy scenes by the fireplace, and delectable Thanksgiving food images!
Making the look and feel of your pages cohesive with the holiday season will help create a sense of urgency for your shoppers and encourage them to actually shop for Thanksgiving items from your store.
3. Offer Special Thanksgiving Discounts and Promotions
Because Black Friday and Cyber Monday follow Thanksgiving, shoppers are already expecting deals and discounts during this time of year. So make sure you deliver on that front!
You can start by offering a promotional code for a certain percent off their purchase, free shipping on orders over a certain amount, or even a buy-one-get-one deal. Just make sure your offers are compelling enough to get shoppers to actually add items to their carts and check out.
4. Make Sure Your Shipping and Delivery Times Are Up to Speed
Things can get a little hectic during the Thanksgiving weekend. However, your shoppers, of course, will still expect their orders to arrive on time—if not early. So before the holiday rush begins, make sure your shipping and delivery times are up to speed. This way, you can avoid any shipping delays or customer service issues down the road.
It would be best to communicate with your fulfillment partner beforehand or find one that you can trust to get your orders out on time, even during the busiest times of year—just like Awkward Styles! Our team will make sure your orders are processed and shipped out as quickly as possible, so your shoppers can receive their Thanksgiving purchases with satisfaction.
5. Launch a Thanksgiving Collection
If you really want your store to shine this Thanksgiving, consider launching a holiday-themed collection. This could be anything from a line of Thanksgiving apparel to special edition home decor items. Whatever it is, make sure it’s on-brand and relevant to your target audience.
For example, if your niche revolves around wellness and self-care, you could put together a Thanksgiving kit or care package that includes all the essentials for a stress-free holiday season. This can include scented candles, soft custom pillows with inspiring messages, and even a gratitude journal.
Here’s to More Sales and Customers to be Thankful For This Thanksgiving!
Getting your target shoppers’ attention during a busy holiday weekend like Thanksgiving can be difficult. But with a little planning, creativity, and the help of our team at Awkward Styles you can definitely make it happen! And soon enough, you’ll find yourself raking in more sales and customers to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.
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