Year-end sales: how does data help optimize your marketing strategy?

"December is the best month for businesses"

This statement everyone has heard. This is because we are in a month that follows Black Friday and, when the consumer is not looking for gifts for Christmas, he or she may be looking for that trip for the family, or the new year's clothes. The annual bonus is in the check, winter is coming, everyone ends up spending more and, of course, heating up the economy.

But what if it goes wrong? How can a month that is so promising, with so many expectations of sales for several sectors not work out? And the answer is yes.

Even with up-to-date logistical planning, stocked inventories, the best management software, and flashy marketing campaigns - none of this will give the results your company expects if it doesn't really know its clients.

The truth is, to get the best out of Black Friday, the year-end sales, and the winter holiday season, you have to make the best offer to the people who are most interested in the product at the best time. But being accurate like this is only possible with data.

Read on and understand how to plan communication and sales for your company or brand to leverage results this year-end and build customer loyalty.

Data-driven marketing campaigns

Many companies anticipate acquiring and implementing chatbots and business automations when they enter e-commerce to communicate better with their customers. Or they create social media profiles and post like there's no tomorrow. In part, to generate engagement, this is not a bad strategy. But is it attracting the consumer who will actually buy your product? 

To differentiate yourself from the competition and spend less on your ads - or make ads that pay for themselves, the best thing is to segment. If your company invests in building a database of its customers in a structured way, you may discover that the highest average ticket is among 40-year-old women who live in a specific neighborhood of New York and shop more at the physical store, for example.

With this information, it is possible to invest in campaigns thinking about the places that this group goes to the most (such as gyms, malls, and restaurants in that neighborhood). As for male customers between 20 and 30 years old who buy more often in your online store, but with a lower average ticket, think about whether it is worth advertising the products most bought by the group in an ad on the social network most used by them.

With these examples, do you realize that your brand is helping customers find what they need and want to buy more easily? Since your competitors are just a click away - or in the store next door - your brand is helping them find what they need and want to buy more easily - metrifying each customer contact allows you to have greater clarity of your audience and make your business gain time, accuracy, and stop spending so much by targeting the right places.

Obviously the customer doesn't always know exactly what they need, but a well-trained sales team in both physical and digital customer service can yield excellent sales and be an unbeatable loyalty strategy.

Therefore, use the data collected to understand the profile of each customer, his tastes and preferences, and think about the best way to serve him in all your channels, in a personalized way. Below I recommend the reading of an article that will change your perception about Smart Wi-Fi - it has never been so useful for your commercial strategy.

• Read also: Omnichannel Retail on Black Friday and the Role of Smart Wi-Fi

How to increase year-end sales?

There is a premise in business that we must choose two out of three elements: deadline, cost, and quality. In other words, you cannot offer the best price with the highest quality on a tight deadline. Which ones do you choose?The joke here is not just to get you and your company to think about what matters most to your customers, but to show the relevance of planning. It starts from the goals of a company in a specific period - such as Black Friday and the end of the year.

 A conservative goal can imply a lack of products for sale. In the same way, a very bold goal, without a strategy, can lead the company to start the year with an inventory volume that will demand sales and bring down the profitability of the business.

With tight schedules and abundance of products and services, the best campaigns are the most creative and intelligent ones. The ideas catch the customers' attention among hundreds of triggers. And the intelligence is on behalf of the data, which go a step further and allow the customer to take the offer into consideration in his/her purchase decision because it was thought for him/her.

In other words, the best promotions are those that communicate what the customer wants to hear when he/she is paying attention, through easily accessible channels, and naturally stimulate the buying process. Every business needs to find the intersection between its service/product and the moment of its target audience.

So let's go to the 8 tips to boost your sales.

1. Create tailor-made promotions

There are not only discounts. Very cheap products can drive away some customers who don't trust the quality of the product because of the low price. Want to know how to sell more at the end of the year? Think about what is best for your company's profile: two for the price of one? Progressive discount? Loyalty program? Hit your customers' hearts with promotions that combine good prices and objective value.

Important: there is no need to build very ambitious results if previous years' sales were not high. Professionals should use numbers similar to those obtained in previous periods - preparing for the worst and the best. At this point, companies need to be realistic. With detailed data on what happened before, the company will know what to do to get better results.

2. Train your team for the best service

It doesn't matter if your business is online or offline: good customer service is not only a competitive differential, but an essential ingredient for the success of any business. Remember, your customers can find another store with just a few clicks on their cell phones.

Training sales teams on a company's systems, processes, and products/services takes time. Therefore, hiring employees at the last minute can affect the sales results, especially when the market is hot and there is a shortage of skilled labor. Therefore, invest in training so that they have the necessary politeness and courtesy, as well as knowledge about what the company sells.

Remember: attraction and customer loyalty are closely linked and depend on good service. Therefore, it is a bad idea to have rude people approaching customers directly.

3. Correct and competitive pricing

Price research is fundamental to define your goals and objectives for the period and for the next year. Adjust prices for inflation and know the discounts that suppliers or carriers can offer.

But be careful not to raise prices too high and drive away consumers. Balance is essential, but it is not always easy. So it may be a good idea to have a professional help you figure out a price that benefits both the consumer and the seller.

4. Develop a back-office structure

5. Paying must be easy!

Enable multiple systems within your store: offer the option to pay with credit and debit cards as well as online, mobile, and PayPal payment methods. Using services like Zoox Pay, which allows contactless and fast mobile payment and immediate transaction, is also a great way to diversify your systems.

The payment methods available are crucial to increase sales. Besides debit cards, credit cards, and checks (with protection services that minimize risks), direct financing lines are fundamental for many segments.

6. Do your best to spread the word

As important as managing inventory and having premium partners, is exploring the online environment for good financial results. For this, you need to have a strong digital presence, provide excellent service, and price your products correctly. After all, advertising is the soul of your business.

And the chances of reaching and engaging your target audience are greatly increased with it. As at the end of the year consumers are under more pressure to buy. Few things are more favorable than actively promoting your brand in such good circumstances.

Invest in competent, data-driven marketing professionals who can produce fully targeted campaigns. They will be able to identify trends, build ideal consumer profiles, and implement the necessary technologies to modernize processes. This ensures that your company does not waste money on initiatives that have nothing to do with your audience.

7. Prepare for after-sales

8. Invest in loyalty