10 Ways to Boost Your Holiday Online Sales

The holidays are often the busiest time of year for retailers of all kind. More people are turning to online shopping as an alternative to the packed shopping malls filled with crazed shoppers. Here are a few tips to prepare yourself and your site for excellent holiday sales.

1. Get dressed up in your holiday best. Put your visitors in the holiday mood with tasteful Christmas graphics and colors. Be careful not to overdo it - too many graphics can slow down your site and chase your visitors away.

2. Add a Christmas Countdown script to your website. That way, people will know just how little shopping time they have left!

3. Offer convenient overnight shipping options to your last minute customers - and you know they're out there!

4. Offer a free or reasonably priced gift wrapping and gift card service.

5. Consider offering free standard shipping to customers spending over a certain dollar amount. This encourages people to spend more at your site.

6. Partner with other complimentary sites. Simply exchanging links aren't going to do - we mean really "partner" with that site. Dedicate a section of your website to that company's products and have them do the same. For example, if you sell children's clothing, why not partner with a site that sells toys? You are trying to reach the same target market - people who are frantically trying to complete their Christmas shopping list with the greatest of ease.

7. Give your products as gifts. It's a perfect way to save a little money and promote your business at the same time.

8. If your products don't suit someone on your list, try to find another home based business person to "swap" gifts with. If you need some kitchen items for your mother in law, why not contact that Tupperware consultant from your newsgroup and see if she has anyone on her list that your products would be suitable for? Not only does this help you further promote your products, it might just save you a little money on your Christmas list in the process.

9. Customize your ad and web page copy to appeal to holiday shoppers. This might be a time consuming task to do on all your products, so don't knock yourself out. Choose a few of your bestsellers and work with those. Word your copy directly to your visitor - ex. "Can you see her face when she opens up XXXX on Christmas morning..." or "Imagine she'll be so pleased, you may not have to take the garbage out all next year."

10. Add exposure to your business by selling your products at an online auction house, such as eBay.com. The traffic that comes to this site looking for Christmas gifts can't be beat. Dress your auctions up for Christmas and be sure to offer an optional gift wrapping an gift card service.