Holiday Social Media Outreach: How to Keep Your Customers Connected

An expression of gratitude to your consumers might help you establish loyalty and increase client retention. Here are some?ways to thank your customers this holiday?season. Sending holiday greetings to your clients could work wonders for your company or you as a representative for your company. It improves your client retention efforts, makes your marketing messages more memorable, and makes you more personable—not to mention, it makes you stand out from the rest.

Should you leave your prospects alone and let them enjoy their holiday?

Or should you interrupt their family time with a message from you or your company?

The answer is simple: contact them. There is no better time to reach out to customers and prospects than during the holidays. Don’t let this time pass you by. They are often in good moods and more approachable than you think. So how do you reach out without being a bother, a pest, or even being viewed as harassing them? Here’s how:

Personal Touch

When sending holiday greetings to your consumers, remember to provide a personal touch. Mention anything you recall about them from previous conversations and add a unique note that relates to their interests or life events. For example, your customer tells you that she has two children in college: Jane, who attends Texas A&M, and Shawn, who attends the University of Michigan. In your email, ask how Shawn is doing at Michigan and how Jane is doing at Texas A&M. Often, customers are impressed with your recall. On the other hand, most of your competitors will not get this personal. They will simply send solicitations and bombard their customers and prospects with product offers. That is an easy way to get prospects to tune you out since they are being solicited by many companies daily.

Avoid long windedness

Do not feel tempted to compose long, introspective notes. Holiday preparations are likely to keep most people from paying full attention to any lengthy message. Office greetings should not take up too much of anyone's time.

You don't have to take up a whole page to express your gratitude to your customers. Using live chat software that can send out automated holiday wishes is a terrific approach to showing clients you care about them and their experience.

Customers who use mobile devices are less likely to read long holiday messages because it's annoying to have to scroll. This is disastrous for the company's bottom line. There's a chance that customers who are already overwhelmed may find your Christmas greeting annoying.

Avoid making your holiday messaging too salesy

Reduce the use of sales language in holiday messages. Sometimes, excessive salesmanship can repel clients and hinder sales.

Instead of aggressively urging your clients to purchase, why not instead welcome them and ask if your firm can do anything to make their holidays more memorable? This enhances your company's reputation for caring.

When businesses utilize holiday greetings effectively, they may develop a meaningful relationship with their clients, resulting in increased sales in the future.

PRO TIP: There are some safe holidays that are almost universally celebrated.?Veterans Day, Labor Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's, Thanksgiving Day, Fourth of July, etc.?Very few people, if any, will be offended when you wish them a happy Fourth of July or a happy Turkey Day, even if they don't celebrate them. Those are non-faith-based holidays.?

SUPER PRO TIP:?Saint Patrick's Day, April Fool's Day, and Groundhog Day, are examples of holidays many of us overlook. Who gets a greeting card or a phone call that says, "Happy Groundhog's Day?" Send your customers a Happy Groundhog's Day postcard or text message. The chances are, you'd be the only person to do so. What a way to stand out and be remembered! Everyone gets a card on their birthday, wedding anniversary, or major holidays, but hardly anyone gets contacted on the minor holidays. Stand out from the rest and be remembered.

Keep Your Posts or Messages Generic

How do you know if your customers celebrate specific holidays, such as Christmas, Kwanzaa, or Hanukkah? You often have no way of knowing beforehand. When you assume, you take the risk of offending them.?It may seem insignificant to?you, but?wishing a Jewish person a Merry Christmas might be deeply insulting to them. Think about wishing them "Warmest wishes!" or "Happy holidays!" As a result, you may be able to get closer to your customers and give them a better experience overall. Keep holiday greetings generic unless you know for certain that all of your consumers celebrate the same holidays or if your firm caters to a niche market. It keeps you from alienating any one client or segment of your clientele.

ADVICE FROM THE EXPERTS: There are a handful of holidays that are widely observed without controversy. Some of these?holidays include Veterans Day, Labor Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, Thanksgiving Day, Independence Day, President's Day,?etc. Even if someone you know doesn't celebrate the Fourth of July or Thanksgiving, you're unlikely to get any pushback for wishing them a happy Fourth or happy Turkey Day.?These holidays?have nothing to do with a particular religion, so the chances of someone being offended by your recognizing them are slim to none. And if the person does get offended, you are simply dealing with a strange bird.

Unfortunately, there are disgruntled people who are offended by everything.?

PRO TIP: Holidays like St. Patrick's Day, April Fool's Day, and Groundhog Day are more common than you might think. Who gets a Happy Groundhog's Day phone call or card? Whether it's a postcard or an SMS message, wish your consumers a merry Groundhog's Day. The chances are, you'd be the only person to do so.?What a fantastic way to grab attention and make a lasting impression!

Personalize Your Message

Though it's important to keep holiday greetings general, it's also a good idea to add some personality to make the message more memorable. Use customers' first names when welcoming them, and tailor special offers to their interests and past purchases. It demonstrates that you've taken their tastes into account. By sending out personalized holiday greetings through all of your marketing channels, your business will make its holiday marketing efforts more effective.

Conclusion

Essentially, delivering holiday?greetings to your clients humanizes your business and helps you create genuine connections with them. Furthermore, these relationships are essential to keeping the lines of communication open between you, your clients, and potential prospects. It is important to not be quiet or reclusive during the holidays.?Reach out and make your customers feel special; it will likely get you the sales and referrals you are looking for without you having to bombard them with solicitations. Think outside of the box during the holidays.