Many of our clients experienced the greatest increase in e-Commerce sales last year between Black Friday and Cyber Monday as they leveraged segmented email and social campaigns to effectively reach target audiences with focused offers. We hope that you find these Holiday Sales Tips to be helpful as your team is working to finish the year strong.
Cyber Monday 2016 became the biggest online shopping day in U.S. history with $3.45 Billion in online sales, up 12% from 2015. Black Friday wasn’t far behind, with sales jumping nearly 22% year-over-year to $3.34 billion. Direct to consumer wine has become the fastest growing sales channel in the industry as we continue to see swift increases in wine sold and shipped year over year. Direct-to-consumer (DtC) shipments totaled $222 million this past September, according to Wines Vines Analytics/ShipCompliant*, up 12% from September 2016. Wineries shipped 493,999 cases in September, 13% more than a year earlier. Value and volume both rose 17% in the 12 months through September. Napa claimed 49% of DtC shipments in the latest 12 months. Sonoma boosted its share of the channel from 18% to 20%, adding $105 million in shipments – the strongest growth in absolute terms of any region.
Wine buyers are more sophisticated than ever and expect the following from your brand this holiday season:
1. Fast, affordable shipping incentives – $5 and $10 Flat Rate UPS Ground OR $10 and $20 Flat Rate 2nd Day (minimum bottle count or order value required, limited time).
2. Focused and Fun e-Commerce Offers with 2-3 clicks to buy from any mobile device or desktop. Be sure to setup a landing page and test before launching!
3. Helpful buying guides with three price-points to simplify the gifting process. Email and socialize by November 15th.
4. A little something extra for the shopper responsible for gifting a long list of friends, colleagues or clients. This could be a git card for merchandise, an experience, a wine accessory, etc.
5. Beautiful Grab-and-Go Gift-Packs that are easy to purchase at the tasting room. Add extra touches such as a ribbon, note card, etc.
6. Fast check-out with use of Mobile POS and extra check-out stations to prevent long lines during the holiday rush. Add extra tablets if possible to process club member orders as card is stored on file.
7. Gift Cards especially mid-December during crunch time when shoppers are running out of time to send gifts. Digital or physical cards that can be purchased online and in-person are ideal.
We hope that you find these tips to be helpful this Holiday Season. Be sure to checkout the new DTC Wine Sales Success Series at our Testimonials Page and social sites for a bit of inspiration. Also, watch for our 2018 Online Workshops Catalogue publishing on December 5th.