The festive season has already begun and the toy industry in particular can look forward to booming business, as 43% of Germans prefer to give toys and games as Christmas gifts. Not only does this mean more sales for retailers, but it also requires more assertiveness in the highly competitive Christmas business.
We have put together some tips for you on how to make your online toy shop stand out from the competition and benefit from happy customers as well as more sales, not just during the festive season.
Tip 1: Create a personalized home page
A personalized home page should be part of your strategy not only during the holidays. The home page is usually the first thing a customer sees of your online store – if they don’t like it, they’ll look for their desired items at the competition.
This is why it is especially important to place current offers and, during the holiday season, holiday gift ideas prominently on the home page. If you already know the customer, you can even go one step further and show them offers in their favorite category. These can be new items, but also markdowns.
Tip 2: Give your customers alternatives
Your customers don’t always come to your online store through your home page. Sometimes they are looking for a specific item – a deck of cards, for example – and enter their search into a search engine. This takes them to a product detail page in your store. If they don’t like the game and are not offered an alternative, they will look for it in other online stores. It is therefore important to place product recommendations on your product detail pages. For existing customers, these should also be tailored to their interests. A user who has only bought toys for boys in the past will have little interest in toys for girls.
Tip 3: Expand your customer service & advice
We’ve all been there: Christmas is coming up and you still have no idea what to buy. Then there’s all the advertising that rains down on you during the holiday season. Advice is just what you need! Thanks to conversational commerce, it is possible to advise customers online just like in brick-and-mortar stores and guide them to the right gift. Integrate a chatbot into your online store that is available to your users 24/7. Your customers will not only be able to find the right toy, but they will also be able to get other information such as current delivery times, payment options, or the current delivery status of their order. This not only takes the pressure off your service team, but also helps them find information and solve problems quickly, resulting in happier customers – not just during the holiday season.
A digital customer advisor in the form of a questionnaire can also be helpful, eliminating toys one by one so that only relevant products are displayed at the end. Especially in categories that are very broad, such as computer games, a questionnaire can be very helpful in finding the right game.
Tip 4: Work on customer retention
In general, it is important for your business to convert new customers into existing customers. You can do this by providing an exceptional shopping experience, but also by offering incentives such as a newsletter subscription or the creation of a customer profile. By using a profile, customer data is enriched with each visit and you learn more and more about your customers and their preferences. Does he prefer card games to board games? Is he a gaming enthusiast or a creative person who likes to try out DIY products? All this information helps you personalize your store and create an incredible shopping experience.
Conclusion
Personalization is a real game changer, especially during peak selling seasons. Especially when combined with conversational commerce, you can take the shopping experience in your online store to the next level. But personalization can also help you build stronger relationships with your customers off-season. Satisfaction increases, and customers are more likely to return to your online toy store.