Peak Season Comin'? Prepare Your Business for the Holiday Rush!
Yes, you heard it right – peak season is coming! As Filipinos, we love embracing the holidays, and everyone starts getting into the holiday spirit as early as September, which we all know as the "BER" months. With Christmas lights hanging around, Christmas tunes playing on the radio, and a countdown to Christmas day, it's definitely the holiday season!
However, with holidays comes the peak season for most online business owners! And that usually means long lines at the drop-off locations or longer booking times on courier apps. But don't worry! We got you a few tips to help you level up your shipping game so you can stay ahead of the pack, increase your revenue, and minimize the stress of the peak season.
5 ways to prepare your business for the holiday rush
1. Have a nationwide shipping option.
If you're selling products online, one of the best ways to reach more customers is to offer nationwide shipping. If you're just limited to customers within Metro Manila, you could be missing out on many potential customers throughout the country.
For example, one of the markets you could tap into if you ship nationwide is OFWs. Many of our overseas workers have families living in provinces, and most of them can't come home for the holidays due to work. So having the option to send gifts to their families during the holidays can really be enticing to them.
2. Have multiple courier providers on standby.
During peak season, there will be an influx of deliveries, and chances are your usual courier might not be able to accommodate all of them. Having multiple couriers to choose from is a lifesaver. This step is crucial in preparing for the holiday season because if you don't, you'll probably have late or unfulfilled deliveries. Lucky for you, there is a shipping platform like Shipmates, which allows you to book multiple couriers on a single platform.
3. Create a marketing strategy to drive sales.
The holiday season is perfect for pushing your products more to the market. However, if you're unsure how to market your products, here are a few marketing strategies you can go for to increase your sales.
Let's begin with the promotion of your products. One way is by doing Facebook Ads or setting up Google Ads. Both are great options since both platforms have good market reach to different audiences within the Philippines.
Now, when it comes to the actual selling and pricing, there's quite a lot, so we'll just go through our top three favorites. First is having a limited-time sale, as this gives your customers a sense of urgency and convinces them that they are saving more money when they purchase within the sale period. Second is the bundling pricing strategy, which is packaging two or more products together, creating the illusion that it's more "sulit." Lastly, you may try the psychological pricing strategy. It's when you have two prices shown on your online store - the original price and the discounted price, to show customers how much they can save.
4. Check your website.
Your website is one of the most important aspects of your online business, as this serves as the go-to platform for customers when making a purchase. Ensure that your website functions correctly and that the payment options are working. Make a test purchase on your website to check if any glitches need to be fixed. The last thing you want is for customers not to be able to purchase from you because of technical errors on your website.
5. Make sure your shipping process runs efficiently.
As we've said earlier, there will be an influx of deliveries during peak season, so it's essential to have a shipping process that can accommodate all your delivery needs. This means having a sound stock management system, ready packing supplies, and an efficient way of booking couriers for pickup.
Ultimately, if you're looking for a way to shorten your shipping process, you can always use Shipmates. With Shipmates, you can automatically generate waybills and book shipments and drivers in bulk. The best part about using a shipping platform like Shipmates is that you can choose from six different same-day and standard delivery couriers on one platform! So, if you're looking for an efficient shipping solution, try Shipmates.
Hopefully, these ways have helped you prepare your e-commerce business for the holiday season! If you have any questions, feel free to send us a message!