A COMPREHENSIVE 2017 HOLIDAY PLANNING Guide FOR ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES

Based On Our Approach Here at EcoEnclose

ecoenclose.com • [email protected] • 888-445-6575 A COMPREHENSIVE HOLIDAY PLANNING Tool FOR ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES

You probably already know that the holiday season is important – through is said to account for almost 25% of all ecommerce sales. The holidays are a wonderful opportunity to bring on new customers who might remain loyal for the long haul. But did you know that many potential customers are already thinking about the holiday season RIGHT NOW?

The National Retail Federation surveyed over 2,000 people last year and found that 17% of respondents are beginning researching gift ideas as early as September.

Holiday Research vs. Purchasing Timeline

BEGIN RESEARCHING BEGIN PURCHASING

36% 33%

25% 27%

17% 17% 13% 11% 5% 8% 8% 2%

Before September October November December December September First 2 weeks Last 2 weeks

More than half began research in October or earlier – only 33% began making actual purchases in that timeframe.

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Holiday Planning Strategies

Yikes! How do you prepare? There is a lot to consider – maximizing sales, making sure your operations and inventory can handle the madness, getting in front of key dates, staying true to your mission through the season…

But, rest assured, you do not have to do everything – in fact, you may decide not to do very much at all - and that is a-okay. The key is to consider what you can do; and then be comfortable saying “YES” to some things and “NO” to others.

This section describes the many strategies an ecommerce business might consider prioritizing this holiday season.

As you skim through it, note (on the page or in your brain) which ones seem right for your business – based on your product, time and resource availability.

Holiday Operating Principles Don’t lose sight of the bigger picture.

Most importantly, don’t forget what your business stands for during the holidays. The holidays are not about survival or filling up the coffers. For an ecommerce business, the holidays are about building loyal customers. This is about opportunity. Every year we post our own holiday operating principles, alongside our core values, so our entire team is on the same page about how to deal with some of the questions and issues that are unique to this season. For example, we feel strongly that current customers should always come before new potential sales (though we will always work very hard to meet the needs of both)!

We are also well aware that the holidays are a very tough time for Mother Earth. Consumerism can overtake attention to ecofriendly living, and craziness and stress makes it impossible to focus on anything other than the immediate. In fact, According to Stanford University, Americans throw away 25% more trash during the Thanksgiving to New Year’s holiday period than any other time of year. The extra waste amounts to 25 million tons of garbage, or about 1 million extra tons per week. So we at EcoEnclose work hard to remember that the planet has to remain a huge focus within our Holiday Operating Principles. For many of the companies we work with, we know the most important part of the holidays is that it gives you a chance to really spread your values, message and commitment to ethics and sustainability.

We’re happy to share our list of Holiday Operating Principles – just email us (info@ecoenclose. com) if you’d like to see a copy!

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Website and Overall Customer Experience

These strategies are all related to ensuring a smooth customer experience as they shop and purchase from you, which, for an ecommerce business is almost all about your website.

• SITE SPEED: According to Kissmetrics, 40 percent of visitors will leave your website if the loading process takes more than 3 seconds. Yikes! Test your site for speed, especially when you experience traffic spikes and check to ensure your site loads quickly and can handle traffic spikes. Sites like https://tools.pingdom.com/ and https://gtmetrix.com/ can help.

• GET A MOBILE RESPONSIVE SITE: Visit your site on a smartphone or tablet and make it responsive if it isn’t already. It is estimated that 54% of holiday shoppers shop (or at least peruse) on their smartphone in “micro-moments” throughout the day such as walking or commuting. [However, EcoEnclose does not advocate for walking and texting!] If you built your site on an ecommerce platform or using a WordPress template, chances are that it is already mobile responsive or that the process may be less resource intensive than you might think.

• GET READY FOR GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE: Prepare your customer service strategy, with an easily accessible phone number and email address on your shop or site (and consider live chat!) and most importantly – be ready (or have a trained, great person ready) to respond to questions and concerns quickly and effectively. While small ecommerce businesses aren’t going to complete with Amazon on ease of shopping experience, they win by making the experience enjoyable and bringing the personal touches of a storefront to an online customer.

• BE PROACTIVE IN ANSWERING QUESTIONS: Update copy throughout your shop or site to proactively address many of the questions that gift givers might ask for, such as shipping times, return policies, sizing guidelines, drop dead date for ordering any custom made products, gift wrapping options, etc. Many shoppers prefer this over having to call or email for info. Get your FAQ section up and running, or if you already have one, get it organized and up to date.

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• UPGRADE YOUR LANDING PAGES AND IMAGERY: Update your site with eye catching, holiday specific landing pages that showcase the exact right products, images, promotions or information. Beautify your product images, showcasing them in the right way. Make your images highly shareable, and consider setting up pre-populated Pinterest captions so the information you want shared publically travels with them if they are pinned. This video by Beth Hayden provides more information on pre-populating pin quotes. Sprinkle holiday cheer throughout your site and other elements of your customer experience – like a fun holiday spin on your logo or a holiday themed website loading icon. Sometimes the holidays makes people stresses…so remind them of the joy!

• CATER TO THE GIFT SEARCHER: As you can see from the graph above, people are already doing research! Considering organizing your products by gift giving category, such as “Gifts for Children” or “Gifts for Significant Other” in addition to the more functional way you might currently be organizing your goods.

• ADD A “SAVE” OR “WISHLIST” SECTION: According to the 2016 NRF survey, only a quarter of respondents said they used online wish lists and registries from retailers, but more than six in 10 would like to use more online wish lists in the future.

• CONSIDER OFFERING GIFT CERTIFICATES: Decide if you can offer gift certificates. If so, highlight them throughout your site or shop (particularly in late December when last minute shoppers are frantically seeking gifts).

• PRODUCT LIST: Review your website and ensure your product list (and any size or color • options) is complete, pricing is accurate and specs are described.

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Packaging and shipping

This set of strategies is related to how you package and deliver your products, to ensure customers receive them on time with their products safe and secure. It also includes some ideas on how to “wow” recipients and make them feel exceptional about their purchase. Remember, the holidays a great opportunity to find and create loyal, long-term customers. Don’t see holiday shoppers as one timers.

• DESIGN A BEAUTIFUL PACKAGING EXPERIENCE FOR RECIPIENTS: Brand your packaging material – with your standard logo and design, or a holiday specific design. Tie products in twine. Add a special card or thank you gift. These can be particularly nice touches for customers that are having the gift shipped directly to the recipient. 52 percent of consumers are likely to make repeat purchases from online merchants with premium packaging, and 4 in 10 would share a unique image of a package via social media. Still not convinced? Instagram #unboxing to see just how much recipients enjoy receiving gorgeous packages, and how quickly they share them with friends. Click here to see the incredible packaging from some in the EcoEnclose family.

• DECIDE IF YOU CAN OFFER GIFT WRAPPING AS AN OPTION: If so, make it clear on your website that you offer this service, give people the gift wrapping option at checkout (for a fee if appropriate), and of course make sure you have gift wrapping on hand! Also, know that the vast majority of wrapping paper is not recyclable. Consider using less “shiny” but equally artistic EcoEnclose packing paper to wrap presents. Our packing paper is made with 100% recycled material and is easily recyclable. In fact, check out our blog post from last December on “wow factor” wrapping ideas using sustainable materials: http://blog. ecoenclose.com/ecowrapping/.

• STOCK YOUR ORDER PACKAGING AREA: Have all of the other supplies you need to fill orders and get them shipped out – boxes, mailers, tape, void fill, the works. These are the types of supplies that can sometimes get overlooked until you’re in a bind! Order these from us anytime at ecoenclose.com!

• ASSESS THE SUSTAINABILITY OF YOUR PACKAGING: Are there opportunities for you to reduce packaging material or make your packages smaller? Can you switch any of your packaging supplies to more sustainable options? If you are already doing everything to maximize how green your packaging strategy is – do your customers know how to recycle or compost these items? Do a quick internal check on these questions and, if appropriate,

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find ways to make your packages even more ecofriendly. And be sure to let your customers know – 55% of consumers say that sustainability is a packaging expectation, and frown upon wasteful strategies.

• DETERMINE IF AND HOW YOU CAN DO INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING: How much is shipping, what tariffs or taxes are involved, what providers will you ship with, and how long will it take for international orders to be delivered? If you decide to offer international shipping, figure these things out and communicate them all on your website.

Operations and Inventory Management

This set of strategies is related to your internal operations – your inventory, your staff and your facility. Sometimes this stuff feels “boring” or secondary, but they actually may be the most important things to focus on.

• INVENTORY MANAGEMENT: Have the right amount of inventory and have a system to know how much inventory you have at a given time. How much is the right amount? It’s a heated debate that depends so much on the cost of a lost customer versus the cost of ending the holiday season with excess product, as well as other factors like the perishability of your products and how much cash you have right now. At EcoEnclose, we’ve decided to add a 30% buffer over the trailing 90 days of sales, and then add in four “safety” weeks when managing inventory over the holidays. Click here for more our blog post providing additional guidance on inventory management for businesses that produce their own goods.

• ESTABLISH DATES AND COMMUNICATE THEM: Figure out and then very clearly communicate key dates and timelines with your customers. Are you only taking custom orders until a certain date? What is your lead time before you can fulfill and ship orders out? Are you unable to offer certain shipping options such as priority mail or overnight? Figure this out and let customers know! In case you are curious – EcoEnclose’s lead times (to process and ship orders out) are 2-3 days on stock orders, 3-4 days on custom box orders, and 2-4 weeks on custom print boxes and bags. Thanks to this holiday planning process, we just put more detailed info on our website about this!

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• HAVE ENOUGH RESOURCES AVAILABLE: Many small businesses are a one woman or man show and might get through the holidays on coffee and lack of sleep. If the works for you at this time – that is fine! But for the rest of us who need our z’s, it is important to figure out what staff and resources you need, and hire and train them well before the rush. We have focused on hiring early, to ensure new staff are trained, and that our entire team can be rested and maintain a positive attitude through the season.

• INVEST TIME AND ENERGY INTO YOUR EARTH-FRIENDLY PRACTICES: Remember your mission and commitment even when the chips are down. Find ways to make some small or even large changes in your home of facility during the next few weeks – like switching to 100% recycled printing paper or sourcing a more ecofriendly input for your product or figuring out how to run your heater less frequently – it will likely have a greater impact during the holidays than any other time.

Marketing, sales and advertising

This set of strategies describes everything related to how you market and promote your company or products, to maximize sales.

While the majority of information and guidance you get inundated with during the holiday season is going to be about marketing and advertising, the truth is that you don’t need to do anything here. You might just pick one or two strategies and run with them, or this may be the year for your business to invest heavily in promoting yourself this holiday season.

Before you finalize your strategies, we highly recommend that you first know your numbers! How much do you charge for your goods, what is your gross margin, and what is your estimated lifetime value of your customer base? This will help you understand whether or not you can offer discounts and promotions, or invest in paid advertising, or invest in a branding expert -- and if so, how to structure these to ensure they work for your business and bottom line.

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• SOCIAL MEDIA: Social media can be one of the most powerful tools for a small to medium sized businesses, especially ecofriendly, mission minded ones with well crafted, quality products that cater to aspirationals (defined by their love of shopping, desire for responsible consumption, and trust in brands to act in the best interest of society - also well known for their online engagement). What social media platforms you ask? Find a few that best align with your target market and your company’s culture and product set. Options include Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Google+, Vine, and Tumblr. This article from Neil Patel has some great data and guidance to help you choose the best platforms and hone your social media strategy.

• SPEAKING OF PINTEREST: Yes, we know that we referred to Pinterest as a social media platform above. But did you know Pinterest is much better described as a visual search engine. One with more than 175 million users. And it’s not just for women! 35% of current Pinners are male. A whopping 88% of the people who use Pinterest have purchased at least one of the products that they have pinned. If you haven’t at least explored building a Pinterest strategy for your business, you might want to consider it!

• LEVERAGE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS TO RUN A COMPETITION OR CAMPAIGN: Some ideas? Have customers name your newest product. Have customers post pictures of themselves using your products in the wackiest or coolest places. Have customers show cool ways they are reusing your packaging. Take a cue from one of our favorite campaigns last year – REI’s #optoutside when they closed their doors on Black Friday and encouraged the world to be outside instead of cooped up in a shopping mall.

• PUT OUT GREAT CONTENT: If blogging, email marketing or posting videos makes sense for your business, schedule and develop a few great content pieces. Send these out to your existing customers and post them to your social media platforms. One consistent winner during the holidays is a Gift Buying Guide. Whether you sell products to outdoor enthusiasts or new moms or crafty knitters – there is a gift buying for your audience that you might be uniquely qualified to write! Other content ideas: holiday wish lists, videos showing creative ways to use your products or services, trends in gift giving, Earth conscious holiday practices…the list is endless.

• RUN PROMOTIONS OR SALES: Some examples include a sale, free shipping for orders placed by a certain date, discounted or free shipping if order size reaches a certain threshold, buy one get one half off, and first time buyer discounts.

• See our handy calendar of dates below, to help organize potential promotions around.

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• CAUSE MARKETING AND GIVING BACK: This is one of our favorites. I have a feeling your business has heart – with a focus on the environment and perhaps other critical issues. Don’t forget what is core to your ethos during this time. If you already have a charitable component to your business, keep it going and emphasize it. If you don’t, it is a great time to start – donating a portion of your proceeds, donating actual goods, or adding a “donate to” as part of your checkout process. While for some businesses, the “cause” part of the marketing is just a gimmick – for those of us who truly are committed to authentic impact as a core part of company culture, it is a huge boon – 90% of U.S. consumers say they would switch brands to one associated with a cause, given comparable price and quality. Learn more about the value of charitable partnerships and cause marketing here, from Cause Marketing Forum.

• PAID ADVERTISING: This encompasses a wide category of strategies, including pay per click, cost per impression and fixed cost ads. Platforms can range from Google and Bing to social media to blogs or websites. If you have been considering any of these strategies, the holiday season might be the right time to test them out as you’re likely to see the strongest results during this time. However, don’t jump in without doing research and potentially seeking some support. Here is one great primer from Kissmetrics on paid internet advertising to help you get started.

And finally, don’t forget about the spirit of the holidays! The holidays can be exhausting. But, they are also pretty magical and energizing.

While your business is obviously important, take time to step back and be with family, friends and/or just yourself to enjoy all that is special about the season. These moments will recharge you, keeping you energized and positive as you tackle the work – and this spirit will come through in everything you do for your business and customers.

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IMPORTANT DATES

Here is an overview of important dates throughout the fourth quarter. These dates set the tenor of holiday season gift giving, and can help you plan any content marketing, contests, promotions, inventory, and overall staffing and operations strategies.

Columbus Day: Monday, October 9th Scary, but this is often considered the beginning of the holiday season! It is a good time to begin promoting your holiday messages, and emphasize how valuable it is for customers to shop early. Veterans’ Day: Friday, November 10th While the day is, first and foremost, to give thanks our veterans, it has also become an “early black Friday” of sorts. Black Friday: Friday, November 24th The most insane shopping day of the year, and a day for customers to be incredibly grateful for online businesses that help them avoid the crowds. : Saturday, November 25th A great day to promote shopping with and supporting small businesses. Cyber Monday: Monday, November 27th The black Friday for ecommerce businesses, and often, when the flurry of online shopping really begins. : November 28th A global day of giving, and a very nice break from the holiday shopping chaos. It could be a good time to partner with a nonprofit, or emphasize any existing relationships you have with causes. Green Monday: Monday, December 11th Mondays are strong online shopping days all year long, and this continues through the holidays, especially on this first Monday of December. Hanukkah: Begins Tuesday, December 12th Remember that Hanukkah is not the Jewish equivalent of Christmas. Gift giving can be part of it for some, though typically it is more intimate and family-centric than it is for those who celebrate Christmas. Any messaging you do should not assume the two holidays are one and the same. Stamp & Ship Day This day isn’t yet set but it is the deadline for guaranteed USPS delivery before Christmas, and is one to potentially plan promotions and website content around. Last-Minute Scramble: Friday, December 23rd The last weekday before Christmas Eve, gifts are wrapped, only to find out a few people are missing! Yikes. If you offer gift certificates that can be printed or emailed, this could be a good day for you to support these last minute gift givers.

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HOLIDAY 2017 PLANNING TEMPLATE

Want a Word version of this? Click here, or email us at [email protected]

STEP 1: Jot down any holiday-specific operating principles. A few examples to get you started from EcoEnclose’s discussion. • Maintain commitment to sustainability – reduce wherever possible, reuse first, then compost or recycle. Close doors to minimize heating needs. Open windows instead of turning lights on. If we need anything new in the warehouse, look for it used or at CHaRM first! • Focus on long-term success, not just immediate or quick sales. • Put yourself in the customer’s shoes. Yes, we may be busy and stressed; but so are they. We are here to make their eco-choices easier! • Current customers always come before new potential sales! This is a great time to find new customers; but when faced with tough decisions, we will focus on delivering to current customers as highest priority. STEP 2: What are you going to do and who is going to do it? Fill out the below chart (print this out, or click here for a Word version). The trick to this step is to not over think it and to be very comfortable saying “no, I will not be doing this!” To avoid over thinking, you may choose to give yourself a concrete time block of one hour to complete.

AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT PRIORITY LEVEL An important note about Priority level – make sure that the things you mark as “1” are truly MUST DOs! Everything else you want to get done, but is not essential, should be marked as a “2.” Once you label something as a “2,” it should become a strategy that is completed only after higher and more urgent priority steps are done. If you don’t get to your “2s” that is just fine. Rather than stress you out, “2” should help you relax – these are things that don’t keep you up at night or cause panic – and truly are just icing on the cake.

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HOLIDAY 2017 PLANNING TEMPLATE

Priority level 1 = MUST DO 2 = DO THIS IF TIME What is the goal? Who What are the 3 = NOT DOING THIS OR ALREADY DONE OR CONTINUE WITH THE STATUS QUO WHAT ARE THE KEY ITEMS TO BE DONE? owns it? deadlines?

WEBSITE AND OVERALL CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Assess your site’s speed

Make your site mobile responsive

Get ready for great customer service

Proactively answer questions throughout your website

Upgrade landing pages and imagery on website

Organize products on website to cater to gift searchers

Consider offering gift certificates

Ensure the website product list is up to date

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HOLIDAY 2017 PLANNING TEMPLATE

Priority level 1 = MUST DO 2 = DO THIS IF TIME What is the goal? Who What are the 3 = NOT DOING THIS OR ALREADY DONE OR CONTINUE WITH THE STATUS QUO WHAT ARE THE KEY ITEMS TO BE DONE? owns it? deadlines?

PACKAGING AND SHIPPING

Design a beautiful packaging experience for recipients

Decide if you can offer gift wrapping as an option

Stock your order packaging area in your warehouse, office or home

Assess the sustainability of your packaging

Determine if and how you can do international shipping

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HOLIDAY 2017 PLANNING TEMPLATE

Priority level 1 = MUST DO 2 = DO THIS IF TIME What is the goal? Who What are the 3 = NOT DOING THIS OR ALREADY DONE OR CONTINUE WITH THE STATUS QUO WHAT ARE THE KEY ITEMS TO BE DONE? owns it? deadlines?

OPERATIONS AND INVENTORY MANAGEMENT

Get in front of inventory management

Establish dates and deadlines, and communicate them with customers

Have enough staff and support available

Maintain and pursue ecofriendly strategies

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HOLIDAY 2017 PLANNING TEMPLATE

Priority level 1 = MUST DO 2 = DO THIS IF TIME What is the goal? Who What are the 3 = NOT DOING THIS OR ALREADY DONE OR CONTINUE WITH THE STATUS QUO WHAT ARE THE KEY ITEMS TO BE DONE? owns it? deadlines?

MARKETING, SALES & ADVERTISING

Get active on social media

Leverage your social media platforms to run a holiday competition or campaign

Consider building out a Pinterest strategy

Put out great holiday focused content

Run holiday promotions or sales

Cause marketing and giving back for the holidays

Paid advertising

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HOLIDAY 2017 PLANNING TEMPLATE

Priority level 1 = MUST DO 2 = DO THIS IF TIME What is the goal? Who What are the 3 = NOT DOING THIS OR ALREADY DONE OR CONTINUE WITH THE STATUS QUO WHAT ARE THE KEY ITEMS TO BE DONE? owns it? deadlines?

OTHER & PERSONAL

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CALENDAR IT OUT!

STEP 3: Calendar it out!

1. Take everything on the list above labeled as Priority 1 and add it the below table, in the appropriate week. Bold these! 2. Then take everything on the list above labeled as Priority 2 and add it to the below table, in the appropriate week, in grey or a similar lighter color so you are reminded that it is a nice to have and not a major priority. 3. Go through and put the owner’s name in parentheses next to each strategy

This table is organized by week. Why? Because we find it impossible to plan things for specific days (things always come up!) but we also don’t want important action items to slip off our radar which they are bound to do if we set our to-do-list by the month.

Website & Packaging Operations Marketing, Sales Customer And and AND Other Experience Shipping Inventory Advertising

Sept 18

Sept 25

Oct 2

Oct 9

Oct 16

17 A COMPREHENSIVE Need some inspiration? Click here for a sample! HOLIDAY PLANNING tool FOR ECOMMERCE BUSINESSES

Website & Packaging Operations Marketing, Sales Customer And and AND Other Experience Shipping Inventory Advertising

Oct 23

Oct 30

Nov 6

Nov 13

Nov 20

Nov 27

Dec 4

Dec 11

Dec 18

Dec 25

Jan 1

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