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Why Your Website Needs a Glow-Up Before the Holidays
Alright, let’s talk about something real: the holidays are coming, and if your website is looking a little... meh, it's time for a holiday website update glow-up. For most businesses, the holidays are the make or break time of year. Whether you're selling products, booking services, or trying to pack your calendar with appointments, this is the season when your website needs to pull its weight. And if it’s looking outdated or isn’t ready to handle the holiday hustle? You're leaving money on the table.
So, why is it so important to refresh your site before the holidays, and what can you do to get it looking festive, functional, and fabulous? Let’s break it down.
Is Your Website Ready for the Rush?
We all know the holidays are crunch time for a lot of businesses. Whether you’re slinging products, offering seasonal services, or running holiday promotions, this is the busiest time of year. The last thing you want is for potential customers to hit your website, take one look at your outdated design or messy navigation, and bounce faster than Santa down a chimney. 90% of customers are planning to shop online during the holiday season.
Your site needs to be ready— like, festive, functional, and smooth as Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. Imagine your customers landing on your homepage, ready to buy, but getting frustrated with clunky navigation, slow load times, confusing layouts, or outdated info. Not cute, right? This is why holiday website updates to reflect holiday promotions, limited-time offers, and easy navigation are crucial to your conversion rates.
But, here’s the thing: don’t wait until the last minute. Web designers are typically booked out months in advance during the holiday season, and if you’re thinking of outsourcing your holiday website updates, now is the time to make the call or send the inquiry. And if you're doing it yourself? Give yourself plenty of time to test everything. Trust me— nothing’s worse than a last-minute panic when things go wrong and your tech support is all booked up and unavailable.
Bring on the Holiday Cheer with Seasonal Promotions
Let’s be real: people love a good deal, especially during the holidays and are actively hunting for discounts and deals that are just too good to pass up. A well-planned holiday website update i s your chance to get creative with your offers and promotions. It’s not just about slapping a 10% discount on your products or services and calling it a day. Nope— go big or go home.
This is the perfect time to get creative with your promotions. Rename them with something fun and festive—like "Jingle All the Way Savings" or "Sleigh the Season Special." A little holiday flair can go a long way in grabbing attention and getting people in the shopping spirit.
And let’s be real—10% off isn't making anyone’s heart race during the holidays. That’s the discount you see all year long. If you want to stand out, offer something that makes people stop in their tracks. Maybe it's a buy-one-get-one deal, a free gift with purchase, or a discount that’s bigger than they’d expect. The more exciting and unexpected your offer, the better your chances of converting visitors into buyers.
You don’t have to give away the farm, but if you’re going to run a holiday promotion, make it count. A “meh” discount is just going to get a “meh” response.
Conversion-Driven Copy and High-Quality Visuals Are Non-Negotiable
Okay, now that you’ve got your promotions ready, let’s make sure the rest of your site is working just as hard. Your holiday website updates should include conversion-driven copy and high-quality images to make sure visitors stick around long enough to hit "buy."
First, let’s talk about copy. During the holiday season, you need words that get people excited and drive them to act now. This is where conversion-driven copy comes in. Use phrases that tap into the holiday urgency, like "Limited-Time Offer," "Only Available Until [Date]," or "Don’t Miss Out!" It’s all about creating a sense of urgency and value. Don’t let them think about it too long— make them want to take action right then and there.
And don’t sleep on your visuals. High-quality images are a MUST during the holidays. Whether it’s a festive update to your hero image or new product photos with a seasonal touch, visuals can make or break the vibe of your site. Crisp, well-shot imagery gets people into the spirit and keeps them scrolling. Pair that with some glowing customer testimonials— especially from previous holiday seasons—and you’ve got a website that builds trust and excitement all at once. A solid holiday website update should focus on these elements to elevate your site's performance!
Plan Your Updates NOW & Avoid the DIY Panic
Listen, if you’re DIY-ing your holiday website updates, I salute you. But the holiday season is not the time for last-minute website tweaks— do yourself a favor and start planning right now. The thick of the holiday season is NOT the time to be messing around with complex features or last-minute changes. The stakes are high, and your time is limited. The last thing you need is to hit a snag when you’re already deep in the holiday rush! Plan ahead and allow yourself plenty of time for troubleshooting.
Holiday campaigns are chaotic enough without tech troubles. Whether you’re adding new pages, updating your checkout process, or switching out product listings, make sure everything is tested well before your holiday rush begins. If you can, give yourself a solid month of prep time. And if something goes sideways, you’ll have time to fix it without derailing your entire season.
If you’re not a tech expert (or even if you are), things can go sideways quickly when you’re trying to juggle holiday promotions, customer questions, and website updates all at once. The last thing you need is for something to break right in the middle of a holiday rush— and trust me, trying to find tech support during the holidays is a whole other nightmare.
Make sure everything is running smoothly before the holiday rush begins. And if you can, invest in a professional to handle it for you. Letting someone else take care of the tech side will free you up to focus on what you do best— running your business like a boss.
Your Holiday Offers Should Feel Like a Present, Not An Afterthought
When you think of holiday sales, what comes to mind? Chances are, you’ve seen 10% discounts more times than you can count. If you’ve ever been scrolling through holiday deals and thought, “Wow, another 10% off... ground-breaking,” you’re not alone. Your customers feel the same way. During the holidays, everyone is running a sale, so what are you doing to stand out? 10% isn’t going to make anyone stop and say, “Wow, I need that!”
During the holidays, people are looking for deals that feel special. Consider offering something you wouldn’t normally provide during the rest of the year, like exclusive bundles, custom packages, or free gifts with a purchase. And if you're able to, aim for a higher discount percentage. The bigger the value you can offer, the more likely it is that customers will jump at the opportunity. It's all about standing out from the competition and providing an offer that feels too good to pass up. Your offer needs to feel exclusive. It should be something they can ONLY get during the holidays. That could be a free gift with purchase, a VIP upgrade, or even access to a limited-time service. Whatever it is, it needs to feel special.
Don't Miss Your Holiday Moment
At the end of the day, your website is the storefront that never closes, especially during the holidays. Whether you're selling products, booking services, or just trying to keep your audience engaged, giving your website a holiday glow-up is one of the best ways to set yourself up for success. The last thing you want is to miss out on the busiest time of year because your website wasn’t ready to handle the rush.
Here’s the bottom line: don’t wait until the holiday season is in full swing to start thinking about these updates. If you’re planning to outsource, lock in your spot with a designer now because, trust me, they’ll be booked up faster than you can say “Black Friday.” And if you’re taking the DIY route, plan ahead, test everything, and make sure your site is ready to convert when it matters most.
A little prep now can mean big results when the holiday rush hits. So go ahead— give your website the holiday glow-up it deserves, and watch the magic happen when the sales roll in.
Wanna outsource that? I've currently got just TWO spots left for custom branding and website projects, and just a handful of VIP Day spots left for the rest of 2024! Take one for yourself now, before it's too late!
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