As of today, there are only 23 days until Thanksgiving, 32 days until Hannukah, and 51 days until Christmas - which means there's not much time left before it's officially the holiday season. Since the holidays have a reputation of being one of the busiest times of the year, we thought it would be a good time to list some of the possible ways that you could start preparing.
Ergo, Pagemodo presents ten social media marketing materials to prepare now for the holidays:
1. Profile Pictures
With a touch of Photoshop, you can quickly get your logo to the top of the nice list. Try to think of iconic holiday items like snowflakes, Santa hats, or stars that you could easily combine with your logo. Even exchanging your brand colors for holiday colors (red, green, blue) could do the trick. Just be sure to stick to your branding design rules!
Here's what we did for Pagemodo and Webs last year:
2. Cover Photos
If you are updating your profile photo, it could be worth your time to design a holiday cover photo while you're at it! It's most common to do this on Facebook, but remember that your Twitter header photo deserves some holiday cheer as well. These areas of your profile hold the most real estate on your pages and can draw attention to a hashtag, contest, or other campaign important to you during this time of the year.
This KitKat example shows that it's also perfectly acceptable to just demonstrate your creativity and share in the happiness of the season!
3. Post Designs
It's no secret that visual content dominates social media in engagement. 93% of senior marketers listed photography as a critical social media component. Therefore, whether the image wishes a happy holiday, is an invitation, or shares an infographic; find a way to include it in your social media posts.
Here are some post design ideas to include this year...
4. GIFs
Now that Facebook and Twitter support sharing GIFs on their feeds, you should push the envelope and create some of your own GIFs for the holidays.
This may seem like a daunting task, but Instagram just released a new app called Boomerang which creates one-second looped videos that can be shared across platforms. Similar to the Manchester United video below, make sure the video is on brand and follows Instagram best practices.
A video posted by Manchester United Foundation (@manchesterunitedfoundation) on Oct 23, 2015 at 5:27am PDT
5. Videos
Video is dominating social media, and you can bet this will be one of the most used marketing tactics this holiday season, so don't get left behind. Conduct interviews, shoot behind-the-scenes footage, capture a festive day in the office - just remember to share it!
While we don't expect you to create quite the spectacle Target did in the video below, their Facebook version of the videohas a few helpful elements. (1) The video is a teaser to encourage viewers to visit their website (2) The link is included in the caption (3) They tag other Facebook Pages to increase reach and engagement with fans of that page. They reached over 700 likes and 75 shares for a reason.
6. Contests
Remember one of the best tools in your social tool kit is user-generated content. If you host a Facebook contest asking fans to contribute photos, videos, or other creative content for a prize, you could later use their entries to populate your social pages. Just remember to address that in your Facebook contest rules (required by Facebook).
This Bed, Bath, and Beyond contest features a great example of how you can incorporate other social platforms to your contests as well!
7. Branded Hashtags
Including trending hashtags can help improve Impressions and get your brand in front of many new fans and followers. But your own branded hashtag could take your holiday campaign to the next level. Not only is it incredibly effective for brand awareness, but it improves your ability to track the hashtag and see how well the campaign performed.
See some of our favorite branded hashtag holiday campaigns:
Finally caught the #ZapposGingerbreadMan: http://t.co/WBfV2TWbsp
- Simeon Edmunds (@simeonedmunds) December 23, 2013
#MacysBelieve raised $2M for @MakeAWish! Thank you, @Macys, for your generous support! pic.twitter.com/1ZgUKfIPmT
- Make-A-Wish OCIE (@MakeAWishOCIE) January 30, 2015
We found so many holiday DIYs that we want to craft all weekend! Who's in? #merrymodcloth http://t.co/4wNo1YnoGa pic.twitter.com/yJefxHlYuX
- ModCloth (@ModCloth) December 21, 2013
8. Blog Post Series
Support your photos, videos, GIFs, and hashtag campaigns with original content. Sending fans and followers to your blog can increase traffic, drive sign-ups/downloads/purchases, and impress coworkers.
Picking a theme for your series of posts can help you write ahead of time and be ready to share new and creative posts every day. Putting in this time now can free up time later in the year when you want to spend it with friends and family!
9. Themed Photo Albums and Pinterest Boards
During the holidays, everyone is looking to be inspired for the perfect gift for that special someone. Help them in their search with themed albums and boards that are on brand.
Think about your audience, what they will be searching for during this time and create "wishlists" that may help them reach their goals. Home Depot did a great job of this on Pinterest last year.
10. Your Website
Don't forget that social media is just one touch point your customers may have with your brand. If they see certain creative on your social media page (cover photo or post design), it is important to try and keep the look-and-feel of those designs consistent on your website. Think about your homepage, product pages, and even your blog pages you link to from social.
You should be one cohesive brand no matter where or how your customers interact with you.
How about you - are you ready for the holidays?
This post originally appeared on the Pagemodo blog