• Give Free Shipping — Shoppers love the convenience of shopping online, but shipping charges often make them hesitate. Eliminate that stumbling block by offering free shipping for orders above a certain amount. You’ll increase sales and reduce the number of shopping carts abandoned before checkout. Even better if you offer free shipping directly to the gift recipient.
• Provide Deadlines — Be sure you post “last days” for ordering gifts to arrive before Christmas. USPS, UPS, and FedEx all have holiday delivery schedules to help you plan.
• Sell Gift Wrapping — Gift wrapping is a great add-on, because it’s profitable for you, but relatively cheap for your customers. It saves shoppers a lot of time during the busy holiday season. Plus, they don’t have to worry about kids sneaking a peek before they’ve had a chance to wrap packages!
• Advertise Gift Certificates — When they just can’t find the right present, customers fall back to gift certificates. Be sure your certificates are advertised prominently on your home page, and available in any amount. If it’s an online gift certificate, generate a nice-looking certificate they can print for the recipient.
• Offer Gift Baskets — Combine several smaller products into a single gift set. Pre-filled Christmas stockings are also popular.
• Make Recommendations — Make a page that explains who would enjoy your products. Offer suggestions based on relationship (“gifts for moms”) and lifestyle (“athletes’ favorites”). Keep this page updated year round—it will be useful for other gift-giving events, and great for SEO.

Online shoppers have a lot of choices, and it’s often not price that makes the difference, but convenience. Help your customers get a lot done, and they’ll keep coming back.

To all our clients and readers we wish a successful and trouble-free holiday season. Most importantly, we hope you and your families enjoy the holidays together and have a wonderful new year.