Written by ContentPowered.com
Christmas is nearly upon us, and it’s time to start setting your holiday themed Facebook updates into motion. Wait, what do you mean you don’t have anything special planned? You’d better get on it; millions of people will be shopping for the holidays, and they’re looking for something special to convince them to buy from you.
1. Holiday Deals Advent Calendar
An advent calendar is a traditional countdown calendar running from the Advent – sometime between late November and early December – to Christmas. As a business, you can adapt the term to whatever duration you want, which is good, because we’re already past the Advent. The point of the Advent Calendar is to include a small gift each day, which you can do in the form of minor discounts and deals leading up to your bigger Christmas sales.
2. Christmas Themed Profile Picture
Your profile picture is very likely your logo. With a little creative graphic design, you can make a holiday-themed logo to fit the season. Put a Santa hat on your icon, hang a wreath from it, turn individual components into ornaments, put the boughs of a Christmas tree behind it; your creativity is the limit.
3. Holiday Cover Photo
Just as you might customize your profile picture, you can customize your cover photo. You can do something simple with a border of Christmas lights, you can tie it into your profile picture’s theme, you can tie it into your marketing or you can just post a picture of a holiday tree; again, you can do anything that suits your creative direction.
4. Holiday Themed User Picture Contest
What’s better than getting user feedback and engagement this holiday season? Run a simple contest asking users to submit their best seasonal pictures. Ask them to build a snowman, ask them to take pictures with Christmas costumes, ask them to come by your physical location and pose with a Santa cutout, and give some prize when they do.
5. Simple Xmas Craft Tutorials
Though it might seem more suited to Pinterest than Facebook, simple holiday crafting tutorials can go a long way towards bringing in more engagement to your page this season. You can even post them on your blog, pin them on Pinterest and link to the pin on Facebook for a triple whammy of links and engagement. As a bonus, use items you sell in the crafting, to encourage more sales.
6. Christmas Card Promotion
You can share a lot of good cheer with a few creative Christmas cards. Ask for email opt-ins and send a seasonal greeting e-card to their inbox. Send a free Christmas thank-you card along with any order made during the season. Ask for users to send in Christmas cards to you, and post pictures of the best cards and a display of the final total.
7. Charity Fundraiser
Tis the season of giving, and few causes are better than “insert your favorite charity here.” Pick a charity, something aligned with your interests and those of your users, and collected donations to give to that charity at the end of the year. If you’re not sure who you could choose, you can do your research through CharityWatch.
8. Carol-Themed Promotions
Christmas carols can be an endless source of inspiration. First of all, there are hundreds of carols to choose from, ranging from classics of unknown origin to modern pop jingles. Secondly, the lyrics are always symbolic of the holiday cheer, and you can use that to tie in to a promotion. Plus, there’s always a few ready-made ideas for you.
9. Basic Holiday Discounts
Running a basic discount promotion is easy, but for Christmas you need to keep a lot in mind. For one thing, you need to emphasize the social aspects of a Facebook promotion. For another, you can really benefit from competitive research to find out what kind of holiday campaigns you’re up against.
10. Branded Holiday Photos
Just take a look at the Coca-Cola Facebook page and you’ll be struck by the number of recent pictures they have posted, all with a holiday theme. In reality, no one is going to use cans of Coke as holiday gifts, but the idea works for a promotion. All it takes is putting a bow on a can and they have an easy branded holiday picture to share.
11. Office Party Pictures
Assuming your business is more than just you and your computer, you probably have employees. Get together with them and have a holiday party. Encourage dressing for the season and take holiday pictures to get everyone in the spirit. Share these candids to spark discussion and humanize your brand on Facebook.
12. Unify a Website Decorative Theme
The first two tips were about customizing the images on your Facebook profile. You can take it one step further and customize the rest of your presence online, complete with Christmas-themed website graphics, logos and profile pictures throughout your social presence. You can even dress up your monthly newsletter!
13. Favorite Holiday Recipes
Only a few types of businesses can pull off the recipe post, but if you can, it’s a great way to boost engagement over the long term. Post a recipe and ask users if they have a similar tradition, or ask them to post pictures of their completed dish, or ask them to review it once they’ve made it. Instant engagement, easier than instant mashed potatoes.
14. Poll for User Celebration Ideas
Running out of ideas and don’t like any you’ve done before? Go ahead and ask your users how they celebrate the season! Asking people about their unique holiday traditions can get a lot of user discussion going, and it can give you some interesting insight into your users. Just make sure not to take a personal tradition and warp it into a commercialized promotion.
15. Holiday Facebook Ads
Don’t forget Facebook ads! The sidebar and the news feed are in full force for the holidays, and some holiday-themed promotions can go a long way. Christmas up your graphics and your copy to draw in added seasonal attention. Just don’t let the ads run longer than the holidays.
Monique Fording
says:Thank you Eric, these are great!