8 ways you can have your most successful festive season ever

In 60 seconds: 

• Despite financial worries, Gen Zers still want to spend this festive season. It’s up to you to support them and make the purchasing journey accessible and straightforward
• Gen Z students want some bang for their buck, so be sure to offer them extra value via discounts, reward schemes, and free delivery 
• It’s never too early to look at next year - start thinking about Christmas 2025 as soon as possible

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It's no secret that the festive season is the biggest spending period in the Gen Z student calendar (and ours, judging by the state of our bank accounts). It's the perfect opportunity for brands to boost their offerings and supercharge engagement, but we know that sometimes starting is the hardest part...

Luckily for you, we're here to help! In this blog post, we share our tips and tricks to help you boost your brand's efforts, and empower you to reach your target audience to have your most successful festive season yet.

Christmas 2024 tips and tricks: How to make your brand stand out

1. Focus on holiday spirit 

The festive season is full of food, love, and joy, and Gen Z doesn't want you to forget it! This generation of consumers seeks storytelling in the marketing they consume, so be sure to bring the magic moments and festive sparkle.

2. Relieve customer’s pain points 

Much like the rest of us, Gen Z shoppers are battling through tough economic times, but while bank accounts are nearing empty, spending will still be high.

Many young people still want to spend, so it's up to you to support them and make the process as straightforward as possible. From creating an easy purchase journey to offering great Christmas discounts, Gen Z needs your financial support more than ever and will reward you with their loyalty.

3. Stack your festive discounts

The competition is high, so how can you stand out? Offering stackable discounts, of course! 

Gen Z students want some bang for their buck, so consider offering free delivery, stackable discounts, free gifts upon purchase, or a loyalty program. Not only will it help your brand acquire new customers, but it’ll boost basket spend, too. 

And, great news - we're here to help! Pion’s verification, Beans iD, is your solution for creating gated offers for your website, app, and stores. Build brand loyalty amongst Gen Z, increase conversion rates, and make your brand stand out from competitors. Just get in touch to find out more. 

4. Enable cart abandonment emails 

Baby, it's cold outside, and Gen Zers are getting ready to snuggle up on the sofa with their phones to scroll and swipe through their wishlists.

As digital natives, Gen Zers will be doing an awful lot of online shopping this festive season, but not everyone commits to purchase immediately, and you don't want to let them get away…

Set up abandoned cart emails featuring personalized messaging to remind potential shoppers of what they left behind - entice them back in and secure that spending ASAP!

P.S. Want to know more about abandoned cart best practices? Check out our blog, where we dive into your pain points and share how you can boost your product with Pion’s verification, Beans iD. 

5. Be social media smart

You're busy, you're stressed, and you're up to our eyeballs in mince pies and tinsel, but don't neglect your social strategy. Paid and organic social media are great ways to engage new and existing customers, so be sure to keep this as a priority and don't be afraid to get creative.

Of those who celebrate Christmas in the UK, 38% of Gen Z prefer to see Christmas marketing on TikTok, with Instagram and YouTube coming in a close second. From gamification in social ads to influencer marketing, work smarter, not harder this year.

P.S. Gen Z engages best with peer-to-peer micro-influencers who can offer them authenticity and trust, and our Student Beans Creators deliver just that! 

6. Sprinkle some seasonal SEO magic

SEO is important all year round, but the festive season is its time to shine.

By incorporating festive keywords throughout your copywriting and product descriptions (think 'festive discounts' or ‘Christmas discount code’), you'll be able to align your website to customer searches and attract more potential spenders.

“Keyword research is important at all times but especially during the holiday season,” said Keith Moody, B2C SEO Content Lead Pion “Using your own data from tools like Google Search Console you can find what brings people to your site. For example, terms like ‘christmas gifts’ can be really competitive - but if you're a chocolatier then be specific and focus on terms like ‘christmas chocolate gifts’.

“You’ll also want to make sure you’ve got a specific Christmas landing page - don’t create one for each year, just update the one you have with helpful content that’s relevant to your audience. Finally, do some technical housekeeping and make sure your site is ready to cope with all that extra traffic!”.

 7. Tap into nostalgia

For those Gen Zers who celebrate Christmas, the most popular themes they want to see in Christmas marketing are creative, humorous, nostalgic, and emotional.

Essentially, Gen Zers want to go back to a time when they felt happy, safe, and cozy, without the overstimulation of social media. Storytelling is a massive part of this, so be sure to offer them connection and excitement in your marketing efforts.

And what does this mean for you? Well, channeling these sentiments will lead to positive brand association from young consumers, something that boosts brand affinity and goes well beyond driving sales in December.

8. Start planning Festive 2025!

We know, we've not even had Christmas 2024 yet, but it's never too early! Once you've welcomed in the New Year, start looking forward to the 2025 festive season to make the most of the spending period.

How to win over Gen Z loyalty this festive season

A survey recently conducted by Pion uncovered the real secret to winning over Gen Z loyalty: discounts and deals. 

A significant 83% of students say they’re more likely to shop with a brand that offers them a discount, and 85% would try a new brand if it came with a student discount. 

Why? Firstly, discounts help young people tackle rising inflation. They take away the guilt and boost spend, so everybody wins!. Secondly, like the rest of us, Gen Z wants to feel special. And nothing says ‘we appreciate you’ like an exclusive reward or personalized discount, so this festive season, brands need to roll out (or boost) their discounts. 

Want to know more about the world of student discounts? Pion has been a partner to leading retailers for 20 years, so if you’re a brand wanting to capture  Gen Z audiences this festive season (and all year round!), look no further: reach out and let the team discuss how Pion can help. 

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