The festive season is here. In the blink of an eye, we will have occasions like Diwali and Christmas. The period between October to December is considered ripe by both online and offline retailers to ramp up sales. The festive winter season calls for meets, greets, and gift exchanges.

Will the festivals be the same in this post-COVID reality?

The new normal is all about e-Commerce, and people are embracing how it has brought convenience to their shopping experiences. By studying the current scenarios, it is understood that e-Commerce is expected to see a recurring growth in the upcoming months.

The top e-Commerce marketplaces have their own festive sales events such as Flipkart’s Big Billion Day sale and Amazon’s Great Indian Festival. These are marketed aggressively with massive discounts to attract Indian consumers.

Listed are a few simple ways by which you can remain on track during the big festival season and optimise your online store's sales.

1. Optimise your website load time

You don’t want your online store to crash during the peak festive season. Your online store is the touchpoint for your customers. Hence, it is vital for your online store that it loads quickly. Unfortunately, too many visits simultaneously, especially on festive sales, can make this happen. The ideal time for page load speed is three seconds – after that, the visitor might lose interest and leave your store. Page load speed is a vital Google ranking factor too.

Also read: Want to make your ecommerce store go from good to great? – Here is how!

2. Secure your online store

Site security is an essential factor in the consumer’s mind while making a purchase online. Ensure that your website has SSL certificates to boost customer confidence and increase your site security. Also, using trust badges/seals has been known to boost customer confidence in site security.

3. Optimise your online store for mobile

During the festive season, more people browse online stores from their mobile or tablet than usual. You shouldn’t lose these visitors just because your online store is not optimised for mobile. Make sure it’s easy to browse products and make a purchase through a mobile or tablet on your online store.

4. Shipping optimisation

In situations of increased orders during the festive period, it is crucial to maintain the supply chain to reach the customers in the promised time frame. Assurance of timely delivery will create customer delight and also build the trust reputation of your brand.

Also read: GlobalLinker’s ecommerce platform even makes product shipping & delivery easy for you

5. Optimise customer support

It is essential to maintain a strong support system on the backend to handle the increased customer queries. This will help maximise conversions and engage and guide shoppers through every step of the buying process. Another way to do this is by providing a live chat feature on your online store. This will ensure that your customers have a touchpoint for interaction with your brand.

Understanding the new normal in this era of digital retail is no rocket science. The festive season rush stays pretty much the same because shoppers are going shopping; the only difference is they are going digital. As an e-Commerce store owner, you need to look  into the mentioned ways to make the most of this opportunity.

Also read: How to market your business this holiday season

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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views, official policy or position of GlobalLinker.