TLDR

Competing with massive chains like Starbucks for customer attention and sales can seem like an uphill battle. Their marketing teams have nearly unlimited resources to create eye-catching push notifications, social media campaigns, and in-store promotions. How can your small business keep up? The good news is with the right mobile marketing partner and strategy, you absolutely can. In this article, we'll explore Starbucks's most effective holiday marketing tactics and provide actionable tips for how you can implement similar campaigns with your twist.

Learn From Starbucks' Winning Holiday Marketing Strategy

To successfully compete with Starbucks this holiday season, study their winning marketing strategies and implement similar campaigns.

1. Push Notifications

Starbucks utilizes push notifications and mobile app messaging to spread holiday cheer and drive sales. They send festive greetings, announce seasonal drink releases, and promote deals to engage customers. Per Diem's white-label mobile apps offer robust push notification features to connect with your guests in a personal way.

2. Social Media

Starbucks dominates social media during the holidays with 13 custom cup designs representing different cultures. They encourage customers to share photos of the collectible cups on Instagram and Twitter using holiday hashtags. Build buzz on social media by posting photos of your holiday cups, pastries, and coffees. Ask customers to share their experiences at your shop.

3. Loyalty Programs

Starbucks rewards loyal customers during the holidays with bonus "stars" and freebies. Per Diem integrates with Square to offer loyalty programs so you can offer holiday incentives through your app like free add-ons or percentage discounts for frequent buyers.

4. In-Store Experience

Starbucks creates an immersive holiday ambiance with festive decor, themed products, and seasonal music. Enhance your in-store experience by decorating for the holidays, playing holiday tunes, and featuring holiday-inspired menu items, pastries, and coffees. An inviting atmosphere and specialty offerings will attract new and returning customers.

Use Push Notifications to Drive Holiday Sales

To gain a competitive edge this holiday season, leverage push notifications to drive sales and boost customer engagement. Push notifications are an effective way to stay top of mind during the busy holidays and encourage customers to visit your app or website.

Offer Seasonal Discounts and Promotions

Run holiday promotions featuring discounts, coupon codes, and special offers exclusively through push notifications. For example, you might offer 10% off all gift cards or $5 off any purchase over $20. Time-limited flash sales are also a great way to spur impulse buys and increase average order value.

Share Festive Content

Push notifications don’t have to be purely promotional. Share holiday greetings, recipes or other content to spread seasonal cheer and keep your brand on customers’ minds. For example, you might share a recipe for peppermint mochas or snowman cupcakes. 

Remind Customers of Key Dates

Use push notifications to remind customers of important holiday dates like the last day to order for delivery by Christmas or pre-order deadlines. This helps ensure customers have a positive experience with your brand during the busy season.

Drive Gift Card Purchases

Push notifications are an ideal channel for promoting gift cards, an easy and popular holiday gift. Offer a bonus gift card amount for every gift card purchased over a minimum threshold. For example, “Buy a $25 gift card, get $5 free.” or “Spend $100 on gift cards, get a $20 bonus card.”

By leveraging push notifications this holiday season, you can boost sales, strengthen customer relationships, and gain ground on competitors like Starbucks. The key is using a strategic, well-timed mix of promotions, seasonal content, reminders, and gift card offers. 

Offer Digital Gift Cards in Your Mobile App

By offering gift cards directly in your mobile app, you provide customers with a convenient way to give the gift of your coffee or food this season. Customers can purchase gift cards right from your app and have them delivered instantly to the recipient's email or mobile wallet. Some benefits of offering digital gift cards in your app include:

• Customers can buy gift cards anytime from anywhere using their mobile device. This flexibility and convenience may lead to more gift card sales.
• Digital gift cards are eco-friendly since there is no physical card to print and mail. Customers who prefer sustainable options may appreciate this.
• Gift cards purchased through your app provide valuable customer data like who is buying the gift cards and who is redeeming them. You can use this information to better target your marketing campaigns.
• Digital gift cards can be designed with festive holiday themes to match your brand and get customers in the spirit of the season. Apps like Canva allow you to easily create customized card designs.
• Gift card deals, such as bonus cards or discounts when purchasing a certain amount, are an excellent way to boost gift card sales during the holidays. Promoting these deals through your mobile app and email marketing will maximize results.

Spread Holiday Cheer With Customized Messaging

During the holiday season, personalized push notifications are an impactful way to engage customers and spread good cheer. As a coffee shop or restaurant, you can use push notifications to promote seasonal specials, share festive greetings, and brighten up patrons’ days with small acts of kindness.

Offer Seasonal Specials and Promotions

Push notifications are an ideal channel to advertise holiday sales and promotions to your loyal customers. For example, you might send an alert highlighting a special “12 Days of Christmas” promotion with a different deal each day, or a New Year’s Eve countdown offer. Keep messages short and eye-catching, with a clear call to action to drive redemptions. Track which offers resonate best with your customers to refine future seasonal campaigns.

Share Warm Holiday Greetings

Customers appreciate businesses that make an effort to connect on a more personal level during the holidays. Send push notifications wishing your patrons a “Merry Christmas,” “Happy Hanukkah,” or a general “Happy Holidays” message. You might also thank them for their patronage and support over the past year. These small gestures go a long way in strengthening customer goodwill and loyalty.

Surprise and Delight

For an extra special holiday treat, send surprise rewards or small gifts to delight select customers. For example, you could offer a free holiday drink, a gift card toward a future purchase, or a sweet holiday treat with their next order. Choose recipients at random from your loyalty program members or most frequent customers. Let them know the reward was sent as a small token of your appreciation for their continued business. These types of surprises will surely make their day and keep them coming back.

Sign Up Now for a Free 3 Month Trial of Push Notifications

To compete with Starbucks’ robust holiday marketing campaigns, now is the time for your business to leverage the power of push notifications. Per Diem is offering a complimentary 3-month trial of in-app push notifications. This provides access to:

• Automated holiday campaigns: Run holiday promotions for Christmas countdowns and New Year’s Eve specials. Personlize the messaging, and schedule to deploy.
• Gift card promotion: Easily create and sell digital gift cards through your mobile app. Then use push notifications to promote gift card sales and special offers for gift card redemption.
• Analytics and reporting: Gain valuable insights into your customers and the impact of your push notification campaigns. See open rates, click-through rates, and more to optimize your future marketing efforts.

To take advantage of this exclusive offer for new customers, sign up now and avail your free 3-months of push notifications. You have nothing to lose and an opportunity to gain loyal customers this holiday season. Connect with your customers in a personalized way and drive more traffic and sales with targeted mobile messaging.

Final Thoughts 

Competing with major brands may seem daunting, but with the right tools and techniques focused on customer experience, you can thrive this season and beyond. The holidays come but once a year, so make the most of it and let your creative marketing shine through. With some extra effort and the help of platforms built for businesses like yours, you'll be well on your way to building lifelong customer relationships and memories. The time is now - go forth and make this your most successful holiday season yet!