3 strategies to help your brand survive election (and holiday) season

Is it just me or has this election season been CRAZY?

So much so that experts are calling it a 'particularly unusual' election year.

I mean, American politics always kind of present as a bit of a rollercoaster, especially when you’re not from there. But this one deserves an Oscar for best drama series.

We’ve seen multiple mishaps. Falls. A debate that resembled the ramblings of two mad men. An assassination attempt. A drop out. A new candidate. And, oh wait, ANOTHER alleged assassination attempt.

Jesus, take the wheel.

We know good and well that with political noise comes an overcrowded space.

And that makes it difficult for marketers to break through. However, we’ve now reached an acceleration point as we quickly approach the peak.

According to Chad Crowe from AdAge, political strategists are now prioritising short form video platforms like YouTube and TikTok. This is creating traffic jams, high tolls, and spikes in both CPM and CPC rates across more media than previous cycles.

There’s heightened competition for attention as consumers become engrossed in political discourse. Throw holiday season into the mix, and we’ve got ourselves one hell of a challenge.

So Crowe says it’s time to go off-road with it.

So here are three strategies to help your brand stand out during this uncommon fourth quarter.

Redirect focus to areas more in your control.

The cost of acquiring new visitors to your site will skyrocket come October. Crowe believes it will be best to put your energy toward your current customers. Prioritise your conversion rate optimisation, as opposed to CMP (or, creative marketing platforms.)

'Look for three things: friction, noise and confusion,' explains Crowe. 'Focus first on friction points—where consumers get stopped, or where they toggle back and forth between pages. Your site needs to be frictionless this fall, and friction points reveal underlying issues around noise and confusion.'

He goes on to say, 'You lose a percentage of targets with every toggle. It means there’s something confusing about the product presentation, or there’s just too much to consider.'

Basically, Marie Kondo that sh*t. Cut out the unnecessary noise that’s causing your customers to drop off before they convert. Exploring solutions with A/B testing is also always a great way to know what’s working best so you can optimise your flow.

There’s nothing wrong with an early Christmas.

Especially because there are fewer days between Black Friday and Christmas this year. This means the holiday shopping season will be compressed. So the competition for attention and sales is about to be intense.

The solution, according to Crowe, is to begin figuring out your holiday messaging around any promos you plan to run. Test your user flows now to see what performs well sooner rather than later.

Even trying out different creative on your product detail pages will help make sure you’re prepped for the oncoming rush.

Create personalised shopping experiences with AI.

Personalisation has been at the top of the list of effective marketing tools this year. So has AI. If you haven't already, now's the time to integrate this into your CX (customer experience).

You can set up AI tools that will upsell your customers or offer discounts based on their behaviour on your site. Most of these AI products let you try them out for free. So don't wait until November--test these out now so you're ready when holiday shopping season hits.

However, this is not a spray and walk away approach. You can’t just engage with AI and expect it to do what you need out the box. You have to actively train it to do so.

Navigating the absolute chaos of this season may seem overwhelming at a glance, but it’s also an opportunity to fine tune your marketing strategies.

The key takeaway here is to adapt swiftly. Stay focused on what you can control, rather than getting caught up in the noise of it all.

Political campaigns may dominate the spotlight. But your brand can still shine through by being agile, creative, and customer-centric.

Refine your approach, survive the fourth quarter frenzy.

Who knows, you might even thrive x

-Sophie, Writer

🎙️ Dive Deeper:
The election chaos is real, and we break it all down on this week’s YAP Podcast. Get the full scoop here and stay in the loop with the latest twists.