Key Dates, Budgets, and Promotion Tips for the Season Ahead
Now we’ve officially crossed into Spring, it’s time to get our heads around the reality of preparing to make the most of the end of year promotional season’s opportunities.
Yes, Christmas is coming. But before then, we begin riding the wave of seasonal sales that make up the EOY season. This can begin as early as Labour Weekend in late October, but really ramps up when November hits and retailers begin Black Friday sales – sometimes weeks out from the actual day itself. Following that, we’re straight into December and Christmas shopping, followed by Boxing Day and Summer/New Year’s sales.
Also remember we have the election season hitting from mid-October with the run up to voting day on 7th November. This will likely add some uncertainty into the mix, especially for big-ticket item sales.
To help prepare for all of this and help you make the most of the season ahead, we’ve prepared some handy pointers for our ecommerce clients below. In the coming weeks we’ll be making time to work on some sales strategies with you, too. In the meantime, have a read of the ideas and must-have pointers below, and make a plan to get in touch for a chat about your EOY online sales strategy, soon!
Why Prepare Now?
Good news! We expect this year’s end-of-year shopping season to be up on last year as online shopping continues to grow. Despite NZ taking longer to move out of the economic downturn we’re experiencing and the cost of living crisis impacting consumer spending this year, online shopping is still growing here and sources predict a bigger shopping season than ever.
Some quick stats on ecommerce sales and consumer surveys this year so far:
- Online retail is growing six times faster than in-store – meaning a top-quality online presence and seamless transactions via your website are more important than ever.
- Online shopping spend in Q4 this year is predicted to be up in 2025, and that’s not just inflation-driven; transactions are up YOY in the first half of 2026 and looking to continue that way as we hit the end of the year.
- Online shopping spend in Q4 this year is predicted to be UP on 2025, and that’s not just inflation-driven; transactions are up YOY in the first half of 2026 and looking to continue that way as we hit the end of the year:
(source: NZ Post, Online retail grows as cautious confidence returns, 2026). - 78% of shoppers find shopping inspiration from online search (think Google) or social media:
This puts CM in a unique position to help you out with our expertise across Google organic and paid search and social media marketing. - Key drivers for purchase decisions are product quality, price, and discounts:
(source: https://www.facebook.com/business/2026-meta-holiday-insights-center/customer-insights - Why your social media presence matters for your prospective customers – From Meta’s Festive Season consumer report: “Social shoppers are far more commercially engaged than the average holiday shopper. They plan to spend more (49% intend to increase spending year on year, compared to 36% overall), shop across more product categories (5.4 vs 4.3 average) and are more likely to self-gift (83% vs 67%)”
Key Dates And Info For This Season’s Promotions:
- Election Uncertainty – Our election on 7th November will throw some uncertainty into the mix, with some consumers holding off on large purchasers prior to the government being confirmed.
- Black Friday Is Closer To Christmas – Black Friday is 27th November — only 28 days until Christmas, so about a week less than most years. Keep this in mind when planning your ad spend.
- Give The System Time To Learn – To make the most of the automation and AI inherent in your Google and Meta ad campaigns, you need to be running sales ads sooner rather than later. Gone are the days of turning on a campaign for only a few days and expecting instant results. Advertisers need to make the most of the intelligent systems built into their campaigns and have them running for at least a week or two before big sales event days.
- Plan Budgets Ahead of Time – Plan budget and spend Oct->Nov->Dec->Jan to cover all of the key promotions you want to show up for.
- Get Your Data Sorted – As we’ve learned in the last couple of years, your first-party data is critical to helping your ecommerce efforts. Keep your email and customer lists up to date and linked to your ad platforms (we can help with that!), and if you’re not already consider using a consumer focused email marketing platform like Klaviyo to drive direct sales from your email audience.
Some quick to-do’s to help you prepare for the shopping season ahead:
Your Shopping Season To-Do List:
- Now is the time to start planning! Talk to your Conversion Marketing account manager to plan your online promotions for the coming months.
- Plan your media spend budget to make the most of key sales dates; Labour Weekend, Black Friday sales, Christmas, Boxing Day. Ideally campaigns are in place well ahead of time, and allow for scaling up during peak promotional periods.
- Get your creative sorted well ahead of time. Ask us for specs and recommendations so the ad set up goes as quickly and smoothly as possible.
- Make sure your Google Merchant centre and Meta Shopping Feeds are all up to date and there are no product disapproval or shipping issues.
Let’s Get Planning
We’re here to help you make the most of the peak shopping season ahead. Let’s talk soon about the key sales dates you want to focus on and how we can help with the right digital tactics for your business. Happy selling!