Small business owners are already prepping for the Christmas holidays, as there are many shopping occasions from now through January including Black Friday, Christmas, New Year and Boxing Day to name a few. But did you know that there are other important days in the Christmas calendar that you can take advantage of? Here are two in particular to know about:
Singles Day: Today is the world's biggest e-commerce shopping day of the year occurs every November and it's not Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Singles Day, a once obscure Chinese holiday which lands today on the 11th of November each year, has skyrocketed in economic importance and is now a major retail moment where single and coupled consumers alike take advantage of enticing discounts and online specials.
Singles Day presents a great opportunity for British retailers to explore sales prospects in China
[1]: the market is now worth, according to research from PayPal, Google and OC&C Strategy Consultants, nearly £100 billion a year and is set to grow by 30% a year for the next three years to £130 billion by 2018. Your business can cash-in too, by offering deep discounts and deals, and special offers such as free shipping. Find out more information
here
Giving Tuesday: Established in 2012, Giving Tuesday is a relatively new event dedicated to charity, celebrated on the 1st of December, the first Tuesday afterThanksgiving in the U.S. Many consumers take a step back from the Christmas shopping madness and celebrate generosity. A global phenomenon celebrated all over the world, in 2013, PayPal helped nearly 400,000 nonprofits raise more than $5.7 billion dollars in North America alone.
How can small businesses get involved? Offer a Giving Tuesday promotion where a percentage of your earnings for the day go to a charity that is important to you and your employees. You could offer a discount for customers who make a payment with PayPal and pass any donation forward to a local charity or if you want to make a splash on social media, encourage your customers to promote your business by sharing their “acts of giving” on Facebook and Twitter. Find out more
here
For more ideas and tips about upcoming events and national holidays, small businesses can visit
PayPal Passport, filled with information to help increase your global sales opportunities.