Winning Peak Season: Your precision planning guide 

This is part 1 of our series on navigating peak season performance marketing, where we’ll be sharing expert insights and actionable strategies to help you maximise results and stay ahead of the competition during the busiest time in retail.  

Peak season may not be as 'peaky' as it once was, but it remains a highly competitive and profitable time for retailers, with UK sales expected to hit £96.16 billion in 2024 (Statista). The dynamics of peak season have changed. It’s no longer just about the final rush of December. With consumers starting their holiday shopping earlier, the pressure is on to capture their attention from the very beginning. The rise in advertising costs means that every pound spent must be strategically allocated to maximise returns. Mistakes in platform setup, targeting, or creative execution can lead to missed opportunities and wasted budgets. 

In this blog, we'll guide you through the art of precise planning to help navigate the complexity of peak season. We created the peak season planner, aligning key actions like data audits and creative refreshes with specific timelines to drive conversions. This strategic approach ensures you maximise performance during key shopping periods and sustain momentum well beyond the holiday rush. 

Phase 1 (12 weeks to go)

In this foundational phase, the primary focus should be on laying the groundwork for your campaigns. The actions taken during this initial stage will not only set the tone for the remainder of the peak season but also empower brands to navigate the competitive landscape with both confidence and clarity.

To begin, review insights from past peak seasons to understand which strategies were successful and which areas were need improvement. Dive into performance metrics, such as conversion rates, click-through rates, and return on ad spend (ROAS). By identifying trends and patterns, you can make informed decisions that enhance your future campaigns.

Once you have a clear understanding of past performance, you can start building top-of-mind awareness through strategic campaigns designed to resonate with your target audience. Tailor your creative assets for various platforms, ensuring to include diverse ad formats (like carousels, single images, etc) that will capture attention across different channels. Additionally, setting up A/B testing for ad copy and landing pages will allow you to identify the most effective messaging and creative, ensuring your campaigns remain competitive.

Ensure that your campaign tracking is accurate through tools like Google Tag Manager and Pixel. This step is crucial, as it ensures your campaigns are built on solid data and actionable insights. Identify your business KPIs and ensure to align your bidding strategies with your overall goals. Moving forward, establish a learning agenda for ongoing optimisation, which will help ensure you are tracking your progress from the very start. This plan should outline how you will analyse data throughout the peak season, including which specific metrics you’ll monitor and how often you’ll review performance.

By implementing these foundational elements now, you'll be well-positioned to take advantage of the opportunities that peak season presents.

Phase 2 (8 weeks to go)

With eight weeks to go, it’s time to shift your focus towards audience building and creative optimisation, as this phase is all about enhancing data accuracy and tailoring your messages to meet seasonal demands.

Begin by implementing customer lists in your platforms to create targeted audiences. By leveraging existing customer data, you can identify high-value segments, such as previous purchasers, website visitors, or individuals who have engaged with your brand on social media. As you continue this process, optimise your creative assets for seasonality, making adjustments based on search queries and platform specifics. incorporating seasonal themes, timely promotions, and popular keywords can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your campaigns.

To further enhance engagement, utilise dynamic ads that adapt to individual user preferences. For example, Dynamic Search Ads for Google automatically generate ad content based on user queries and your product inventory, ensuring that potential customers see the most relevant offerings at the right moment.

Maintaining your top-of-mind awareness campaigns will also be crucial in keeping your brand visible and engaging. In terms of automation, take the time to review your bidding strategies to align with higher funnel goals, such as generating clicks or encouraging users to add items to their baskets. Monitor platform-specific performance benchmarks and tracking multi-touch attribution to better allocate your budget. Additionally, employ budget scheduling to ensure your campaigns run smoothly without resetting the learning phase

Phase 3 (4 weeks to go)

With just four weeks to go, it's essential to consolidate your efforts and ensure that every element of your marketing strategy is optimally aligned. This phase serves as a critical juncture where brands can leverage their insights, refine their creative messaging, and implement last-minute strategies to enhance customer engagement.

Ensure optimal use of custom audiences and re-marketing lists to effectively reach your audience, while also streamlining your campaign structures to reduce complexity. This will make it easier to manage multiple initiatives effectively. As you progress, closely track in-platform conversion performance and analyse audience insights for final optimisations to refine your campaigns as the peak season approaches.

In addition to these strategies, highlight promotions and seasonal offers in your creative messaging, employing countdowns and urgency-driven content to encourage immediate action. To maximise effectiveness, ensure your creative is tested across both social and search ads. Furthermore, align your bid strategy with last-minute purchasing behaviours and utilise effective budget scheduling to enhance your campaign’s impact.

Phase 4 (After peak)

This phase marks a crucial transition, where brands not only assess their performance but also strategise for continued success beyond the holiday rush. With insights gained from the bustling weeks of peak trading, it's time to review your campaign structures and audience data to determine what worked and what could be improved.

Implement post-peak messaging targeting lapsed or late shoppers. These customers, who may have shown interest but did not complete purchases, can be re-engaged through tailored campaigns, special offers, or reminders about abandoned carts. This approach can revive interest and encourage conversions even after the peak shopping rush. 

When scaling down automated bidding strategies, do so carefully to avoid unnecessary waste while maintaining market visibility. Leverage insights from your peak performance analysis to inform your bidding adjustments, ensuring competitiveness without overspending. Keep the momentum by launching campaigns aimed at re-engaging these lapsed customers through targeted emails or social media ads that highlight your offerings. Nurturing these relationships fosters repeat business and strengthens brand loyalty. 

Finally, conduct a comprehensive performance analysis across all platforms. This analysis should assess what worked well and identify areas for improvement in your marketing mix, including digital and social media channels. By gathering insights on customer behaviour and engagement metrics, you can enhance future campaigns for continuous improvement. 

Final words  

By aligning these tasks with specific timeframes, you can implement a strategic, phased approach that builds momentum before peak season, maximises conversions during key shopping periods, and leverages insights to ensure activity drives continued success afterward. This planner is also platform-agnostic, with strategies for both paid search and paid social, ensuring seamless integration across channels – crucial for optimising performance during such a competitive time. 

Ready to take your peak season performance to the next level? Download the playbook and get started.