When we think of the end of the year, something that always comes to mind is the holidays. Joy and happiness suddenly become emphasized in our surroundings, and the physical décor of stores, restaurants, etc., typically changes to something more spirited and warming.
But what about online stores? Business owners decorate their actual bricks and mortar, so why not their websites too?
Some people don’t have time to make changes to their site and remove them accordingly for every holiday; however, not participating in the holiday cheer could be leaving your business behind its competitors.
How so, you ask?
Well, here’s just a few reasons why you may want to consider not being the Grinch of the web this year:
♦ Designing your website to accommodate the spirit of the holidays lets your customers know that you don’t only see them as a source of revenue for your business. Even by simply adding a little santa hat or some snowflakes falling onto your logo, the site becomes more alive and welcoming. Users will no longer feel like just another pair of eyeballs on your website. The benefit of this is that they won’t be so hasty to judge the site as being there solely to reach for their pocket. Instead, the friendly décor suggests your business is more concerned with their satisfaction than simply whether or not they are spending their money there. The subtext is that you’d rather have a relationship with them specifically, and not just their wallet.
♦ Advertising your business as one that embraces the holidays also lets users know that things on your site are relevant and up-to-date. If Thanksgiving just passed and they go back to check your site and it’s already done up for Christmas – suddenly they get the feeling that you aren’t just keeping your site up for revenue purposes so much as you are in order to stay closer to your community, not only as a business, but as a person yourself. The decorations help to personify your website and give users an inviting experience.
♦ Lastly, adding a few ornaments or something similar helps to bring about a more connected feeling between your business and its site users. This shows that your business website is more like a local store – warm and friendly – instead of cold and corporate, like some sort of money hungry entity.
Celebrating the holidays on your website isn’t necessary, but as you can see it does have it’s perks when it comes to the online world of business. Although this is true, it’s also possible to overdo the holiday designs – so much so that it detracts from your website’s functionality and usability. Beware of this common mistake if you do decide to get into the holiday spirit of the web. Remember – keep it low key, but unique and friendly.
Clever decorations all around us like ornaments, snowflakes, and bells remind us of something happy and comforting like spending time by the fire with our families or opening gifts on a chilly, winter morning. Strive to make your site invoke the same emotions and you’ll be surprised at the response your customers have.
If you’re looking for ideas, we’ll leave you with a couple cool designs we thought were great representations of how to go about decorating your site for the holidays:
