Let the Christmas shopping begin. Tis the season for hopelessly looking for the perfect present and feeling like you’ll never find it. It’s a difficult time of year but you could put the cheer back into your customer’s holiday season. Many corporations are doing this very thing. Take Urban Outfitters for example. They have an excellent section on their website dedicated to helping their customers find the perfect gift for their loved ones. They have a list of gifts for guys, a list of gifts under $50, a stocking stuffer list, they even have a gift list for personality types!

Holiday gift lists aren’t just for corporations. I recently visited the websites of some of my favorite local shops to see what they have for the holidays and there was nothing. Many of them are still highlighting spring and summer merchandise. My time is limited so I’m likely to only go to the shops I know have the merchandise I’m interested in.

I know I’m not the only one with limited time. You have to make it easy and quick for your customers, otherwise they will go elsewhere. Here are some tips to help you make your website holiday friendly:

1. Create a page on your site for the holidays.
2. Create different lists depending on your customer base. Examples include: Gifts for Him, Gifts for Her, Hanukkah gifts, employee picks (book stores have been doing this for ages), Gifts for the Cook, Gifts for the traveler, Gifts for the reader, etc…
3. Take good quality pictures of the merchandise you are highlighting in your gift lists.
4.Make the page tastefully holiday themed without clashing with your current website design.
5. Give brief but descriptive explanations of the products or better yet, link to your online store (if you have one). Make buying as convenient as possible.
6. If customers purchase through your Holiday List, give a discount code for the store or a printable coupon to take to your brick and mortar location.