For print on demand companies, the holiday shopping season can be boom or bust. It’s no exaggeration to say that many sellers depend on this final stretch of the year to pad their yearly revenues and make their annual sales targets. For print on demand sellers looking to remain as competitive as possible, every sale matters and every little bit helps.
As such, it’s crucial not just to generate as many transactions as possible, but to boost the average value of those transactions. There are a few specific strategies we’d recommend for any print on demand retailer looking to increase average cart value.
Holiday 2022 Tips: To Increase Order Value
1) Consider custom stocking stuffers.
One proven strategy is to add stocking stuffer gifts—like porcelain ornaments—which are low-cost items that provide great profit margins.
These products aren’t necessarily your store’s bread and butter, but they’re easy items that your customer can add to their cart during their shopping experience. Because your customer is already about to make a purchase and in the buying mindset, they’re much more likely to add these items to their cart, especially if the price is lower than the original product they added to their cart. This is the same reason why grocery stores put candy/gum near the checkout aisle.
The bottom line? Custom stocking stuffers can be a great way to entice impulse buys, to pad out order value, and to increase average cart size throughout the holiday shopping season.
2) Offer free shipping for orders over a certain amount.
This is a pretty common strategy, one that many print on demand sellers have employed to good effect. By offering free shipping for orders that meet a certain threshold, you can increase the odds of customers adding items to their carts simply to avoid paying expensive shipping fees. Even if the total dollar amount of their order goes up, they’ll feel like they’re getting a better deal.
Of course, executing this strategy will require you to coordinate with your fulfillment partner to ensure that you’re not actually losing money on shipping.
3) Combine products into holiday bundles.
Remember that many of your holiday 2022 shoppers are going to be in search of the perfect gift. One way to help them make their decision is to bundle similar items, providing them at a slightly discounted rate when people buy them together.
Not only is this a good way to provide ready-made gift items, but it can help increase order value, too.
4) Make the next product X percent cheaper.
Here’s another tried-and-true tactic to consider for your print on demand business: Make a product available at full price but offer a significant discount should the customer purchase a second or third one. You might even say that the fifth or sixth item is free.
This not only helps you increase order value but can also give you an edge among customers who might be comparison-shopping with other print on demand retailers.
5) Cross-sell and upsell.
Naturally, cross-selling and upselling are both outstanding ways to increase your average cart size.
Do you have customers looking at a low-tier product? Coax them to upgrade to the better, pricier version. Do you have customers looking at one thing? Try to get them interested in ancillary products, too.
6) Offer free gifts.
Finally, you might consider making an offer of free holiday 2022 gifts for customers who hit a certain order size, or who purchase products in a particular price bracket. This can be another opportunity to put those custom stocking stuffers to good use!
Increase Average Cart Value for Holiday 2022
To ensure a successful holiday shopping season, you need as many orders as possible. But you also need those orders to be as sizable as can be, adding further padding to your bottom line.
As you consider ways to increase average cart value, make sure you work in close collaboration with your print on demand fulfillment partner. Here at Gooten, we’d love to help your print on demand company exceed all its seasonal sales goals. Contact us whenever you’re ready to discuss potential holiday 2022 strategies!
