Search is a temperamental entity which has human interest as its independent variable. We humans are fickle creatures – striving to enjoy as much as possible, in the small amount of time available to us.

Our lives are dictated by the way we view time; from our observance of the regimented structure of the day, to our recognition of the cyclic flow of the months, blending into seasons, ticking away the years.

The many traditions and conventions we celebrate and commemorate are embodied by the season they are in – the time they occur in the year. As such, consumerism is intrinsically linked to time – and thus to search – and we as marketers have a fundamental duty to prepare diligently for the seasonal splurges that so many of us conduct naturally – or else lose out on notable returns on investment.

Let’s look at December as a fairly blatant example; Christmas is coming and the goose is getting fatter than ever as far as the e-commerce world is concerned. Online markets have revolutionised the Christmas shopping frenzy, with tons of practical consumers far more content to purchase from the comfort of their computer than venture out to contend with crowds of competitors. There’s more choice, no travel expense and just about no hassle with online shopping – just as long as you get it done early enough in order to receive your parcels on time – and consumers are cottoning on at a rate of knots.

This seasonal specificity doesn’t just apply to festivals and celebrations, but from a practical perspective, for example winter will see far more searches related to fleeces, heaters, firewood, hoods, and snoods – just about anything insulating whereas the summer months will yields far more sun-related searches such as holidays, sunglasses and other ‘solar-powered keywords’.

Constantly regulating keyword performance and PPC campaigns on the basis of website traffic & conversion rates is just sightlessly overlooking the profound impact of seasonal fads and necessities on said site traffic & conversions. Let’s use some common sense here.

Going back to Christmas, what sets this pinnacle of consumerism apart is the compulsion people everywhere feel to shop. The greatest gifts must be brought, the tastiest traditional dinners made and the most tasteful/terrible Christmas décor brought to satisfy us.

We as marketers must take advantage of this; Time is of the essence.

1. Schedule Content in the Build-Up to the Big Day

Timing is key with regard to the distribution of your content in the build-up to Christmas. In order to ensure lucrative returns, you ought to have a well-ordered schedule of how to handle your marketing endeavour at least a month before Christmas, but more advisably as soon as possible – there’s no time like the present.

This schedule could include a constant stream of high quality copy, followed by a newsletter announcing a post-Christmas sale, constant social media updates positioned tactfully in appropriate channels informing consumers of both the sale and the current availability and finally the sale to profit even when the 25^th has come and gone.

You want your brand to be gaining coverage as early as possible because consumers vary on when they conduct their Christmas shop, ranging from early birds seeking to enter the market as early as November and the more forgetful shopper who’s sheepishly surfing the net as late as the 20^th December.

2. Top Quality, Engaging Content is a Must

This is pretty much a given for any marketing campaign, seasonally focussed or otherwise, as Google continue their merciless crackdown on thin content focussed on a duplicitous agenda.

Having rolled out a fresh Panda update last month, any sneaky SEOs seeking to garner backlinks through keyword-congested, stodgy content have been dealt a deadening blow.

Moreover, the presentation of good content is almost as important as the quality of the work itself as the influence of social media continues to mushroom. On top of how to guides, articles and in-depth studies, content marketers ought to also consider producing instructional videos, vibrant infographics and podcasts to entice a wider audience and promote these on Youtube and even Vine.

Regarding, the coming festive months, these alternate forms of content can be presented in a Christmassy fashion, with the underlying motive of attracting consumers to your own selection of seasonal goods, for example a video on how to fill your Christmas stocking without stirring from your seat.

The greater the number of people you reach, the more chance you have of snaring them with your marketing strivings – you could even consider running a competition to lure in prospective leads with the promise of Christmas freebies!

So in essence…

Guys, as always it’s all about understanding your audience when it comes to marketing your goods; given your audience in the coming winter is just about every consumer on the web, the potential for massive returns on investment is just too tantalising not to take thorough advantage off.

Pull your stockings up and get Christmas cracking!