From Our Community: Holiday Shopping Stats, Mobile Trends


From Our Community: Holiday Shopping Stats, Mobile Trends

It’s the time of year when businesses are preparing for the holiday shopping rush. Some recent reports have suggested that those businesses may be in for a busier season than they’ve experienced in recent years.

This week, members of our community shared some insights about the upcoming holiday shopping season. And plenty of other news and tips are also included in our weekly Small Business Trends community roundup.

Holiday Retail Sales Expected to Climb

(Marketing Land)

The holiday shopping season is right around the corner. And this year, some reports are suggesting that sales will increase from last year’s holiday season, especially for ecommerce companies. Amy Gesenhues outlines some of the numbers and what businesses might expect in terms of holiday sales.

Tips for Social Media Engagement

(StuartJDavidson.com)

You probably already use social media in some form. But how do you get your customers and potential customers to actually engage with you on these platforms? This post from Brittany Bullen includes some specific types of posts you can use to get more engagement from social media. The BizSugar community also discusses the importance of social media engagement here.

Digital Time Predominately Spent on Mobile Apps

(V3 Integrated Marketing)

There’s an app for pretty much every function. So it shouldn’t be surprising that people are spending more and more time using these apps. This post by Shelly Kramer includes some recent reports about the dominance of mobile apps and what that could mean for your business.

Social Media Etiquette Do’s and Don’ts

(BizEpic)

Whether you’re just starting out on social media or you consider yourself a pro, there are certain rules and guidelines that most users need to consider. But with all of the different platforms and changes to each one it can be hard to keep up. Fortunately, this post by Ivan Widjaya includes a few easy-to-remember etiquette guidelines for social media. And the BizSugar community emphasizes the importance of social media etiquette further here.

Get Your Brand Across to Millennials

(Schoening Digital)

Businesses still face challenges when trying to understand how to engage young people. Millennials can’t be reached in the same ways businesses use to reach other consumers. So Crystal Wang shares some tips for reaching millennials and getting them to connect with your brand.

Get Rid of Blog Comment Spam

(Dex Media)

If you use blogging as part of your online strategy, you’ve likely had to deal with spam comments. These comments can be both annoying and distracting. In this post, Chris Irby shares some tips about preventing blog comment spam.

Make Your Startup a Talent Magnet

(Early Growth Financial Services)

Your employees can have an incredible impact on your business’s success. So why don’t more startups make hiring quality talent a priority? This post by Deborah Adeyanju includes some information about creating a hiring plan and getting and keeping quality talent for your startup.

How to Prepare for Meetings

(Partners in Excellence Blog)

When you’re about to connect with someone face to face, ask yourself first what types of things would you like to learn about that person? That’s Dave Brock’s top piece of advice in this post about preparing for a meeting. See the additional discussion on this point in the BizSugar community.

Improve Your Business Communications

(Orapin Marketing Public Relations)

Quality communication is absolutely essential in any business. But Michelle Ellis thinks that small business owners should actually have communications superpowers. She explains the importance of these communication skills and tips for improving them in this post.

Invest in Your Website

(Iceberg Web Design)

Your website is the online face of your business. But since there are so many affordable website options out there, some business owners choose to just spend their money on other areas. Here Amiann Mulqueen explains why your website should be one of your biggest business investments.

Tablet Photo via Shutterstock

2 Comments ▼

Annie Pilon Annie Pilon is a Senior Staff Writer for Small Business Trends, covering entrepreneur profiles, interviews, feature stories, community news and in-depth, expert-based guides. When she’s not writing she can be found exploring all that her home state of Michigan has to offer.

2 Reactions
  1. Thanks for the mention of my Biz Epic, Annie! Much appreciate it! For the week, I’m particularly keen on the post from Schoening Digital about marketing to millennials. Indeed, generation gap is often challenging when it comes to getting our marketing messages heard – and followed trhough.

    • I agree, businesses definitely have to carefully consider how to market to different generations. And you’re welcome – Great post!