The end of the year has many sales connected to seasonal events and it's a great opportunity for companies to attract customers and increase sales. Preparation is important to make the most of the year-end sales season, when customers are most motivated to make purchases.

In this article, we explain how to prepare for the year-end sales season and the key points for success with specific examples.

What's in this article?

• The year-end sales season and start times explained
  
• The importance of the year-end sales season
  
• Preparations for the year-end sales season
  
• The key to a successful year-end sales campaign
  
• Preparing for next year's year-end sales campaign
  
• Year-end sales frequently asked questions (FAQs)
  
• How to win the race for year-end sales
  

The year-end sales season and start times explained

The year-end sales season occurs during the time of year when a lot of seasonal events and spending take place. Some also call these "holiday sales". In Japan, Christmas presents, year-end gifts and small gifts for New Year's greetings are purchased around this time of year. Retailers often use this opportunity to hold various sales and campaigns.

Although the year-end sales period does not occur during a specific time frame, it usually starts in the second half of November – beginning with Black Friday and Cyber Monday – and goes to the end of December, around Christmas. However, there are also e-commerce sites that hold events earlier than this and hold large-scale sales at the beginning of November.

The importance of the year-end sales season

The holiday season, especially December, is a time of year when sales increase significantly. Past data shows the year-end sales season is extremely important for e-commerce sites.

According to a market survey conducted by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in 2023, sales in December of every year were higher than those in other months. In addition, in 2023, total monthly commercial sales exceeded that of 2022 in all months and sales have been on the rise since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Preparations for the year-end sales season

The time to start preparations depends on the product and past data, but you should start at least a few months before the end of the year.

Use the following list of tasks as a guide and adjust them to suit your business' needs.

Secure product inventory

During the year-end sales season, customers become more eager to buy. Making sure you have sufficient stock is a key part of increasing sales from November to December.

However, you don't want to end up with more stock than you need and have it go unsold. Analyse product sales based on past data and manage your inventory appropriately.

Build a customer service system

During the year-end sales season, the number of orders increases and so does the number of enquiries from customers. Consider hiring more employees than usual.

It's also important to devise ways to prevent employees' time from being taken up by easy-to-answer questions. Try creating help articles for your knowledge base and introduce artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots to encourage customers to find solutions on their own.

Take security measures

Security measures related to payment methods are important for e-commerce sites to run smoothly. Companies can provide thorough security training for employees, create a manual for dealing with vulnerabilities when they're found and introduce a payment system with a function that prevents unauthorised access.

Stripe Radar is integrated with all Stripe systems. Using machine learning that analyses payment data from more than one million companies around the world, it is possible to accurately detect and block fraudulent activity using Radar. Furthermore, Radar can distinguish between customers and malicious users and provide dynamic 3D Secure only for high-risk payments.

In addition, Stripe maintains advanced security technology and strict policies, encrypting data using secure sockets layer/transport layer security (SSL/TLS) technology to protect personal information and transaction data from unauthorised access.

Improve the site's user interface (UI) and user experience (UX)

When the number of visitors to your site increases during the year-end shopping season, customers might leave without making a purchase if you don't improve your website's loading speed and create an environment where customers can shop comfortably. Upgrade the speed of your site by increasing the server capacity as needed.

There are many smartphone users in Japan, so it's also important to check that the intended design and layout display properly on various devices, not just on computers.

You should also create dedicated pages for each theme of the year-end sales campaign and ensure the site design allows users to see the details of the sales and campaigns at a glance. Making sure customers can easily find the products they are looking for is also important for a pleasant shopping experience.

Build a payment system

Offer a wide range of payment methods so customers can pay the way they prefer. Although credit card payment is the most commonly used payment method on e-commerce sites, if you are also considering the needs of those who do not want to use or do not have a credit card, provide a variety of payment methods. Offering the following payment methods will help you keep up with the competition:

• Credit card payment
  
• Convenience store payment
  
• Cash on delivery
  
• Bank deposit/transfer
  
• Carrier settlement
  
• User ID payments
  

To introduce multiple payment methods, it is easier and quicker to use a payment agency service.

Stripe offers a number of payment methods, including the unique Japanese convenience store payment method. You can also use Stripe Connect to split sales among multiple users on the marketplace, make instant overseas transfers and designate profits for each transaction, simplifying management of your payment system.

Check delivery services and customs clearance

Stores are likely to experience high orders during the year-end sales season and it's also likely there will be staff shortages at delivery companies. Make sure to let them know in advance if there is any possibility of a delay. In addition, if your e-commerce site has a business base overseas and delivers to Japan from overseas, you should also consider the possibility of delays in delivery due to customs offices being closed over the New Year.

The key to a successful year-end sales campaign

Discount sales and campaigns

Many stores hold enticing sales and campaigns during the year-end sales season. Customers often want to buy things at the lowest possible price and usually search multiple sites to find what they're looking for. This is why it's important to run special campaigns such as discount sales and points offers; otherwise, customers will turn to your competitors.

Some ideas for the end-of-year sales season include:

• Good Shopping Day: 11 November
  
• Black Friday and Cyber Monday: Near Thanksgiving
  
• Winter Bonus Sale: Timed to coincide with bonus payments
  
• Christmas Sale: During the Christmas season
  
• Japanese Year-End Thanksgiving Sale: At the end of the year
  
• Year-End and New Year's Sale: From the end of the year to the beginning of the following year
  

Increase your profits by using your company's unique sales promotion methods to match each theme.

Limited-time offers and free products

By limiting the quantity of products or selling limited editions customers can only purchase at a specific time, you can create a sense of exclusivity around your products.

When products are limited in number or to a certain region or are collaborations with other brands or characters, this increases customers' desire to buy them.

Campaigns that offer attractive non-sale items for free under certain conditions can also be effective in increasing customer interest.

Timing of the sale

You can maximise sales by carefully choosing the timing of sales events. For example, holding enticing sales a little earlier than other companies might be a good strategy for getting customers to buy while they still have the budget to do so.

In the period after the winter bonus, when people have more money to spend, they are more likely to buy expensive items, so it's a good time to run campaigns to increase sales.

Channels your customers use

Once you decide the details of a sale or campaign, think about how to get the message out to customers. In the modern age, marketing using social media is extremely effective. In addition to actively disseminating information via your company's social media channels, you can also use social media advertising on sites such as YouTube and Facebook to distribute information and advertisements to designated audiences.

If your company is not well known, use listing ads, display ads, etc. and actively distribute information about sales and campaigns.

Communication with your customers

Emails related to orders are important, but sending follow-up or thank-you emails will further improve customers' opinions of your business. Though it can be difficult at busy times, try to respond to customers promptly to improve retention rates.

Personalised service

Provide customers with personalised information and services to increase their satisfaction, making it easier to encourage repeat purchases. For example, if you own a health food company, you could suggest similar popular products based on the customer's browsing history or recommend products in keeping with the customer's fitness goals and health.

Stores that list a large number of products on their e-commerce sites often have customers who leave because they don't know which product to choose. Make sure you have the tools to make suitable suggestions tailored to your customers' needs.

Preparing for next year's year-end sales campaign

The year-end sales season is a large-scale event you should hold every year and advance preparation is extremely important. Take a look at the data from your most recent year-end sales campaign, summarise the good points and points you could improve and incorporate new ideas to make use of them next year.

Analyse sales data

For each campaign in the year-end sales season, analyse data such as orders, sales, profit margins, cost effectiveness and new customers acquired. Then, reflect on which campaigns you should focus on and which categories of products you should secure for the next fiscal year.

Analyse e-commerce site access data

Use tools such as Google Analytics to perform a detailed analysis of visits to your e-commerce site. You can see current trends from the number of visits to the site as a whole, as well as the number of visits to product pages. You should also keep track of where your customers are coming from – whether it's from social media or listing ads – and how they are finding their way to your site.

Review the management system

Check whether there were any problems with the running of the site, such as the speed of shipping during the year-end sales season, the rate of stockouts and customer support. Consider counter-measures so you can deal with any issues you discover.

Year-end sales frequently asked questions (FAQs)

What sells well during the year-end sales season?

At the end of the year, electronics and gift-related products sell well. From large appliances such as TVs, fridges and washing machines, to video games consoles that make great gifts for children, electronics are very popular. Sales of gift sets for the year-end holidays are also high.

Because many customers shop for sale items during the year-end sales season, sales of sale items increase regardless of category.

What does "end-of-year sales" mean?

In Japan, some use the term "end-of-year sales" to refer to products related to the preparations for the New Year (e.g. osechi ryori, the traditional Japanese feast at the beginning of each year). However, this term refers to the seasonal sales that take place.

What are Christmas sales?

This term usually refers to the commercial activities related to Christmas presents and events. Its meaning often overlaps with the meaning of the end-of-year sales season in Japan. "Year-end sales" and "Christmas sales" can be used interchangeably.

How to win the race for year-end sales

The year-end sales season is the time of year when customers are most eager to make purchases. With the need for year-end gifts and the payment of winter bonuses, December is also a great opportunity for e-commerce sites to increase sales.

There are also many advance preparations, such as formulating strategies to increase sales and securing human resources and inventory. To avoid a last-minute panic, make sure to review your checklist for the year-end sales campaign and go into the sales season ready for success.