It is the day before Halloween. There is a bustle about every home. The kids are running around trying to make sure they have all the things they need for their costumes,and some are trying to make sure everyone knows where the party is going to be. The parents are scurrying around to pick up last minute treats, bake cookies, call for babysitters, or whatever needs to be done.

The decorations are all put up, the lights all lit, the candy bowls all laid out, makeup all donned, and the party all set to go.
Tomorrow all the leftover candy will be on sale for a fraction of the cost it was today. A few days later all the Christmas merchandise will line those same shelves.
It is 54 days to Christmas and the retail environment will use every moment possible to convince buyers that they need to have whatever it is that they have on sale. Whether it is a cute new toy for Susie, a crafty six in one tool for dad, an awesome out of this world video game system for Billy, or a super deluxe baking set for mom, there is a promotional tactic being employed.

In the retail world it is all about the holidays. A big percentage of the income made is during those peak hours and days before Christmas.
Say as a small business owner who sells children's products, my store averages approximately $2000 a month January through October. Then the Christmas rush comes upon us. Everyone knows if you buy online you need to start purchasing 6-8 weeks before Christmas to ensure you will receive your gifts on time.
So, starting the middle of November the rush begins. In the 6-8 weeks before Christmas, sales jumps from $450/$500 a week to $2000 a week or more. That is why it is so crucial for you to make sure you have a good marketing strategy set up. The competion is fierce. But the need is great as well. Make sure you can be found, offer as much of a deal/steal as possible, and provide quality products with excellent customer service.

People want to spend money this time of year, they need to purchase presents for their loved ones. Some people are browsing for ideas with no idea of what to get, others are looking for specific things.
I have found a new help in reaching out to my customers. It is called Site Pal. You create your own character and record your voice, and the character talks on your website for the customers. If you are interested click on the banner below to take their free 15 day trial. It is worth it.

Some people don't have sites set up for ecommerce but still want to get into the frenzy of selling online for the holidays. Site Pal can be used even in eBay auction listings. On an average day, over 1,000 live auctions use customized SitePal talking characters to connect with their customers, pitch their products and drive customer acquisition. That is pretty impressive. And it is a great price. $9.95 a month for a permanent animated sales force to help you out every day is well worth the price I think.

If you still haven't decided what to do yet for an online business, there are numerous affiliate programs out there for almost every product imaginable. If you would like to promote ebooks you could check out Clickbank.com. If you would like to promote toys, or other merchandise you could check out Sharesale.com. I have an account with both companies and they are very good with delivering your sales commissions on time. They have a great stats board for you to keep track of all your sales progress as well. Every company you decide to promote for will give you all the banner htmls and most necessary promotional tools you will need to help earn money. Remember when choosing your programs to pick the companies that offer at least 30% commissions when dealing with ebooks and such and at least 15% commissions when dealing with physical product merchandise like toys. Otherwise it is not really worth your time. You may need to spend a few dollars on CPC or PPC to get people to come to your site and click on your options, so you need to make sure you will receive enough of an income to make it worth the pay out.

Happy hunting! Keep up the good work and keep plugging away. Next week we will discuss options for web hosting. Designing a website is not as hard as you may think nowadays, with alot of the web hosting companies offering great website builder programs included in their packages.