With the holiday season in full swing, people are looking to shop and celebrate—with promotions abound! To attract more customers to your small business, here are a few ideas—from the tried and true, to the totally new—to help spread the cheer and boost sales.

Create a “Gift Genius”

You and your staff know your offerings really well—so why not make your knowledge official? Set up a “Gift Genius” program—perhaps in a dedicated area of your store—where you or your staff make yourself available to advise your customers on the hard-to-shop-for uncles, mother-in-laws, or persnickety friends on their list. To be even more comprehensive, and to continue to build up your local community, think of recruiting your neighboring local businesses to join in. You can recommend each other’s products and services when nothing in your business quite fits—sharing the love, and keeping your customers delighted.

Try: Has your mother-in-law got you stumped this gift-giving season? Pay a visit to our Gift Genius, who can help you please the trickiest on your list. Plus, when you take our suggestion, you’ll receive 20% off your next purchase!

Celebrate Boxing Day

Did you know that in the UK (and elsewhere in the Commonwealth), Boxing Day is as big a shopping holiday as Black Friday? Falling on the 26th of December, Boxing Day was originally celebrated as a way to give thanks to the servicepeople, like trash collectors and mail carriers, for a job well done. Why not bring the celebration stateside?

Try: What is Boxing Day? Come in on Dec 26th to find out—and enjoy 15% off storewide.

Keep giving back

The holidays offer so many ways to spread the spirit throughout your community, and especially those in need. Consider committing to donating a portion of your proceeds to a local organization you feel passionate about, or, go national: as many communities struggle to recover and rebuild from recent natural disasters, donations continue to create a life-changing impact.

Try: This holiday season, let’s help out our neighbors. For the next week, 10% of your purchase goes to helping Santa Rosa get back on its feet.

Want more ideas on how to give back? Check out our post on Giving Tuesday for even more suggestions.

Treat your most stressed-out customers

Your female customers are shouldering the brunt of the shopping and stress this holiday season, and they could use a little appreciation!

Try: You left someone off your list…YOU! From now until Dec 25th, we’re celebrating the hardworking women who make the holidays so special for their families. Ladies, when you shop our store for your holiday gifts, we’ll throw in a 50% discount on select items. Treat yourself!

This holiday season, there are may ways to celebrate your customers and the season abound—so get to it!

Happy Holidays from the Fivestars team!