Get ready for the Christmas shopping season with Kaufland Global Marketplace and the seven-step check list!

Alongside the early procurement of goods, online sellers should get the green light to prepare for the Christmas shopping season in September at the latest. After all, the most important and potentially the most lucrative weeks of the year in terms of sales need to be carefully planned. In this article, we will give you important preparation tips so that you can optimise your offers in the best possible way and get the most out of the 2023 Christmas shopping season with Kaufland Global Marketplace. 

Consumers are already thinking about Christmas presents in August

According to a 2021 study, 48 percent of consumers were already thinking about what to give as a Christmas gift in August. By September, more than one in two people were already thinking about Christmas presents. Quite a few of them planned to do their Christmas shopping online.

Instead of relying on traditional search engines, more and more consumers are starting their search for the right product directly on online marketplaces. This offers great potential for additional sales – especially during the Christmas season. To exploit this potential on the Kaufland marketplaces and really kick off Christmas sales, sellers should get prepared in good time. Our seven-step check list will make your preparations easier and get your marketplace presence ready for the 2023 Christmas season. Let’s work together to create a shopping experience that’s exciting for customers!

More sales at Christmas, step by step

Below you will find the seven most important steps to prepare for the Christmas shopping season:

1. Are your offers visible?

Are your offers visible? Have you correctly saved the mandatory attributes in your product information? If this is not the case, items will be hidden and marketplace customers won’t be able to find them, even though you offer them.

In general, the following mandatory attributes apply to all categories:

There are also other category-dependent mandatory attributes that must be saved to ensure the offers are visible. Information on this can be found in the Product Data Guidelines.

Check if all your items are visible based on the mandatory attribute information. To do this, proceed as follows:

1. Log in to the Seller Portal.
2. Under the “Offer Management” tab you will find the “Product Data” tab.
3. You can now manage your product data and check if there are unknown – “Not Found EANs” – or invalid items among your listings. This way, you can ensure that your product range is as complete and up-to-date as possible.

2. How is the quality of your product data?

Product data quality is one of the most decisive factors for higher sales and thus for higher revenues. Thanks to well-prepared product data, customers can quickly find the most important information and make a swift purchase decision. In addition, returns are reduced and customer satisfaction increases. If the customer first has to laboriously research the relevant product information, they tend to bail out.

Important factors for product data:

• the right category
• a descriptive title
• appealing, high-quality product images
• promotional body text highlighting the benefits of the product
• clear facts
• save (mandatory) attributes (see step 1)

In our Product Data Guidelines, you will find everything you need to know about mandatory information, accurate product descriptions and appealing product images, and you will learn in detail how you can improve your product data on the Kaufland marketplaces.

3. Are your offer prices adjusted correctly and do you use the low-price automatic for more flexibility?

The more time consumers have to shop for Christmas gifts, the more relevant the price is to them. That’s because they still have enough time to compare prices. To save you the effort of permanently observing other suppliers and adjusting your prices accordingly, you can conveniently use the low-price automatic. The low-price automatic optimises your item prices so that they are cheaper than those of your competitors, but never fall below the set price limit.

To do this, simply go to “Offer Management” in your Seller Portal and click on the “Offers” tab. In the editing screen, you can select the low-price automatic and save the minimum price for the offer. If other sellers offer the same product, your offer will always be displayed one cent cheaper than that of the competition.

Many of the connected ERP, Wawi and shop systems offer this feature automatically. It’s best to contact your system provider about this.

If you list your offers via CSV file, you can upload the prepared file in your Seller Portal. We recommend you use our template for creating the offer data. This way, all information is transferred easily.

To do this, proceed as follows:

1. Log in to the Seller Portal.
2. Under the “Offer Management” tab, select the “Offers” menu item. 
3. You can now click on the “Import offers” field and upload your offer file. Then select the type of file you want to upload.

If you do not have the option to save an individual low price, you can use the automatic data adjustment and have the minimum price calculated from your offer price. Then add your recalculated minimum price to your import management. Proceed as follows in your Seller Portal:

1. Under the “Offer Management” menu item, you will find the  “Manage Imports” tab. 
2. Then go to “Automatic data adjustment”: Under “Price adjustments” you can save your target and output variables, lower or raise the prices and also select the commission category.

4. Is your inventory sufficient to meet demand?

Offers, especially those that are advertised, should always be sufficiently stocked. To avoid mis-selling and cancellations, check your product inventories. Also, check inventory updates and update the marketplace more frequently if necessary.

5. Are deliveries in time for Christmas guaranteed?

Can you really meet the stated delivery times during the Christmas season? Therefore, pay attention to your carrier’s deadline for when packages must be dropped off to ensure they arrive in time for Christmas.

Customers particularly enjoy having their gifts under the Christmas tree a few days beforehand, which also increases customer satisfaction.

Please note the following when specifying the delivery time: 

• Be sure to indicate the total delivery time, i.e. the total time from the order to the arrival of the delivery to the customer. Factor in the processing time of your shipping partner. If necessary, adjust your offers accordingly.
• If you are unable to meet your set delivery time(s), please make an early and prompt adjustment. For short delivery windows, please also note the time you set for same-day shipping (“cut-off time”).
• In the event of a delivery delay, be proactive and inform the customer in good time via the ticket system. Address cancellation requests from customers and process them as quickly as possible.

6. Is fast ticket processing ensured?

To ensure a high level of service, which contributes to greater customer satisfaction, please process incoming service tickets promptly. Respond to customer tickets within 48 hours so that you, as a seller, are remembered fondly by marketplace customers. Fast and personal contact with customers contributes to higher recognition, which also increases the repurchase rate. You can find more useful tips on ticket processing in our Seller Guidelines.

7. Do you have to pause your offers?

If you have to pause your offers due to company holidays or other reasons, plan for this in good time. To ensure that your offers are paused, you can either make the settings manually using mass editing within the Seller Portal, or via your own software.

Good to know: Pausing offers does not negatively affect their placement within the search results on the Kaufland marketplaces.

Another pro tip: Specifically check your 25 top sellers again with the help of our check list and make sure that all details are correct and up-to-date. To add a touch of holiday flair to your offers, give your product images a Christmas theme as the Advent season begins.

Once you have adjusted your offers accordingly, nothing stands in the way of a successful Christmas shopping season with Kaufland Global Marketplace.

Need help with your Christmas check? Then feel free to contact our Seller Support with specific questions:

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Quellen:

1. criteo.com, So shoppen die Konsumenten in der Weihnachtssaison 2021
2. statista, E-Commerce
3. EUROPE E-COMMERCE REPORT, 2022