While many know that Valentine’s Day is named for St. Valentine, fewer know that the holiday became associated with romantic love in 14th century England through some of the writings of Geoffrey Chaucer. The holiday took on many of its current-day trappings in 18th century England when courtly love was at its height. People began to express their feelings through amorous cards, flowers, and candy.

Valentine’s Day is alive and well today, especially in the retail sector. As with any holiday, sales tend to increase before the celebration of Valentine’s Day as people purchase gifts for their loved ones.

As an online retailer, don’t let the holiday pass you by. Even if you don’t offer romance-themed products, you can still capitalize on the buzz around the holiday to promote your merchandise.

Here are a few ideas for getting in on the Valentine’s Day retail crush:

 

    • Blog. Blogs provide one of the best ways to improve your search engine rankings and drive more traffic to your website. Write blogs that are relevant to Valentine’s Day. Include links to your products and holiday promotions.

 

    • Offer speedy delivery. Let’s face it—people procrastinate. Appeal to the last-minute crowd by offering one or two day shipping. You can throw in gift wrapping options as a special bonus.

 

    • Send out emails. An email campaign is a great way to catch your customers’ attention. Those who have forgotten that Valentine’s Day is approaching may appreciate the reminder. Include high quality images of your products in your emails.

 

    • Use social media. Go to where the masses are through social media. Offer a competition with one of your products as a prize. It’s a great way to promote the product and also galvanize the online community to support your brand.

 

    • Categorize your products. If you sell a lot of merchandise, customers could get lost on your website. Try dividing your products into categories for Valentine’s Day. Categories could include “gifts for him,” “gifts for her,” “gifts under $30,” etc.

Your sales may have slowed down after the holiday, but you can rev them back up by making the most of Valentine’s Day.