The holidays are one of the busiest times of the year for Shopify stores, and preparing your business properly can have a big impact on your sales. Shoppers are already browsing for gifts, hunting deals, and planning their purchases well in advance - which means your store needs to feel festive, be easy to shop on, and be optimised for conversions.

From updating your homepage and hero banner to offering flexible payment options and gift-wrapping, there are several strategies that can help your store stand out, capture attention, and grow your sales. 

In this guide, we’ll walk you through practical steps to get your Shopify store holiday-ready, showing you how to create the best possible shopping experience that maximises your Shopify Christmas sales and keeps customers coming back long after the season ends.

Update your homepage & hero banner

Your homepage is often the first place holiday shoppers land, so it’s definitely worth giving it a seasonal refresh - without making the design feel busy or over the top.

You could add a few new touches while keeping things on-brand by using subtle elements like gold accents, soft animations, or small illustrations added to your logo (a snowflake, a Santa hat, or simple gold detail works well). The idea is to create a Christmas-y vibe that still feels like your brand.

Your website and Shopify mobile app hero banner is where you can set the tone for the whole season. Think about what your customers care about most right now. If your Christmas bundles always sell out, showcase them front and centre on your banner. If your brand leans into cosy family moments around the holidays, a warm lifestyle image may tell your story better.

You could even experiment with video; Forbes reported that using a hero background video can boost conversion rates by up to 80%, making it a powerful option if you have strong lifestyle or product visuals. And if you’ve created a Christmas landing page, linking to it here helps shoppers jump straight into browsing.

Interactive touches, such as hover effects, CTAs, or light movement, can make the experience feel more engaging. And because every audience reacts differently, it’s worth A/B testing a few holiday-themed variations to see which designs, messages, or colours actually drive higher conversions.

Create Christmas-focused landing pages

A Christmas landing page gives shoppers exactly what they want during the holidays: a quick, easy place to find great gifts without needing to dig through your whole store. 

With so many people having multiple gifts to buy and therefore shopping across multiple stores, a dedicated landing page that brings everything together can make a big difference to your conversion rates. In fact, landing pages can increase conversion rates by up to 160% compared to standard product pages, making them a powerful tool for the holidays.

Keep it simple and organised. For example, you could break products into helpful sections and categories like “Gifts for Her”, “Kids’ Picks”, or “Stocking Fillers Under £25”. This kind of structure makes browsing feel less overwhelming and helps customers spot the right gift faster.

It would also be nice to add some subtle festive touches, but keep them aligned with your usual branding so the page still feels familiar to returning shoppers. 

To give the page a little extra push, you could add some light urgency prompts. Things like countdown timers, delivery deadline reminders, or subtle low-stock notes can help shoppers make decisions quickly and easily. They don’t need to be loud or salesy - just clear and helpful. An exit popup with a small incentive may also encourage a visitor to stay if they’re thinking about clicking off your landing page.

Incorporate holiday-themed popups

Holiday-themed popups can be a simple but effective way to give consumers an extra nudge or incentive to make a purchase during such a busy shopping season. Highlighting limited-time offers or Christmas-specific deals can help people spot opportunities they might have otherwise missed.

When done with more of a light touch, these moments feel more like helpful reminders or suggestions rather than interruptions - especially when they’re tied to something genuinely useful, like a deadline or an exclusive offer. 

As we briefly mentioned earlier, exit-intent popups can also play a big role in reducing drop-offs, saving up to 15% of visitors. A message such as “Leaving already? Here’s 10% off your Christmas list” can be enough to keep someone browsing or encourage them to complete a conversion. 

The key is keeping your popups festive, friendly, and value-focused so they support the customer experience rather than distract from it.

Get a mobile app for your Shopify store 

Having a mobile app for your Shopify store is a great way to grow your sales across the holiday season whilst also giving your customers a smoother, more enjoyable shopping experience. 

Mobile apps see 157% higher conversion rates than mobile websites, and with 85% of consumers preferring apps over mobile sites, you’re meeting people where they want to shop.

Shopify mobile apps also help reduce abandoned carts by making browsing and checkout faster and more intuitive. You can also communicate directly with customers through push notifications, sending updates about Christmas flash sales, restocks, time-sensitive offers, or personalised reminders.

Plus, with pages that load almost instantly, apps create an effortless shopping experience that keeps customers engaged and makes them more likely to follow through with purchases, as well as return to shop with you in the future.

To learn more about how you can see more Shopify revenue growth through a no-code Shopify mobile app solution, feel free to book a call with one of our friendly experts at StoreLab.

Add a wishlist feature to your Shopify store

A wishlist feature can make holiday shopping much smoother for your customers since shoppers can easily save and revisit items they’re interested in - perfect for early holiday shoppers, planning gifts & budget, or keeping track of favourites. 

You can also send timely reminders about these saved items via email marketing, SMS, or push notifications, helping shoppers return to their wishlist when they’re ready to buy. 

Websites with wishlist features see around 30% higher conversion rates, as they help track purchase intent and keep products top of mind throughout the season.

Shopify apps like Swish make adding this feature straightforward, offering automated notifications, integration with your marketing tools, and customisation to match your store’s design.

By giving customers a simple way to organise and revisit their gift ideas, wishlists can turn casual holiday browsers into more confident and loyal customers. 

Offer Christmas packaging & gift-wrapping 

Adding Xmas packaging and gift-wrapping options can make your products feel extra special during the holidays. Limited-edition packaging instantly elevates the unboxing experience, helping your gifts stand out and feel more thoughtful.

Even small touches like ribbons, tags, or themed boxes can add festive feeling and value that resonates with both the buyer and the recipient. 

Offering gift-wrap as an upsell - for example, “Add a gift box + personalised note for $/£5 - not only increases your average order value (AOV), but also gives shoppers a convenient way to make their gifts feel complete. 

Customisation options, like engraving or personalised messages, take this a step further, turning ordinary purchases into meaningful presents that are more likely to be remembered and cherished.

By putting this kind of thought into your products and the gifting experience, you position your Shopify store as the go-to for all seasonal events, encouraging shoppers to return year after year.

Have clear & flexible delivery options

Having clear and flexible delivery options is a key part of getting your Shopify store holiday-ready. Shoppers are often on tight timelines during the season, so letting them know your Christmas shipping cutoffs - for example, the last day to order for guaranteed delivery - helps reduce uncertainty and ensures they can plan ahead.

Beyond cutoffs, giving customers the option to choose specific delivery dates can be especially helpful, particularly when they’re sending gifts directly to someone’s home.

Some people prefer gifts to arrive on a particular day, like December 20th, or want to schedule deliveries around family events. Giving them this level of control shows that you understand their needs and adds a layer of convenience that can set your store apart.

Transparency and communication are key. Clearly displaying shipping timelines, expedited options for last-minute buyers, and any potential delays builds trust and confidence, which reduces hesitation at checkout.

Offer flexible payment options

Offering customers a variety of different ways to pay can help turn someone who’s on the fence into someone who’s completed a purchase. Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) tools like Klarna or ClearPay are particularly useful at this time of year. 

They let shoppers spread the cost of multiple gifts over several installments, as well as offering the option to pay the whole order in a month's time. This makes it easier to buy high-value items or larger baskets without the upfront strain.

Studies show that 45% of shoppers use BNPL to buy items they might not have otherwise, and that these tools can increase average order value (AOV) by up to 85%.

Alongside BNPL, it’s important to offer other payment options, including credit & debit cards, as well as digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal. Gift cards, store credits, and loyalty points are great ideas too, especially around Xmas time. These methods make checkout quick and convenient, reducing friction by letting shoppers pay exactly the way they prefer.

Christmas products, upsells, cross-sells, & bundles

You don’t always need to launch an entirely new product range for the holidays - sometimes giving your bestsellers a seasonal twist is enough to catch shoppers’ attention. Adding festive packaging, limited-edition versions, or holiday-themed bundles can make your existing products feel more gift-ready.

Bundles, upsells, and cross-sells are also a great way to grow both your Shopify Christmas sales and customer satisfaction. Holiday bundles let shoppers pick up several related items at once, often with a discount. For example, buying a complete skincare set could save £10 compared to purchasing each product individually.

Upsells, like adding gift wrap, premium packaging, or personalised notes, give customers an opportunity to make a gift feel more personal and special. Cross-sells, such as suggesting matching accessories or complementary items, help shoppers discover more of your range and find related items they could need or want without even leaving your store.

By highlighting carefully chosen bundles, complementary products, and festive add-ons, you make it simple for customers to build complete holiday gifts. In fact, 72% of salespeople use upselling and cross-selling tactics, and these strategies account for roughly 30% of their revenue. When applied consistently, they can drive as much as 42% more revenue - showing just how powerful thoughtful product suggestions can be during the holidays.

Run Shopify Christmas marketing campaigns

Running well-planned and stand-out marketing campaigns can make a real difference to your Shopify holiday sales. 

68% of consumers pay extra attention to emails across Christmas - so use this to your advantage. Segment campaigns based on customer behaviour, purchase history, or demographics so you can personalise the content, and try countdown sequences like “12 Days of Deals” to add a sense of urgency. 

SMS and Shopify mobile app push notifications are perfect for timely updates like, “48 hours left for guaranteed Xmas delivery” or last-minute flash deals. Push notifications can also highlight restocks, exclusive offers, or promotions, making a mobile app invaluable across the holiday shopping season.

Organic social media is also a key driver of Christmas shopping, with 89% of consumers influenced by it over the holidays, and 54% of Gen Z checking TikTok for gift ideas. Share user-generated content (UGC), festive gift guides, unboxing videos, or short-form clips across your channels. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest have shoppable post features, letting customers buy from you there and then.

SEO and content are also important aspects of your Shopify Christmas marketing strategy. Optimise product pages and gift guides for seasonal keywords, update metadata and alt tags with festive language, and create content that helps shoppers find the perfect gifts.

It’s also worth starting your paid campaigns/Meta ad campaigns early (October-November) and use personalised retargeting to show Christmas or Winter-themed versions of products shoppers have previously viewed - proven to increase clicks and drive conversions.

If you’d like some help optimising your Meta ads for your Shopify Christmas holiday campaigns, our team at StoreLab can help! Our Meta ads service is designed to help your business grow by increasing brand awareness, driving website and mobile app traffic, and boosting conversions when it matters most. Talk to one of our experts to learn more.

Have excellent customer service & return policies

With holiday traffic comes an inevitable spike in customer queries, so having solid support and customer service in place really matters. 

You should offer things like live chat, chatbots, or accessible help options so shoppers can get quick answers without abandoning their carts or getting frustrated. Since 73% of social users contact brands via social media during the holidays, make sure you’re active and responsive on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook too. 

Shoppers also want reassurance before committing to a purchase, especially over Christmas when they are buying for friends and loved ones. Adding trust signals like secure checkout badges, fast-delivery icons, and “Free gift returns” labels helps build confidence right where they need it most. Also, clear banners such as “Guaranteed delivery before Christmas” or ‘Extended holiday return period” can remove a lot of last-minute hesitation.

And when it comes to returns, this is the time to make things as stress-free as possible. Extending your return window for gifts gives customers peace of mind, and spelling out your policies in simple, friendly language reduces uncertainty at checkout. 

Having a smooth, transparent returns process also encourages shoppers to return in the future, knowing your store is reliable and easy to shop with, even during one of the busiest shopping seasons of the year.

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Looking for more ways to grow your Shopify sales?

If you’re looking to maximise the success of your Shopify store this Christmas, you’re in the right place. Our Shopify growth experts at StoreLab are here to help you skyrocket your sales, increase AOV, boost customer retention, and more.

Dominie Luxury is a California-born family-run business, specialising in luxury handbags and accessories.

Dominie Luxury partnered with StoreLab in November 2023, utilising the full extent of our Shopify mobile app and Meta ad plans to grow their sales, brand awareness, and traffic.

And here are just some of the amazing results their Shopify store has seen…

💰174% increase in online sales

🚀 417% increase in add-to-cart rate

📈 145% increase in sessions

"In this business, I have worked with a LOT of different companies. I've never had such amazing customer service. The customer service is 1000/10" - Myfanwy Holiday

Would you like to get the same results as Dominie Luxury? Get in touch with our team at StoreLab today to see how we can help you make the most of Christmas and beyond!