The holidays are approaching. From a selling and marketing perspective, there is no better time of year. The downside of that, however, is you are competing against thousands of other companies that are trying to grab the holiday shopping dollar. Here are some quick tips to make sure you stand out from the other businesses in your field or industry:

Original content-everyone is going to have a picture of Santa Claus next to a product. If you are looking to stand out in the Christmas marketing cloud, focus on your products and services to showcase, not a generic picture of Saint Nick. If you want to use a holiday-based picture, make it an original one, like how Harley Davidson uses a Santa Claus with shades and a swim suit.

[caption id="attachment_401" align="alignnone" width="300"] You must try harder to market during the holidays.[/caption]

Deals and sales-believe it or not, people will buy during the holiday season regardless if you offer 20, 30, or 40 percent off. You don't have to slash prices to get the business. Focus on educating your customers on why you have superior products and not only will they want to buy from you, but they will be back in the middle of July as well.

Digital presence-millions of dollars will exchange hands digitally, and if consumers can't find you on their mobile devices, you will be missing out. Make sure your search engine optimization is at its highest level so you appear before the competition on search.

If you have any marketing questions or want to start a holiday marketing campaign, call Thoughtwire Marketing at 800-367-2570.