7 Ways To Get Your Products Into A Gift Guide [2023]
Do you have a product that you would love to see featured in a gift guide? The gift season can be extremely profitable for a small business but only if people know who you are and that's where gift guides come in.
From cheapest, to most luxurious, practical, by profession, you name the classification or description and there is a gift guide tailored for it, offering the best products with links for buying.
And these lists are visited by countless, struggling shoppers who are looking for ideal gifts so of course, you want to have your products featured in there!
Whether you're a small business or an individual, getting your product into the hands of a professional is easier than you think. In this blog post, we'll outline how to get your product into the hands of a gift guide curator.
Keep reading for tips and tricks on how to make your product stand out from the competition!
So how does one get on the list? Well, here are 5 ways to get your products into gift guides.
HOW TO GET FEATURED IN A GIFT GUIDE
1. Make your store ready!
Your store needs to be editor-friendly, meaning presentable and professional; your page should also be easy to navigate, well-optimized, and provide a good customer experience.
This matters not only for the editors to choose your products and site to be included in their gift guides but also for customers later on to be able to buy your product and turn into a returning customer!
A luring coupon with a discount for sign-up or an email lead-capture pop-up is also a welcoming addition worth considering for your website!
2. Contact the publications that reach your target audience
You need to do a little research – which publications and media outlets also target your market audience? If you are good at e-commerce you probably already know your targeted customers and what they like/dislike so you need to figure which media, they are most interested in.
Online platforms, influencers, social media figures, or even regular magazines – figure out which ones would be able to help you and contact them.
Also, you need to be specific – the lists as we mentioned typically belong to certain criteria (for example, beauty gifts, edible gifts, gifts for X$, etc.,) so you should make sure that the gift guide is not something generic, but matches your products category.
3. Create a good pitch that is mutually beneficial
The best way is to contact and pitch your products 3-6 months in advance via email, with possible samples and high-resolution photos.
Make sure that your pitch to them is speaking not only to the publication’s (and yours) demographic but also is aligned with their values and is on-brand.
If the publication is continuously speaking about cruelty-free, protecting the environment subjects, make sure that the products you send them meet that criteria. That way it will be mutually beneficial and you will increase your chances of having your product featured!
4. Invest in sending product samples and high-resolution photos to the editors
Together with the pitch, you can also send a product sample; this way, the editor may test the product, or they may even make their photos of it or include it in some themed photoshoot.
However, this does not mean skipping on high-resolution photos – you should make sure you send those as well, just in case they are having a lazy day and do not plan on taking their photos of the products.
5. Have a unique write up ready
Writers are busy so to help you get featured, have a product or company write up prepared for them so that they can just insert it into their articles.
The write up must be unique to them and make sure that they know you will not be sharing it with anyone else. So you will need to make a write up for every submission you are doing.
6. Have professional photos of your product ready
Make sure your photos are top of the line and professional. Use photo editing software to resize your images and edit out any dust or lint from your photos. People shop with their eyes so you must have a good picture of your product.
7. Prepare in advance, for the next year!
Even if you do not have the bandwidth to get in this season’s gift-guide game, do not worry! After the holidays you can do your research, find the ones that would have been ideal for you to contact.
Make a list with the media outlet as well as their reporters ’editors’ emails, then the next year you can send them your products and pitch.
After few weeks of contacting them, make sure you check again just to make sure they haven’t lost your pitch.
Make sure that you are not putting all your eggs in one basket, and contact various media outlets that fit your criteria. Do not despair if you get a no from some, instead see it as a challenge.
We hope you found this article helpful to your plan.