Website

eCommerce

Photography

Marketing

Going Online… for the first time in 35 years.

Payne Christmas Trees & Holiday Market is a family-owned seasonal business located in Elkridge, Maryland. For years, they used social media and billboard advertising to acquire new customers.

But then 2020 rolled around. An unprecedented time requiring adaptation and innovation for businesses around the world, and PCT was no exception. While their previous marketing tactics had been successful, they were ready to partner with a local marketing company to build their first website.

Like many other small businesses, they didn’t have a lot of information for their customers like email addresses. It’s crucial that businesses know how to reach their customers personally. Compiling email addresses and phone numbers allows businesses to communicate about important updates such as changes in operating procedures, store expansion, new product offerings, etc. And email continues to be the number one marketing tool (I digress).

Given the ongoing health concerns in Maryland and across the country during the 2020 holiday season, PCT knew it may need to pivot its sales process at a moment’s notice to comply with new regulations. To help facilitate the need for a more nimble operating model, Evoke created marketing tactics to collect customer information, built an online store, and took photos of their trees and all other inventory.

The store included Payne Christmas Trees’ core products — Christmas trees, wreaths, roping/garland, and more — with a simple checkout process to make online purchases and contactless curbside pick up quickly and easily. 

Building a Strong Foundation for the Future

The new website was a success! The eCommerce store worked well, helping the Payne family ease into the idea of offering digital shopping while still allowing for the majority of their business to be onsite. And the marketing tactics quickly led to a mailing list of over 1,600 people, providing a new way for this Maryland small business to stay in touch with its loyal customers.

Christmas tree sales increased nationwide by 30 percent from 2019 to 2020. In this same time period, Payne Christmas Trees’ tree sales increased by 200 percent. Evoke attributes a portion of this success in sales to the new website and successful SEO tactics — they were ranked number one on Google for a hundred miles!

The Payne family is looking forward to building on this momentum in future years. With a functional, engaging website and an online store already in place, PCT is ready to grow and scale its business, spreading seasonal cheer throughout Maryland and beyond.

Website: Payne Christmas Trees & Holiday Market