Must-Know Christmas Trends in 2023 by DesignMyNight
Christmas? You’ve heard of it, and you’re probably months in to planning it, right? One of (if not the most) successful quarters of the year for hospitality businesses, we know all too well how critical preparing for seasonal trade is, and that it’s no longer as simple as putting up a tree and waiting for your footfall increase.
To help you get on Santa’s good list this year, we’ve enlisted our hospitality discovery platform DesignMyNight to share must-know Christmas trends and tips for hospitality, how to reap the benefits of December visits, and what consumer trends you should be aware of, and consider for your business in 2023.
When does consumer interest start?
Earlier than you think.
We see that once Halloween is out of the way, consumers are already ramping up their searches to fill end of year calendars, but they’re also searching in September, with a 144% increase in ‘Christmas’ searches on our site compared to the month before. With this in mind, make sure you:
- Release your Christmas menus by October at the latest to capture early bookers.
- Organise Christmas photography in advance to capture your concept and go toe-to-toe with your competition early.
- Use our trends guidance later in this blog to help you craft new ideas based on what drinkers and diners are searching.
- Consult our DBP team about Christmas marketing on DesignMyNight in September and October, and where you can be featured: [email protected]
Christmas Day bookings
Post-covid consumer behaviour has shown that people value experiences more than ever before, and that Christmas Day is no longer a living room activity, with diners more than happy to leave their turkey tools behind in favour of great meals and moments at UK pubs, bars and restaurants.
In 2022:
- Christmas Day was the 7th most visited seasonal page on DesignMyNight.
- Christmas Day searches increase by over 205% year on year.
In 2023:
- Christmas Day bookings on DesignMyNight are so far the most popular day in December 2023 for reservations made in advance.
If you’re open on Christmas Day this year, we recommend not only summarising your offering for your audience so they can get to know the best of your packages, but also making sure that your Christmas Day bookings are open on your calendars early.
What DesignMyNight consumers are loving
With over 160 pieces of website marketing geared specifically to winter and dining, and over 1.3 million Christmas searches in 2022, DesignMyNight are on the pulse when it comes to how consumers are going out, and what they want to do during this critical season.
For some helpful insight? We’ve listed some need to know when it comes to trends and audience interest to help you generate ideas for your brands.
In 2022:
- Visual and shareable Christmas experiences were one of the most important, with searches for ‘Instagrammable Christmas’ up 192% year on year.
- Brunches weren’t exclusive to summer, with searches for ‘Christmas Brunches’ up 22% year on year.
- The unusual was still interesting, with searches for ‘Quirky Christmas’ making it to the top 10 for Christmas pages on DesignMyNight between October to December.
In 2023:
- Private Christmas party venues are coming in hot, with searches for somewhere to host a Christmas event up by 47% in 2023, with London-specific searches up 480%. That’s right, the office party is back, and it’s bigger than ever.
- Vouchers are of greater importance than ever, with the 7th most popular page for Christmas in 2023 so being a popular pub company’s voucher offering. Discover more on listing vouchers and gift voucher management.
Ready to make this Christmas extra merry
In this article, we’ve looked at some of the most popular consumer search trends ahead of this Christmas season. You can use this data to help tailor your marketing messaging and highlight key areas of your offering to your target audience.
If you’d like to know more about marketing strategies for Christmas or how to use software to boost bookings then check out the Ultimate Christmas Marketing Strategy Guide for Pubs, Bars and Restaurants in 2023, part of the Access Hospitality Christmas series for 2023.
