How to Prepare Your Shopify Store for Chinese New Year?

As the most important celebration in the Chinese calendar, the Chinese New Year (CNY) is a time for family gatherings, gift-giving, and feasting. 

For businesses, it's an opportunity to capitalize on the spending power of the world's largest consumer market. And with 1.4 billion people celebrating CNY this year, there's no better time to start preparing your Shopify store for the big event.

What is the Chinese New Year? 

Chinese New Year, sometimes referred to as the Spring Festival or the Lunar New Year, is a time to mark the beginning of the Chinese lunar calendar.

Because it welcomes spring, it is also known as the Spring Festival.

China and some other East Asian nations also mark the Lunar New Year. The beginning is based on the emergence of the new moon, and it usually starts between January 21st and February 20th. 

When is the Chinese New Year? 

In 2023, the Chinese New Year will be celebrated on Sunday, January 22nd. 

How long is the Chinese New Year celebration? 

Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year, is a 15-day holiday that is yearly observed based on when the new moon is visible. 

Does Chinese New Year affect product shipping? 

If your supplier is from China, Chinese New Year will most likely affect your Shopify store. Services will all be operating at full capacity for the Spring Festival as a result of reduced staffing. Thus, this may undoubtedly have an impact on shipment.

Moreover, during  the Spring Festival, all production facilities (suppliers) and delivery services will be closed.

Consequently, there will be shipment delays even if you are successful in finding a source for product sourcing.

We advise getting in touch with the post and courier services you're using and finding out their closure and opening hours to prevent having a negative impact on your business.

Don't forget to alert your customers in advance of any potential delays, and always be available to respond to questions and inquiries.

Get ready for possible shipping and manufacturing delays

If you’re a dropshipper, you might want to find other suppliers during the Spring Festival. 

If you're getting your products from AliExpress, CJDropshipping, and comparable online stores , you should look for vendors who "ship from" a nation other than China.

Many vendors have storage facilities in various European nations or states across the USA. Search for these providers by adjusting your search criteria.

Finding other suppliers that have the same or related items is also worthwhile, unless you're selling a private label or white label product that you solely obtain from one provider.

Update your delivery schedules and shipping policies

Hiding shipment delays from your clients will only have negative effects. You must provide your store visitors with early notice if you want to prevent client loss and maintain their confidence and loyalty.

Therefore, be sure to change your website's delivery schedules and shipping policies. That way, you both maintain your legal standing and steer clear of unfavorable consumer reviews.

How to prepare your Shopify marketing for Chinese New Year? 

Now, let’s see some concrete tactics about adjusting your marketing to Chinese New Year. 

Level up your social media game

If you’re having shipping delays, you should announce it via social media and all other channels you use to contact your customers. Be clear, direct, and concise. Make sure you apologize and assure that you’re working to solve all problems. 

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In this period, you can theme your social media accounts and celebrate Chinese New Year with your posts. Here are some ideas:

• Post interesting facts about CNY
• Encourage users to share images from the celebration and tag you
• Organize a themed giveaway

Plan your promotions early

Shopify owners' worst error is waiting until it's too late to make preparations for the Chinese New Year break.

Contrary to common opinion, some Chinese businesses may begin taking vacation time a week or two before the holiday season officially begins.

Start planning your CNY promotions at least two months in advance. This will give you enough time to create attractive visuals, translated marketing materials, and targeted social media campaigns. It will also ensure that your inventory levels are well-stocked to meet the expected increase in demand.

Create a dedicated landing page for Chinese New Year

A dedicated CNY landing page is a great way to showcase your best deals and products. Be sure to use eye-catching visuals and clear, concise copy to grab attention and drive conversions. And don't forget to include a prominent call-to-action (CTA) that encourages visitors to shop now.

Promote the sense of urgency

You could promote your limited-time CNY offers by boosting the sense of urgency.  However, we frequently consider sales that are only available for a day or a season when we use the phrase "limited-time discount."

How about making things even more urgent? Consider it like this:

1. A customer visits a product page on your online store.
2. They see the item but are still hesitant to purchase it.
3. Suddenly, they get the chance to request a 20% discount.
4. They have 60 seconds to accept the offer and add the item to their basket at the discounted price after you authorize the deal.

You can inspire more clients to make purchases from your Shopify store and drastically boost your conversion rate by utilizing the power of gamification. Click here to learn more.

Cancel or postpone any scheduled maintenance

Now is not the time for scheduled website maintenance or downtime. Make sure all planned updates are completed well before CNY starts, so you can avoid any disruptions during the holiday period.

Chinese New Year FAQs

What is a Lunar New Year?

Chinese New Year is also known as the "Lunar New Year." This alternate name was chosen since the new year begins with the arrival of the new moon when using the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar.

What is the Spring Festival in China?

Chinese New Year is also known as the Spring Festival in China. It's not unexpected how it gained its name because it signifies the start of spring.