No one knows exactly how it will go. But everyone’s sure of one thing: this holiday retail season will be the best on record.

We set new records every year during a normal economy. And with COVID-19 doing its damage, and a good possibility people will have their second stimulus checks in hand, things are positioned for great success for retailers in 2020 and 2021.

How can you take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and make it extend as far as possible, winning more loyal customers for years into the future?

Here’s some ideas for your retail packaging this Christmas season:

1. Custom Decor

Use your very own custom tissue paper, tape, and stickers to create an entirely unique package.

Every little bit goes a long way in attracting customers to purchasing your items instead of your competitor’s.

And since you save your customers the work of possibly having to add their own design elements to their package (if purchased for a loved one), you win their attention for that reason too.

So try refreshing the packaging of some of your inventory, especially the slower-moving stuff, to liven it up and make it a little more interesting to your market.

2. Handwritten Notes

Yes, handwriting, which your children may not even learn in school anymore, can still go a long way in 2020.

This is one way you can beat Amazon and other mega-retailers who won’t take the time to do the same.

Insert a handwritten note offering season’s greetings from the employees who packed this particular order.

3. Include a Free Gift That Improves Use

Say you sell a delicious cooking seasoning. Well, why not include special holiday-themed recipes that use your seasoning as the main ingredient?

Yes. Customers could easily look up recipes online. However, it’s not quite as easy to find good ones as you might think.

There’s dozens of websites that have all kinds of recipes. Some have ratings. Others don’t.

It can actually take a good several minutes to find a decent recipe that you want to cook.

So, by including a recipe, you save your customers time and let them get right to putting their seasoning to use.

Include several different recipes so you have at least one that your customer will like.

4. Try Non-Traditional Designs

Millenials are a great example of going against tradition. Everything their parents have traditionally liked, Millennials don’t really care for.

So, now’s a great time to blow up what you’ve been doing and try something new to appeal to this market.

America as a whole is just not the same country it used to be in the 1980s and 1990s.

So this could be a major win for you this holiday season.

It’s hard to innovate in ways your market appreciates with so much competition.

But now you’re armed with four more ideas that could totally change the game for you.