If you know me, you know how much I love food. Whether I’m picking up fresh local ingredients or dining in one of Edmonton’s amazing restaurants, food has always been a big part of my life.

With the holidays around the corner, I was determined to finally snag the ultimate foodie item of the year: the Italian Centre Shop Advent Calendar. I’ve had my eye on this for years but always miss out. Their social media is no help either, with a serious FOMO campaign every year as they unbox each item in the lead-up to Christmas Day.

Determined not to let it slip away again, I set up a calendar reminder as soon as the email reminder hit my inbox. This year, I was prepared.

The calendar was set to go on sale online at 10 am on November 7th. But by 10:05, I had a sinking feeling this wouldn’t be a simple click-and-go. The page still showed “Out of Stock” a full 10 minutes after the launch time.

Finally, at 10:15, the “Add to Cart” button was ready. I thought, This is it—this is the year I finally get my hands on one!

But that’s when the trouble started. Server errors and painfully slow performance blocked my every attempt to add it to my cart. No matter how many times I tried, it just wasn’t happening.

And I wasn’t the only one. A quick check on their social media showed comment after comment from frustrated customers.

Many shared my struggle, with some even saying they’d given up.

Two and a half hours and many browser refreshes later, their marketing team finally sent a message: they were postponing the launch by a day to sort out the issues.

Key Lessons You Can Learn Here:

Have a product launch strategy. Plan every step of the launch, especially when demand is expected to be high. Ensure to include everyone involved in the launch’s success.
Ensure your infrastructure can handle the traffic surge. There’s nothing worse than disappointing eager customers especially if it’s a limited offer.
Be ready to scale if demand exceeds expectations. Sometimes the buzz is bigger than you anticipated—be prepared.
Manage customer expectations. Timely communication can save you from frustrated customers.

With Black Friday and the holiday season coming up fast, make sure you’re ready. Don’t let this happen to you!

At Holler Digital, we understand the importance of being fully prepared for high-traffic events. For Lemonade Stand Day 2024, we ensured top-tier scalability and reliability for this important city-wide event by scaling our web hosting infrastructure to support over 600 site visitors every 30 minutes for the week of the event.

When your website is built to handle demand, you can focus on your launch without worrying about technical setbacks. With the holiday season approaching, it’s crucial to ensure your site is up to the task. Don’t let your customers miss out—or worse, give up—because of preventable issues.

Ready to ensure your site can handle the holiday rush? Book a call with us today, and let’s make sure your website is prepared for a successful launch!

PS. Wish me luck for tomorrow. I’m still determined to get my hands on one of the most elusive gifts of the season.