SECTOR · TOYS
December decides the year, but whoever searches in October is already comparing.
Toys have a huge Christmas peak and a residual demand the rest of the year that can't be neglected. We work so you're already ranking before the gift-buying race starts.
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Brands that have trusted Laika
The toy brands who call us bet a huge part of their year on a few weeks in December.
The Christmas campaign concentrates the bulk of sales
Whoever starts working on visibility in November already arrives late. Gift searches start climbing in October and you need to be ready before that.
People search by age, by licensed brand and by type of play at once
"Toy for a 5-year-old boy" coexists with the exact product name, and many product pages only answer the second kind of search.
Licences and franchises fall in and out of fashion every year
This year's must-have toy may not sell next year. You need to decide which categories stay and which get archived without losing history if they come back.
Parents research safety and recommended age before buying
If that information isn't clear on the product page, the sale goes to whoever explains it properly, even if the product is the same.
You compete in the same dates against marketplaces and big retail chains
They dominate gift search exactly when volume peaks. Some battles can be won and others aren't worth the effort.
The scope
Doing SEO in toys means preparing the gift peak months in advance and sustaining demand the rest of the year. We build visibility so it arrives before search spikes, not after.
We work on the architecture by age, licence and type of play, safety and recommendation content, and coordination with marketplaces during the campaign.
Which capabilities matter here
In toys not every capability carries the same weight. These are the ones that move the campaign's outcome.
High weight
Search enginesThe base: categories by age, licence and type of play, ready before gift search begins.
High weight
Social SearchAmazon and the platforms where this year's must-have toy gets discovered before the purchase decision.
Medium weight
ConsultingPlan the campaign ahead and decide which licences and categories deserve investment this year.
AI visibility still matters less here, so we don't force it: if it starts moving toy sales, we'll tell you with data.
The areas of work
Four areas of work built for a business with one huge peak and residual demand the rest of the year: first the calendar, then the catalogue, then the product page and finally external channels.
Christmas campaign calendar
Know what has to be published and ranking each month so you reach December with demand already captured.
See the detail
- Demand curve by category and licence, year over year, to set publishing dates
- Planning backwards from December, with monthly milestones from September
- Priority between this year's must-have toy and the evergreen sellers
- What gets prepared in the low season so October isn't improvised
Categories by age, licence and type of play
Make the categories people actually search for exist year-round and build history, instead of being rebuilt every campaign.
See the detail
- Permanent categories by age, licence and type of play instead of one-campaign landing pages
- What to do with a licence that falls out of fashion and one that comes back next year
- Internal linking that pushes peak demand into the categories that convert
- Price and age facets worked to answer gift search
Product page and family trust
Make the product page answer recommended age, safety and components before the buying doubt appears.
See the detail
- Recommended age and safety warnings clear on the product page itself
- Educational content about the type of play, aimed at whoever decides the gift, not always whoever uses it
- What happens with a sold-out toy mid-campaign and where that traffic goes
- Reviews from other families worked as a trust signal across the catalogue
Marketplaces and external campaign
Sort out where people find you off your own site: Amazon and the big retail chains that also sell online.
See the detail
- Titles, attributes and variants on Amazon to show up in gift search
- Which catalogue makes sense on marketplaces and which stays only on your site
- Coordination between what sells out on marketplaces and what's still live on your site
- Tracking which licences and categories perform best in each channel
Who does it?
The project is run by a senior profile with seasonal ecommerce behind them, the kind who has already lived a Christmas campaign from the inside. MJ leads the strategy and the specialist team works catalogue, content and platforms.
Why Laika?
We know the pressure of a sector where the year is decided in a few weeks, because we've worked in it.
Promising results twelve months out is no use here. You have to be ready for the coming campaign, not the one after.
You always talk to whoever decides
There's no management layer between you and the judgement. MJ leads the strategy and the specialist team executes.
If we're not the right fit, we say so
Even if that means there's no project for us, we'd rather say so before signing.
We work against your campaign calendar
We set what has to be done each month before December, and what gets dropped if it won't make it in time.
We know which licences deserve investment this year
Not everything trending right now will last. We help decide where to build permanent structure and where to just ride the peak.
Frequently asked questions
How far ahead do we need to start before the Christmas campaign?
It's best to be working since summer and have the important things closed by late September. If you call us later we'll do what fits, and tell you what's left for next year.
How do you handle products with recommended age and safety warnings?
We make sure that information is clear on the product page itself, because it decides the purchase before price does. We also use it to answer the age-based searches that move a lot of volume during the campaign.
What do we do with a licence that falls out of fashion?
It gets archived with a clear criterion and the history is kept in case it comes back, instead of just deleting it. Every decision is written down so there's no improvising next year.
Do you coordinate the strategy between our site and Amazon?
Yes. We look at which product is worth pushing where, and which searches to attack from the site and which from the marketplace listing.
Tell us how you're doing on time for the campaign
With your site, your catalogue and the campaign date we can tell you what can be ready and what can't.
Next campaign is prepared now.
Tell us where you are and we'll tell you what needs to be ready, and by when.
We look at your project before proposing anything. Reply within two working days at most.
Let's talk about your project