Summertime and the Marketing’s Easy?
I looked to the beautiful song “Summertime” to offer some inspiration for today’s post. Far be it from me to suggest that Ella and Louis let me down, but as it turns out, the lyrics actually have little to do with summertime, unless your summers include jumping fish and high cotton.
But I digress.
The real ‘raison d’être’ of today’s post is to talk about summertime marketing. Does your business have any special plans, promotions, events, etc., that only happen in the summer? There’s a lot to be said from apsychological perspective about marketing in the summer and marketing seasonal businesses. Particularly in our climate, I think everyone can agree that most people are in a better mood when the weather is sunny and warm.
Better mood = more receptive to absorbing a marketing message in a positive manner, thereby more likely to take action.
Consumers also typically have more time during the summer months, so hosting a customer appreciation BBQ or a limited time, invitation-only sale makes perfect sense.
Businesses need to do whatever they can to capitalize on this magical time when everyone feels like a rock star! Whether that means creating bright, new, colourful collateral pieces and flyers, or whether it means promoting a “community clean up” in the neighbourhood where your business resides, it’s a good idea to do something that will make an impact and be memorable.
Now that marketing has become so relationship- and experience-based, it’s easier to identify opportunities for promotion. Own a restaurant and want to capture the influx of tourists attending Folklorama? Devise “Folklorama inspired cocktails and mocktails” for people to enjoy pre- or post-pavilion hopping! Maybe you own a small clothing boutique in an out-of-the-way neighbourhood? Look into the possibility of joining one of the many farmers’ markets that have cropped up throughout the city and outskirts. You don’t necessarily have to run a stand at the market, but maybe the market has some collateral material in which you can advertise, or they will let you put up flyers at their location.
Once you identify the audience that you are trying to capture, you can devise theories as to what that subsection of the populace might respond to, and formulate your tactics from there.
But don’t wait, start your planning now! It’s a proven fact that time moves more quickly in the warmer months…or maybe it feels that way because of daylight savings time?
Either way, if you need some ideas to promote your business and get some leads in a hurry, give us a call.
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