Have you heard the old saying suggesting that you should “make hay while the sun shines”? It refers to taking advantage of opportunities while they’re present. Not wanting to miss out on things is human nature. We want to take part in fun things – holidays, special events, VIP offers, and the like… We want to be included in the “in” crowd.
Because we don’t want to miss out, we’re constantly on the lookout for news and information. We talk to our friends, we scour social media pages, and we make notes on our calendars so we don’t forget when “it” is going to happen. And, if we’ve really got our stuff together, we plan – and we plan well – around particularly important events in effort to enjoy them completely when they happen.
Effective seasonal social media planning ensures that we – and our customers – enjoy everything as much as possible.
We’ve talked before about painting pictures for our customers. As a marketer, it’s your job to make sure your customers are aware of upcoming holidays and events so that it’s a win/win situation for everyone: They get what they want and they feel like they got a good deal, and you get increased sales, better brand recognition, and (hopefully) loftier sales goals for next year.
It all requires planning ahead. Similar to making hay while the sun shines, but on a different timeline. Your swimsuit sales won’t top the summer sales charts if you don’t start planting the seeds for your summer promotions in December. And, likewise, you can’t expect Santa to deliver stellar holiday sales figures if you weren’t “Rocking Around The Christmas Tree” while wearing one of the swimsuits you so masterfully created campaigns for two seasons earlier.
Santa may be able to see you when you’re sleeping, but your customers need Rudolph, with his nose so bright, to guide them to promotion night! (Ha! See how much fun this is?)
Holidays and seasons, and the seasonal social media planning that goes along with them, vary for different businesses and industries. Although some seasonal promotions require more planning time than others, the one thing that remains the same is that they ALL need to be promoted well in advance of the actual occasion in order to be successful.
Whether you’re dealing with time-based seasons like summer and winter, holiday-based seasons like the 4th of July and Christmas, or event-based seasons like Back-to-School, you’ve got have those seasons geared up well before they’re on the general public’s radar (or, calendar, per se).
To plan well means knowing your customer and knowing when they want to buy for a particular season. You may even have to consider segmenting your customers into two groups based on their buying habits: Those who plan forward and buy in advance so they don’t have to rush at the 11th hour, and those who think about it just as the store is closing so they dash in to grab whatever is left.
Be creative about how and when you “sell.” No one wants to be barraged with ads at every turn. Think about how it feels when you go to a website for information only to have blinking ads flashing across every corner of your screen and covering the very content you’re there to take in. That doesn’t create a very pleasant user experience, does it?
On the other hand, if your seasonal content is “well seasoned”, you’ll get your customers attention far more effectively. You’ll have their attention even before they need to start thinking seriously about the season, and when you unleash your biggest pitches, they’ll be ready to buy because you’ve created a mindset.
Don’t focus just on what you’re selling, either. Make sure to provide options and solutions for your customers. Create content that appeals to the problems they may have with a certain season. Appeal to the emotional aspects of a holiday. Show how your products and services can solve their problems, create opportunities, save them time, money, water, salt… Whatever! Just make sure what you’re selling makes your customers’ lives better in some way.
Speak personally to your customers – don’t just pontificate to the masses.
Inspire them, don’t tire them.
Provide a good balance of messaging that has absolutely no strings attached along with sales-related seasonal messages, and you’ll create much happier communities within your social media venues.
It can be hard to know how far ahead to start pre-campaigning for various seasons and holidays, but you’ll have a much easier time figuring it out if you involve, and listen to, your customers.
While it’s true, perhaps, that only Santa knows if your customers are being bad or good, you’ll be good (for goodness sake!) in their eyes if you’re there when they need you.
Wondering how on earth to plan for winter gloves while everyone else is searching for trendy tankinis? We won’t say it’s fast or easy, but the process of planning successful seasonal promotions is just a phone call away. You bring the sunscreen… We’ve got the cold-weather gear.
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