For any business, big or small, underestimating the importance of a seasonal marketing campaign can be a huge mistake. It is imperative to realize that an effective seasonal marketing campaign can not only increase your brand awareness but also make the bulk of your revenue.
Do you want to know about the most effective seasonal marketing tips and promotional ideas for the holiday season? If yes, then keep on reading!
Understand that the premise of an effective seasonal marketing campaign is to manufacture and provide content to the consumers that are both relevant and valuable in a time that matters. Given that this is the peak time for seasonal marketing for big events, it carries enormous opportunities for your business to drive more sales.
There is no denying that it takes a lot of time to plan an effective seasonal campaign and that’s why the majority of small businesses miss the opportunities and do not make the best of them. So, the main question is how one can plan a seasonal marketing campaign and take the most advantage of the given opportunity. Here is how you can plan a successful seasonal marketing campaign:
Step-By-Step Guide on Planning a Seasonal Marketing Campaign
Step #1: Pre-Planning Gives You an Edge over Your Competitors
Although a seasonal marketing campaign can be planned just before your annual opportunity, if you really want to take an edge over your competitors then start planning at least 2-3 months in advance. It gives you ample time to fully evaluate the whole market and come up with a unique, effective marketing campaign strategy.
Step #2: Determine the Goals of Your Campaign
This is a very crucial step because it helps in defining the direction of your campaign. Once you know what you want to achieve, you can plan accordingly. Therefore, ask yourself about the primary purpose of your marketing campaign, e.g. more revenue, leads, subscribers or something else. You can use the answer to create your campaign goals. However, make sure that your goals must be achievable, quantifiable, and time-bound.
Step #3: Determine Your Target Audience
Think of it like going on a vacation with all the information and pre-planning. It is obvious that you’ll gather some information before heading out. That being said, you cannot plan a seasonal marketing campaign without determining your target audience. For this, you’ll have to figure out whether you want to expand your reach or incentivize repeat customers and increase brand loyalty.
If you want to expand your reach then it is essential you start making a lookalike audience of people who currently use your products/services. Once you pinpoint why your current customers prefer to use your product/services, you can definitely strategize the campaign according to the strengths of your business.
Step #4: Be Creative but Also Do Some Research Similar Campaigns
Once you have determined your goals and audience, the next important step is to do some creative thinking and also do some research on similar campaigns. The reason why it is essential for you to do some creative thinking is that an original idea can help you achieve a lot of success. Doing research on similar campaigns is also highly recommended because it shows you how a seasonal marketing campaign is approached with the right content format, messaging, distribution, and emotion.
Step #5: Look for a Perfect Call-to-action
For a successful seasonal marketing campaign, you need to make a perfect call-to-action that can be for various reasons, e.g. engaging your customers, asking for information or driving more sales. Two of the key ingredients of an effective call-to-action are providing more value and sending a message in a more precise, clear way.
Step #6: Establish a Schedule and Follow It
When it comes to seasonal marketing campaigns, one of the most important factors to consider is timing. Many businesses either don’t establish a schedule or don’t follow it even if they create one. This means that you have to plan in advance for the upcoming events and execute those plans accordingly. In a nutshell, establishing a schedule means having everything prepared before the big events and executing the plans without any delay.
Step #7: Review Your Marketing Campaign and Adjust If Needed
Not everything goes as planned, right? What is your plan B or C if plan A doesn’t work? You need to be ready and make sure you closely monitor your marketing campaign. As you keep an eye on everything, you can make necessary changes in the campaign to enhance its performance. Needless to say, you cannot stick to just one strategy; you need to adjust your strategy accordingly.
Step #8: Hire a Professional Marketing Agency
If your previous seasonal marketing campaigns didn’t do well or you believe that you don’t have the expertise or time to create a good marketing campaign, the best and highly recommended option for you is to hire a professional marketing agency. Hiring a professional marketing firm has its own advantages. One of the most obvious advantages is the experience that these marketing firms bring with them. They not only bring a new perspective or save you a lot of your money, but they also have more technological know-how. Therefore, it is recommended to consider this option because it can really increase your chances of getting more out of your seasonal marketing campaign.
Seasonal Marketing Tips and Promotional Ideas for Holiday Season
Now that you have planned your seasonal marketing campaign, the next step is executing it. There are some really amazing seasonal marketing tips and promotional ideas for holiday season.
- Create unique, quality seasonal content
- Make content that provides value to the consumers (providing more value to the consumers increases your sales and brand awareness)
- Use photo contests to promote your product/service; it can also be used to increase your brand awareness
- Offer free samples
- Go with the “limited-time offer” technique
- Use social media for seasonal posts and ads
The Bottom Line
Well, now it can be expected that you can make the best out of the seasonal marketing tips and promotional ideas for holiday season. Make sure that you take a head start over your competitors by either planning a seasonal marketing campaign yourself or by hiring a professional marketing agency. Needless to say, planning the campaign cannot be a big problem if you follow the aforementioned tips.
