Thanksgiving has come and gone, and now the streets fill with jack-o-lanterns and cottony cobwebs. Little ghosts and ghouls are peeking out from the window, just waiting for that hallowed night when they get to haunt the neighbourhood–and get some candy while they’re at it.
As a business owner, this can only mean one thing.
Christmas time!
You heard me.
To make sure you have the time you need to get those sleigh bells jingling, you need to get your festive holiday turkeys in a row at least two months in advance. Which means if you haven’t gotten started by Halloween, you might miss out on media buys, have to settle for rushed jobs, or, even worse, miss the most lucrative commercial season of the year altogether.
Why so early?
Actually, Halloween is considered late for traditional campaign planning.
Why?
Good marketing takes time.
Writing and designing professional-grade materials isn’t just a matter of blurting the first thing to come to mind, slapping on some clipart, running it through your home printer, and calling it a day.
To look professional and be effective, marketing materials need to be thoroughly researched to make sure it represents your brand and stands out from the competition, then repeatedly revised to make sure that the final product is precisely what you want and need.
Good campaigns take planning.
Your marketing push should be strategic and unified. You need to determine precisely who you want to reach, precisely where you’ll be able to reach them, and precisely what you would need to hit them with to make sure you stand out from the ‘white noise’ of holiday marketing.
Moreso, you need to make certain that all your marketing efforts work together, each item building on the other. Marketing mediums that work hand-in-hand have been proven to work exponentially better than in isolation, and can help to avoid conflicting branding, targeting, and messaging.
Holiday media resources sell out quickly.
The prime spots in major mediums, such as wide-distribution newspapers and radio, are often sold out months, if not years in advance. And while it’s far too late for the larger media outlets, niche markets are already filling up fast.
Even if you plan on marketing using mediums that don’t rely upon media buys for distribution, such as mailers, give-aways, or even online marketing, printers, planners, and designers get extremely busy around this time of year, and will likely need a final draft well in advance to get your materials into your customers’ hands on time.
What about non-retail businesses?
The holidays aren’t just about buying gifts. It’s a season about getting together with family, enjoying the festive lights, and generally promoting ‘good will towards your fellow man’.
The food service industry is an obvious non-retail business who benefits heavily from a holiday campaign. Festive specials are a proven way to drum up new business, and the emphasis on family togetherness provides a significant spike in patronage. Beauty salons see a major spike in gift certificates. Hotels fill up with out-of-town relatives.
Any consumer-based business will likely either see a natural increase in holiday business, or have a way to spin their product or service to appeal to the holiday crowd.
And ‘Business-To-Business’?
The holiday season isn’t exclusively for business-to-consumer businesses. Business-to-business can use the theme of giving and good will to drive promotions, from office furniture (“give your employees the gift of comfort”) to IT support (branding computer problems as ‘gifts you didn’t ask for’).
In Business-to-Business, it’s always important to remember that, while you’re selling services to a business, the buyers are still human. Thoughtful marketing that fits the festive holiday theme can make the buyers feel appreciated, which builds good-will and overall appeal.
It’s also worth mentioning that this season also marks the approach of tax season and the end of many annual quarters, which means departments in many large corporate entities rushing to expend the remainder of their annual budgets.
Act before it’s too late–and save some money.
Any industry can run a holiday campaign–and marketing is no exception.
We’re thrilled to announce the start of our annual “Christmaween Special”: From October 15th through to Halloween day, we’re offering a 10% discount on all Winter Holiday-related marketing services. This includes planning, design, execution, and distribution of deliverables.
We will also offer you a Christmas campaign consultation, free of charge. Tell us a bit about your company, product, target demographic, and rough budget range, and we’ll present you with a list of options, as well as an idea of how much each will cost.
Time is short–this offer expires on October 31st. Don’t miss your chance: Contact us today for your free consultation.
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