How to Leverage the Holidays in Your Marketing Efforts

As we head into the Thanksgiving weekend, many of us are bracing ourselves for the combination of madness and magic known as the holiday season. In my quarter-century as a business owner and operator, I've seen some companies do gangbuster business over the holidays while others seem to disappear completely until early next year, like Punxatawney Phil contemplating his next move. If you want your brand to stay visible and your profits to keep rolling in through the end of 2023, you can't afford to hibernate. Fortunately, some smart marketing content strategies can help you end the year in style while preparing you for a more lucrative 2024. Take a look at some ways you can leverage the holidays in your marketing efforts.

Evoke the Holiday Spirit

This one sounds like low-hanging fruit -- but what's wrong with low-hanging fruit? People typically find themselves in a special mood once the holiday season arrives. Their thoughts drift to childhood experiences, previous family get-togethers, and some of their favorite holiday sights and sounds. They think about what they can do to make others' holidays brighter by giving the perfect present or making a much-appreciated donation. In short, emotions run high -- and as a marketer, you want to use those emotions to maximum effect.

What kinds of messaging would make a big impact on you personally this holiday season? Obviously you're not your target market, but ponder the question anyway. If you associate the holidays with warmth, peace, and joy (as so many do), how can you style your marketing content to tug on those heartstrings? Consider what kinds of statements you make right now that will trigger a deep emotional response in your audience -- and then make those statements.

Offer Relief From Holiday Stress

The holiday season often brings as much pain and agony as it does happiness, especially where seasonal stress is concerned. From the collective nightmare of Black Friday to the pressures of hosting houseguests, shopping for presents, sending cards, and hanging decorations, you could easily be forgiven the extra egg nog or three. Well, we're all in the same boat -- which makes us an especially easy target for the right marketing content.

What thorns do you take out of your customers' paws? If your products or services make people's lives easier, there's no better time to trumpet those benefits than right now, when everyone could use whatever stress relief they can get their hands on. Offer your audience solutions that lead to easier holiday preparations, more successful gatherings, or more of that precious relaxation time. In other words, market your company as a stress-busting Santa!

Get People Thinking About Next Year

As we turn to the last page in the calendar, many folks take up Charlie Brown's immortal catchphrase, "Just wait till next year!" However well or badly 2023 went for them, they want to make 2024 a better experience personally and/or professionally. Some of them will go so far as to make New Year's resolutions to that effect. Do your products or services align with their goals and aspirations? Of course they do, in one way or another -- so start getting them excited about next year before that calendar gets replaced.

B2B companies may find this strategy particularly successful as one business year officially ends and another begins. Books must be balanced, taxes prepared, new marketing campaigns launched, new products and services introduced -- the list goes on and on. But no intelligent, experienced business owner will wait until January to start putting those pieces into play -- they need to take action now. And that means you must do the same by offering them a brighter New Year. Play that angle, and your fortunes should grow correspondingly brighter.

Believe it or not, you still have time to create the marketing content necessary to make full use of these seasonal strategies. Freelance copywriters work all year round, so contact me today and let's add some rocket fuel to your reindeer team!

Fourth-Quarter Holiday Marketing Strategies Worth Considering

If you're a football fan, you love this time of year. From televised Thanksgiving classics to postseason nail-biters, the final months of the year offer ample opportunity to follow your favorite teams in their quest for greatness. And you probably know how dramatically fortunates can turn in that all-important fourth quarter. Well, now we're in the fourth quarter of the business year, what's the "score" in your own quest for profitability and visibility? You still have time to put some points on the board before the clock runs out, so let's look at some powerful marketing strategies for making the most of 2023.

Engage in Experiential Marketing

If you want to make a big splash in the most public manner possible, there's nothing like experiential marketing tactics to put you quite literally in front of your target audience. Experiential marketing includes all those events that allow you to interact directly with the public, with the holiday season serving as the ideal backdrop. The type of experiential marketing you engage in will depend partly on what kinds of products and services you offer. If you're in the food or dining industry, for instance,  you may want to offer samples of your wares or even full-blown cooking demonstrations in a grocery or home goods store. If you're in the tech industry, maybe you should put up a kiosk at a local community event, raffling off big-ticket electronics or discounts for future purchases. The point is: Get out there!

Host (or at Least Attend) Holiday Networking Events

For many businesses, "getting out there" also means networking. Now, I know that not everyone belongs to a year-round networking organization or enjoys attending constant chamber events. But the final months of the year open up numerous seasonal networking opportunities in the form of company parties and open houses in support of various causes. Do you have a brick-and-mortar facility that can accommodate lots of foot traffic? If so, why not host such an event so your favorite clients and business partners can invite and mingle with first-time visitors? If you can't host such an event yourself, make sure to attend a few of them so you can make new connections both inside and outside your industry.

Send Thank-You Notes and Gifts

People love to be recognized -- and the final quarter of the year serves as a natural summing-up time in which to express your appreciation for your vendor partners, employees, and customers. You'd be amazed at the power of a simple thank-you note, especially when it displays both eloquence and personalization. A skilled copywriter can provide the fomer, while handwritten text (or a properly convincing script-style font) can help convey the latter. If you want to grab the attention of your VIP clients, it's time to turn to the actual gifts. seek out a promotional products company that can provide extra-special gifts that include your brand name and logo. Your VIPs will definitely think of you going into next year, and who knows what that extra awareneness could do for your revenue?

Appeal to End-of-Year Customer Needs

People often need more help than usual as they prepare for seasonal activities, from making sure their plumbing can accommodate a houseful of guests to figuring out how to hang holiday decorations safely or get their business's books in order. These folks will naturally be Googling for solutions; the question is, will your brand pop up in their line of vision when they do? Now is the time to pump out those timely blog articles addressing the needs, and topics in question. It's also the time to make sure your online presence is optimized for local and mobile searches. Many of your ideal customers are out and about doing their shopping, after all -- so when they search for the nearest solution to their problem, you want to appear at the top of those search results.

Take these strategies to heart, and your fourth quarter may turn out to be a big winner for your brand. Meanwhile, if you need some quick, efficient professional assistance in putting some of that fourth-quarter marketing content together, you know who to call!