If you want a profitable winter, you need to make plans in the summer!
Yes, it’s the middle of the summer. Half the country is probably getting hit with a heat wave, and the summer season is in full swing… so, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about The Holidays! Yes, those holidays – the big ones at the end of the year. The ones where many businesses make the majority of their annual profit.
The US Chamber of Commerce reports that 79% of small businesses say the holiday season is critical for their overall profits. How “critical”? A recent Meta study found that “One-quarter of SMB owners expect to make more than half of their annual revenue in the last months of the year.”
With that much riding on the business you bring in in the Winter, it’s just bad business to wait until the last minute to make plans. The time to start your fourth-quarter holiday marketing strategy is now, in the Summer!
If you think about it, from July 4th to Black Friday there are about 150 days (give or take). If you wait until the fourth quarter to plan your fourth-quarter marketing strategy, most of the big holiday opportunities will be lost for another year – if you don’t act now.
Make this the year you truly take advantage of the holiday spending spree
I know what you’re thinking – who the heck has the time to plan for something almost half a year away? Running a small business is all-encompassing. You’re already busy focusing on today! No one could possibly argue with that… which is why we’re going to start small. Even little ideas can have a big impact on your bottom line if you plan for the bottom half of the year.
Here are 5 things you can be doing now to make sure your business is ready to turn up the heat this holiday season…
1. Start building your social media – when the holidays get here, you’re going to want to be able to use social to spread the word about all the marketing efforts you have going on over the holidays. Start building followers now – put a message on your receipts or invoices, put a sign by the register, and simply ask people to follow you – make it part of your standard farewell: “Thank you for doing business with us… and be sure to follow us on Facebook or Instagram.”
Of course, social media only works if you post something — many somethings. Like one something every couple of days or more. I know. I know. No time. Right. You have a phone? It takes less than two minutes to take a photo and post it to facebook. Go ahead. Try it. You’ll see it’s true. Take a shot of today’s job site, or sale, or a display, your staff or crew. Show whatever it is you’re working on
Want to really make an impression? Take a video. Or, post Before and After images — people love those — and there’s no faster way to show off your work.
2. Review and repair your online reviews – when people start shopping this holiday season, they’re going to be comparing reviews – yours and your competitors. Now is the time to take steps to start flooding the web with positive reviews – and taking steps to turn negative reviews into positive customer interactions – those can become your most powerful positive reviews.
Every customer interaction should end with a request for a positive review. It’s that simple. Word-of-mouth advertising is still the most powerful marketing — and in today’s digital world, word-of-mouth is now word of strangers. Studies show that people believe online reviews just as much (or more) than they believe family and friends. Your website, social, and Google listing needs. to include positive customer reviews.
And, when you get a review… respond! Even if you just say “thanks again for your business!” You may not have time to respond to every review, if you’re successful enough or lucky enough to get a lot of them, but you absolutely must respond to negative ones — and not in a snarky or nasty way. Do your best to make it right — and if you can’t, at least show you tried. Show you care about your customers — that’s the #1 goal of posting reviews.
3. Make plans to celebrate every “retail holiday” – Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday – even if you’re not a retail business. Today there are nationally recognized and promoted holidays aimed at encouraging people to shop and “shop small.” (Thank you American Express.)
Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday – your business should celebrate all three. If you’re in retail, it’s easy — promote offers and specials spanning the extended shopping weekend. If your website isn’t set up to take orders online, you can and should still use your site to announce “cyber specials” available to anyone who calls on that day (or that week).
If your business isn’t retail – pretend you are. Too many businesses in the service industry fail to do simple things like offering Black Friday Specials or Cyber Monday Deals. Post a timely offer on your social media. Update your Website with a holiday-themed call-to-action to drive people to contact you, whether it’s by phone, form, text, or email. Give people a reason to get off the fence and reach out.
4. Ask for emails in exchange for special deals… starting today – you should have an email address and cell phone number for every customer you come in contact with, and if you don’t already, now is the time to start gathering them.
If you have a customer’s contact information then you have the key to utilizing email and text marketing to reach those customers and promote your business. With an email and phone number for each customer, you can easily and inexpensively stay in touch… and stay front of mind. Best of all, there are easy ways to make email and text marketing automatic and hands-free. Customer contact is the easiest type of marketing to automate — companies like Hibu, Constant Contact, and others will get you started or manage It all for you.
Then as the holidays approach, email and text customers about your marketing specials. (Professional tip: remember to let your customers know that their friends can get the special deal, too… simply by filling out the form on your website.)
5. Give something away as a “Gift” – everyone loves getting gifts on the holidays, it’s the easiest thing in the world to spin a small product or service into a small gift.
It’s a classic loss-leader marketing strategy – take something you routinely offer – and turn it into your FREE Holiday Gift to your customers.
Free estimate
Free upgrade
“Valued-customer” discount
And, of course financial teasers like, “Buy One Get One Half-Off” (or any other similar “Buy one get… something” offer).
Of course, to really do this right, you need to promote your gift on your website, your social media, and in ads across the web, as well as in emails, in-store, on estimates – wherever you communicate with customers and prospects.
These are small things you can do this Summer that can help you have hot Winter sales. Start working today for a happier holiday season this year!
[A shorter version of this post originally written for and published on the Hibu Blog]