AMiable Solution #204: Falling for It?

Fall is here, and with it comes cooler evenings and brisk mornings, back-to-school, and football.  It’s brought longer pants, shorter attention spans, and thoughts of the end of the year.

Fall has also brought the opportunity to create season-specific campaigns and promotions.

Did you send out fall-themed marketing last week?  Do you have others currently in production?  According to Brielle Jaekel, you may want to review them closely before you let them drop.

In her September 25, 2015, Mobile Marketer article, “Marketers Largely Fail With First-Day-of-Fall Social Campaigns,” Brielle says that brands are constantly incorporating national events and holidays into their social feeds.  The result?  Seasonal overkill.  But it doesn’t have to be that way.  You can “fall” into your marketing, but you have to use it wisely. 

How?  Highlight only the events--seasonal and otherwise--that are relevant to your organization.  For example, if you release a signature product every fall, incorporating the fall season into your marketing makes sense.  Slapping a few leaves on a promotion with no tie to the season or the content of your offer does not.

How else can you make sensational seasonal marketing?  If your organization doesn’t have a natural tie to this time of year, create one:

• ·        Plan an open house/career fair for local students.  Invite them to come in and ask questions, talk to your experts, and learn about the important contributions your industry makes to the community and how they can get involved.  Make it an annual event.
• ·        Organize a donation drive that compliments your company’s mission.  The holidays are coming.  If you’re in the restaurant business, collect canned goods for the local food bank.  If you’re a retailer, collect sweaters for a local homeless shelter.  If you’re a service business, organize a company-wide volunteer opportunity.  You get the idea.
• ·        Host a pumpkin decorating contest.  Ask customers to decorate a pumpkin based on one of your organization’s key missions or on a particular product line or service.  Offer a coffee-and-doughnuts celebration for the winning entry’s office.  Be sure to post all photo submissions online to share the fun and recognize participating customers.

Making your fall promotions relevant to the needs and interests of your market not only makes them more effective, but it also makes them more memorable, something your customers will look forward to year after year.