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Creating a Summer Marketing Plan

July 16, 2012 by Cathy Stucker

Does your business slow down in the summer? Every business has its busy seasons and slow seasons, and for many small businesses the summer is a time when business is down. It may be because decision makers are on vacation or the heat just has everyone moving more slowly than usual. Or it may be because you expect business to be slower in the summer and don’t pursue new clients the way you do at other times of the year.

Whatever the reason, you can make more money this summer by creating a summer marketing plan. Think about what your customers need this summer (No, probably not a pitcher of margaritas–unless your business is a bar!) and offer it to them. Here are some ideas.

  • What are your customers worried about this summer? Are they concerned about the safety of their home while they’re away on vacation, or the cost of air conditioning while they are home? Do they need a way to keep their kids busy and out of trouble while they are at work? If your clients are businesses, what are their summer problems? For many, it is getting work done while employees are on vacation. List every worry or problem your customers are facing and how you can help them with it.
  • What are your customers doing this summer? How can you help them to do what they need to do and reach their goals?
  • What would they rather be doing? What do your customers really want to be doing, but can’t (but possibly could with the help of your product or services)?
  • Who isn’t using your services, but should be? For example, if you are a virtual assistant, you may provide assistance and backup to clients when they are away. Are there solo-preneurs who believe they are unable to take a vacation because they need to be there to run the business? Show them how you can help them and you have a new client.
  • How can you remove the obstacles to working with you? Are you waiting for an approval that never seems to come because the decision makers have gone on vacation one after another, and they can’t get together to say yes? Could you propose an interim service that could be approved by the people who are in the office now? Can you make an irresistible offer to new clients to get them to start buying from you?
  • Could you come up with an excuse for a sale? Maybe a “Send My Kids to Camp” sale where you offer special pricing on a group of products or services to get your kids out of your hair for a week or two. ;o) Or whatever reason you might have for offering a special.

Coming up with a summer marketing plan doesn’t require any magic or genius skills, but it does require some thought. Spend a little time considering how you can help your customers, and attract new customers, this summer and you will have business that will be profitable through the summer and beyond.

Filed Under: Marketing

Groupon’s Lesson: Do You Know Who Your Customers Are?

July 11, 2012 by Dan Janal

This is a guest post from Dan Janal.

Everyone’s concerned about Google keeping tabs on your privacy. Here’s one group of businesses that apparently don’t keep tabs on you – restaurateurs.

Here’s the story.

I bought a Groupon for a restaurant. I actually buy lots of them – Groupon has taught me never to pay full price for a meal – but that’s another story. I actually buy more food than the Groupon is worth so the restaurant can actually make money – but that’s another story.

My wife and I went to this interesting hole-in-the-wall restaurant that served Ethiopian food. The owner was marvelously charming. He immediately welcomed us and called us “friend.” Nice touch.

We asked him what was good since we understood steak, chicken and tilapia, but didn’t know anything about the spices. He gave us a good overview and we ordered.

Then we sat down to wait for the takeout order. The restaurant was in a dicey part of town and we thought it might be better to eat at home and watch TV.

Two minutes later, he brought out two bowls of soup and two bottles of water – on the house!

Nice touch.

Twenty minutes later, the food was cooked and placed in white, Styrofoam containers. But instead of getting our money and sending us on our way, he asked my wife to sample the food to make sure it was good.

It was! Very good.

We paid and as we left, he gave us two more bottles of water.

“In the Sahara,” he said, “People give water to friends when they leave their house.” Nice touch.

That would have been the end of a nice customer service story, but here’s the rest of the story.

I told this story to my buddy Stuart Gray who consults with restaurants. I thought he’d be bowled over by this wonderful customer service story.

Instead, he replied, “Did they put you on a list? Do they know how to reach you again? Uh, no.

Well, I guess Groupon knows, but I hear that Groupon will gladly sell that info to the restaurant. I wish my new friend had thought to ask. Oh well.

Do you know who your customers are? Do you give visitors a way to identify themselves to you and join your lists, read your blogs or connect with you on Facebook (which is going to become the dominant search marketing tool and customer retention tool)? If not, why not? You are letting repeat business slip through your fingers.

Dan Janal helps small businesses get publicity so they can sell more products. My clients get terrific results from my coaching, consulting, done-for-you services and do-it-yourself tools. For info, go to www.prleadsplus.com or call me at 952-380-1554.

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Marketing Tagged With: Groupon, mailing list

Marketing with Summer Holidays

July 9, 2012 by Cathy Stucker

Looking for a fun way to generate some business this summer? Holidays and observances are a great way to tap into what is on your customers’ minds or just have an excuse for an event or promotion. Some holidays are well-known and widely observed while others are a bit more…quirky. Either way, they can provide great ideas for blog posts, product sales, customer events and more.

You don’t have to rely only on holidays in your own country. Why not recognize an international holiday or a day celebrated in a far-away country?

Here is a list of some of the holidays and observances that are in the summer months. While some of these may have already passed for this year, print this post out or bookmark it, so you can reference it and plan ahead for next year.

July Holidays

1st – Canada Day
4th – Independence Day (United States)

Observances:

Hot Dog Month
Vehicle Theft Prevention Month (Perfect for security firms.)
Social Wellness Month (All about bettering your social relationships and community.)
Family Reunion Month
7th – Global Forgiveness Day
11th – World Population Day
11th – Cheer up the Lonely Day
15th – Ice Cream Day
3rd Monday – Get out of the Doghouse Day (Hello, florists? Jewelers?)
2nd week – Freedom Appreciation Week

August Holidays

1st Monday – Provincial holiday in Canada, excluding Quebec

Observances:

National Smile Month (Perfect for dentists, photographers, humorists…)
1st Week – World Breastfeeding Week
1st Week – Simplify Your Life Week (Professional organizers, what can you do with this?)
3rd – Watermelon Day
6th – Fresh Breath Day
8th – Happiness Happens Day
9th – International Day of the World’s Indigenous People
12th – International Youth Day
13th – International Left Handers Day
25th – Kiss and Make up Day

September Holidays

1st Sunday – Father’s Day (Australia, New Zealand)
1st Monday – Labor Day (United States, Canada)
11th – Patriot Day (United States)
Sunday after Labor Day – Grandparent’s Day (United States)
17th – Constitution Day (United States)

Observances:

National Arthritis Month
Ovarian Cancer Month
Self-Improvement Month (Wow. Who couldn’t use this?)
National Courtesy Month
13th – Positive Thinking Day (How about a blog post full of positive and inspiring quotations?)
19th – Talk Like a Pirate Day

Get creative…have fun with it. Think of how you can use these holidays for your social media updates, videos, blog posts, product promotions, email newsletters and more. At first glance you might not see how you could use Talk Like a Pirate Day in your business. And, if you are an investment consultant, you probably shouldn’t. But you don’t have to sell eye patches or parrots to have fun with Talk Like a Pirate Day. What if you gave a discount to anyone who came to your store on that day and asked for the discount by talking like a pirate? Or you had a buried treasure themed blog post or contest? What other fun connections can you make to pirates? (Let’s ignore the not-so-fun aspects of pirates, such as the thieving and killing, OK?)

Although some of these holidays and observances are serious and should be taken seriously, others are open to just about anything you want to do.

Oh, and if you don’t see the right holiday for your business, why not start your own holiday?

Filed Under: Marketing

What Does Your Customer Want From You?

October 19, 2011 by Cathy Stucker

This is a guest post from Kirk Ward of http://secrets-of-marketing-accounting-services.com/.

Does your prospect know what business you’re in? Do you think they care?

Your prospect doesn’t give a Snail’s Hoot about you, or what business you are in. All they care about is getting their needs met. Contrary to what you think about yourself and your ilk, human’s are a very selfish lot. We really don’t care about your great credentials (unless we need someone with that particular credential), and we certainly don’t care about your beautiful packaging (unless it is one of our needs). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Marketing

Recycling Publicity

September 26, 2011 by Cathy Stucker

When you get publicity, you will be seen for as long as that show or publication is available. Although you may continue seeing benefits from a story for weeks or months after it appears (for example, as a magazine is passed from person to person) a particular story can literally be “here today, gone tomorrow.” To keep getting benefits from your publicity successes, follow these tips: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Marketing, Publicity

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