Summer can often be a tough time for businesses if they’re not seasonal, with a change in weather comes opportunities to grow your marketing strategy. As temperatures rise this summer things may be slowing down for many businesses. It’s time to get creative and crank up the heat on your summer marketing strategy!
Make Use of the holidays
Holidays are a great time to leverage your business and get creative with sales and promotions. Summer is full of holidays from Canada day to Labour day, as well as some of the more casual holidays that can be capitalized on to generate social media engagement. For example, July 18th is National Ice Cream Day which can easily be taken advantage of by the food and beverage industry!
Temperature based sales
It’s a good idea to keep an eye on the weather throughout the summer to offer temperature-based sales. You can offer a percent off sales when the temperature rises over a certain degree or you can promote your business as a way to escape the rain on those not-so-nice days!
brand refresh for summer
Be open to changing things up in the summer. If business is slower it is a great time to try something new and test out its success. You can use this time to give yourself a brand refresh and add in some more colour and summer-themed content. If your summer strategy greatly increases engagement and revenue think about incorporating these tactics year-round.
Bring your business outdoors
If you have the opportunity to bring your business outside and attract walking traffic or outdoors people this can be a great way to get your business some attention. Especially in Canada, people want to take advantage of the good weather so try attending some local events or markets! Summer is a great time to step out of the office and get involved in the community!
Reward customer loyalty
It is important to make your loyal customers feel appreciated. Increased customer loyalty will ensure a returning customer and increase the chance of word-of-mouth promotion. Try adding a loyalty program either by app or card where your customer is rewarded with a deal or a free purchase once they have made a certain number of purchases. This will give the customer a reason to return and get them excited about your business.
Host a summer event
Host an event this summer to bring your customers together. School is out and families are often looking for things to do to keep everyone busy. Hold your own event at your location to bring in customers and get them excited about your business by offering a class, a free tasting, prizes to be won, or other creative ways to bring in customers. When hosting the event focus on engagement over selling. Promoting the event on social media will reach your current customers but can also work to reach new audiences.
Weather based freebies
Everyone loves free stuff, so why not provide something that can be used in the summer like a reusable water bottle, a tote bag, a hat, or anything small you can offer to customers on a certain day to encourage them to come into the store. This added bonus will be sure to bring a smile to their face and will be kept at home as a reminder to return to your location or even work as an advertisement when they are using it in public.
Summer doesn’t have to mean slower business. By using these strategies and staying creative you can make summer a time to generate revenue. Take a step back and think about what you would like as a consumer and try a combination of summer marketing strategies. Take this time to test out something new and you may find a new strategy that gets put into your yearly marketing plan.
Let our inbound marketing experts approach your next campaign with a strategic plan. Get in touch with us today to discover what strategy is going to elevate your business in 2021!