Summer doesn’t have to be a dry spell for entrepreneurs. Weave the season into your marketing plan.
Customers behave differently from season to season. Adapting your business to the season helps guarantee it stays hot during the summer months.
To ensure that your business thrives from March to May, you have to continually look for opportunities specific to what your potential and current customers would want to do during that period. Prepare a summer strategy and make sure your business stays hot during the season!
Offer summer workshops
Consider holding classes related to your business’ offerings. For restaurant and bar owners, arrange an afternoon of learning how to prepare summer coolers and treats that beat the heat. Do you have a photography studio? Host some classes on teaching basics to kids. Offering classes that help build skills are great learning experiences for your participants, plus they expose more people to your business.
Sponsor a summer party
Summer is also spelled v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n. People love to relax during the summer season, so why not host a summer bash? Host an evening of cocktails right at your boutique. Use your shop’s parking lot to host a cookout for your customers. Look for ways to make this summer event worthwhile for people to want to be a part of it. Offer food, fun and music. Level it up by giving away prizes, hiring a band, even renting some rides. There’s no reason why you can’t integrate what your business has to offer either. Give attendees special offers, such as discounts, so they can be motivated to patronize your business over the summer months.
“Summer-fy” your offerings
Incorporate summer themes into your marketing, from your Facebook page’s cover photo to your store’s summer specials. If you manage a salon, send out a newsletter to your customers and give them tips on how to keep hair damage-free in the heat. It is also a good idea to look into putting your logo onto summer-related premium items such as fans, tumblers, sunglasses, and beach totes. That’s one way to keep your business in customers’ minds during the season.
Hold a summer sale
Review your current line of products or services and decide which ones you can put on discount or put together as a package to improve cash flow quickly.
Take advantage of the season
Invest in training yourself and your staff. Take advantage of the lean season to increase your and your staff’s skills. Summer would be a great time for off-site team building activities or short courses you can take that will help boost your business.
Use the slow season to plan for your busy season. There’s no need to fall behind if your business’ summer performance is slowing down. Use this time to plan for your busier months. Brainstorm on new products or services to launch after the summer when business begins picking up again. Engage in consumer research — talk to current customers to find out what you’re doing well and what you can do better. Look into upcoming trends that will affect your busier months and prepare for it. If your business is in home décor and picks up better during the Christmas season, what if you begin preparing Christmas sets around orchid, Pantone’s color for 2014?
Time to do some housekeeping
Do general housekeeping and necessary maintenance. Does your computer need upgrading? Does your kitchen equipment need servicing? When was the last time you archive old files? Use this lull to organize your business while there are fewer customers to attend to. Doing these now will save you time once your busier season kicks in.
Summer doesn’t have to be a dry spell for your business. Adapt to the season or do things to prepare your business for the next season.
Article written by Toni Tiu and originally published at Homegrown.ph
