July 4th is just around the corner and there's still time to take advantage of the marketing opportunity. There's nothing more American than gearing seasonal marketing efforts to coincide with national holidays. It makes perfect sense, too. For most of us, thoughts of holidays elicit warm feelings, evoke good memories, and generate shopping opportunities for specialty items we may not buy at other times of the year. Making July 4th ads work for you in today's digital world means reaching your consumers on social media. It is not difficult. Read on and we can show you how.
Determine Your Goal For The Fourth Of July.
The holiday message you want to give to your audience depends on your business goals. For example, if you are holding a blow-out sale of specialty holiday items, then reaching your audience is easiest through your Facebook page. I assume you already know how important it is to have a social media presence to reach an ever-increasing database of consumers. Suffice it to say, if you don't already have one, you need to establish one to compete in today's digital marketplace. Understanding how your target audience is using social media is critical to your success.
Remember, too, that while your Facebook presence is a wonderful marketing tool, you still compete for consumer contact with a myriad of other businesses that will use the same tool. We offer the following guiding principles:
- Use evocative symbols. July 4th is the perfect opportunity to take advantage of this tact because we associate this exciting holiday from earliest childhood with family picnics, fireworks displays, glow sticks, patriotic music, summer fun activities like swimming, and good comfort foods like ice cream, hotdogs and hamburgers, potato salad, etc. The list is endless. July 4th symbols encompass all our senses.
- Keep It Simple. You want to keep your audience focused on your advert and you want your message to come across loud and clear. The best way to do that is with clean, evocative images and lean text. Let your visitor's imagination soar — but gently pushed in the direction you want it to go.
- Keep It Friendly. Social media in general is not the place for heavy-handed messages. You invite consumers to join your social network, hope that they will hear and accept your message today, and come back again tomorrow — like good friends.
- Make It Visual. Centuries before humans developed a written language, we communicated through hand-drawn pictographs on cave walls. That tradition comes down to us today in the old saying “A picture is worth a thousand words”. We react on a visceral level to messages bound in pictures. Yes, we've come a long way from simple pictographs. Today's photographic message takes composition, color, heart, and symbols to evoke the response we seek. Yet, with today's technology, we can often accomplish the desired response through the simple use of a smart phone camera shot, posted on Instagram.
- Don't forget Twitter. While this distinctly verbal social media platform may not allow you to blast your message in pictures, it has its place in your marketing campaign. The 140 characters limitation makes you distill your message to its barest terms, while still getting the point across. It's definitely a skill worth learning because, done well, Twitter can make an immediate, indelible impact.
So, What Does This Mean For Your July 4th Marketing?
Pick your marketing strategy.Traditionally, July 4th is one of the biggest opportunities for American consumers to find sales and discounted prices on items they have been waiting to buy. We already talked about how holiday adverts may sell particular items from holiday party accessories to sales on grills and outdoor furniture. There's also a new marketing opportunity in July: consider joining the Black Friday in July movement to boost your mid-year sales.
If selling is not your immediate goal, then perhaps you want to send a reminder, a gentle greeting for a happy holiday — the way an old friend would send a greeting across the miles.
To talk more about July 4th marketing, or anything else digital marketing related, please contact us. We want to help you grow your business.
