The holiday season is upon on us, and it’s time to consider how brands can leverage the seasonal hype to implement intentional branding initiatives. With the beloved and spooky spirit of Halloween in full swing, what takeaways can we gather from leading brands? And, more importantly, how can we extract inspiration from successful ideas to fuel an influx of seasonal brand campaigns that are as effective as they are engaging?
Obviously, there are a few things you’ll want to continuously include in the process of your strategy. It goes without saying that social listening is a critical piece of the puzzle. Being attentive to what your target audience is talking about can provide key insights as to what you should produce, and how you can elicit a response from your consumer base. This type of a strategy helps to reveal nuggets of information that can evolve into the foundation for marketing campaigns that deliver a profound sense of impact.
Demonstrating an ability to understand your consumer and having that insight of knowing where they’re at and how best to reach them is key to earning success. Social listening is surely a component of it, but another practice to invest in is the analysis surrounding device behavior. Mobile is hot right now, but depending on your audience and the message you’re pushing, you might consider to reimagine how you maximize the capabilities of your execution. Maybe you reinvent your e-mail marketing approach, expand the ways you offer digital support, or even tap in to something in the gamification realm. Regardless of what decision feels like the right fit for your brand, applying the type of thinking that pushes the envelope and brings something new and fresh to the table will set your brand apart from what competitors are putting out there. There’s also proven value in diversifying your marketing channels, so remaining knowledgable about how your consumers engage with content can give you a serious competitive edge.
Due to the quick shift between Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Years, and more, you may see the value in developing a seasonal calendar that outlines a collective vision. While this time of year resembles a time for robust marketing opportunities, it’s important to ensure that each effort you pour time and money in to is a piece of a greater puzzle that reinforces a cohesive marketing message. Everything you produce and publish should enhance your brand mission, and build upon your identity as a business. Incorporating something like a calendar, or even an alternate iteration of something that serves the purpose of a creative game plan, can help you stay on track with all the big ideas you’re putting in to action. You may also find it useful to reference past data and utilize a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) charts to help you implement solutions and ideas that are tailored for success.
Seasonal planning is just as exciting as it is overwhelming, but incorporating tactics like these can ease the process and ensure you’re considering all the pieces of the puzzle. What big things do you have in the works for the upcoming holiday season?