Seasonal Campaigns: Key Dates And How To Prepare Your Company
Seasonal campaigns are strategic marketing and sales activities that are designed and implemented in light of the major commemorative dates of the year. In this sense, they aim to promote the offer and increase sales within a specified and predetermined period.
Christmas, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Valentine’s Day are some of the memorial dates. They make the most money for all physical and online commerce. Increasingly, retailers and digital entrepreneurs are using these days to drive sales and achieve better results.
Just to give you an idea, on Black Friday in 2020 alone, e-commerce sales were 31% higher than the previous year, surpassing $7.2 billion.
But how important is it to think about seasonal campaigns, what are the most important commemorative dates, and how to prepare your company for them? That’s what we’ll show you in this post. Good reading!
Why plan seasonal campaigns?
As the name suggests, the seasons are known to occur from time to time. Following this argument, commemorative dates and their respective campaigns are seasonal and when they do, they are responsible for the sharp rise in costs.
Precisely because these are repeated every year and encourage consumers to buy, they consist of a very strategic time, a great opportunity to increase sales and increase the company’s results.
This requires a lot of planning if it is to happen in reality, which will have to be done in the previous year as well. In this sense, it is advisable to set aside a few days at the end of each year to draw a seasonal campaign calendar for the next year. So that others can understand the potential of each commemorative date, audience, and offers, and how they might be done. Contribute to good deals.
What are the main date and season campaigns to pay attention to?
Not every commemorative date can be applied to every section. There is more to target specific audiences and thus, specific campaigns are required. Check out the main dates and seasonal campaigns below and define the ones that make the most sense for your company.
Carnival (February or March)
Sales of travel packages and clothing items may increase during the carnival. Companies in these categories need to look carefully at communication, supply, and service strategies. Because product delivery, for example, maybe compromised due to holidays.
It is worth noting that while the carnival is more profitable for a particular department, there are many other types of businesses that can take advantage of the opportunities offered by the date. E-commerce of beauty products, for example, can attract customers through activities related to the celebration environment.
Women’s Day (March)
Offering special discounts and attractive products for International Women’s Day, on March 8th, is an excellent way to keep the female audience. But before any action or campaign, companies need to be aware of the real significance of that day.
If it agrees with the brand’s position, the company can reach out to women through existing and empowered campaigns. It can strengthen women’s empowerment, gender equality, and the fight against violence.
Consumer Day (March)
World Consumer Day is celebrated on March 15 and was created in 1962 by the then President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, to remember the rights that all consumers have when purchasing or purchasing products and services.
Since this is a seasonal campaign, companies can use Consumer Day throughout the month of March to build relationships with the public. This can be done through personalized campaigns, sending exclusive offers to customers to increase sales.
Also, considering the month in which it occurs, it is possible to impress customers when the high-spending season ends, as happens at the end and beginning of each year. So, this is an opportunity to revive sales during this period.
Free Shipping Day or Week (April)
Free Shipping Day usually takes place in the last week of April. This date is a good opportunity to impress customers living in the country. When practicing a free shipping campaign, it’s important to spell out the rules and highlight the places where the shipping terms will be made available.
As you can see, this date is especially important for e-commerce. Although during this period, it is important that they reduce the cost of delivery to customers, there is a lot of potential for sales growth.
Mother’s Day (May)
Sales through e-commerce, during Mother’s Day 2021, were up 14% over the same period last year. This means that the date was responsible for moving $6.4 billion reais.
Celebrated on the second Sunday of May, Mother’s Day is open to people and an incentive to spend money on gifts, because the date is particularly emotional.
Shopping for Mother’s Day has changed a lot to change the diet of society, something that brands and companies must notice and observe. Currently, there is a demand for the most diverse products: from clothing to electronics.
Valentine’s Day (June)
Celebrated on June 12, Valentine’s Day is also an important date for commerce. Especially for companies in the fashion, accessories, food, and flower industries.
The date can even be an opportunity to promote diversity by supporting the causes of different communities. Here, brands can (and should) show that they support love in all its forms and thus, further incorporate and engage in seasonal campaigns.
Father’s Day (August)
On Father’s Day 2021, commerce had a 6.2% increase in sales. That was the biggest growth to date in 10 years.
The date is celebrated on the second Sunday of August. To highlight and reach higher numbers, companies can work on promotions. Because of the end of July through email marketing campaigns, innovative product sales, and diversified kits.
Customer Day (September)
September 15 is Customer Day and it is a great opportunity especially for loyal customers. Dates usually have promotions and offer from the most diverse market segment and can even attract new buyers for brands.
Children’s Day (October)
According to information released by Google, Generation Y parents, also known as millennials, go to the Internet and mobile devices when they need help caring for their children. When choosing a gift, for example, it is no different.
So, e-commerce has to show their gifts on Children’s Day on 12th October. With relevant content, you need to be aware of the best gift options and show them the benefits they can bring. Sending email marketing to customers who have already purchased baby products from online stores is also valuable.
Brands that want to use YouTube to promote, on the other hand, need to be careful with children’s advertisements camouflaged in videos. Children are more sensitive and vulnerable to advertising, which can create an unhealthy consumption pattern.
Black Friday (November)
Held on the last Friday of November, Black Friday is the gateway for new online shoppers. The date actually came in 2009 and since then it has been showing a growing number of customers interested in buying products and/or services that day.
In 2020, Black Friday was able to promote a 15.5% increase in sales only in e-commerce. The total amount related to this was close to $4.02 billion.
At this point, consumers often suspect that promotions are, in fact, promotions. This is due to the recurring incidents of companies that raise their prices a few weeks before the start date, when it actually comes down, lowers them, mimicking an offer.
Given the importance of this date, it is essential that companies prepare properly and run actual campaigns. In the case of e-commerce, you need to pay extra attention, not just the price:
● with the technical preparation of the teams;
● with the communication channels;
● with logistics (stock and delivery, for example);
● with customer service and relationships.
CyberMonday (usually in December)
Cyber Monday takes place on the Monday after Black Friday. It is characterized by discounts and special promotions on technological products such as computers, cell phones, electronic games, etc.
This date is ideal for e-commerce that wants to burn inventory and save launches for Christmas. Also, it can be used to plan with other, end of the year dates, such as New Year’s and holidays.
Christmas (December)
The most anticipated memorabilia date of the year is the perfect opportunity to offer a varied service and a great shopping experience. Because it is one of the most accessible dates for the public.
Thus, in December, seasonal campaigns should include the development of store themes and posts on social networks, communication plans, relationships, and customer service.
How to make seasonal campaigns?
A lot of memorable dates and seasons need a step-by-step approach to achieving goal improvement, right? So, find out below which points deserve attention in the details of these actions
Plan yourself
As we mentioned, seasonal campaigns need planning to run as smoothly as possible. The strategy should include as much information as possible, such as:
● type of audience;
● communication channels to be used;
● stock (if applicable);
● delivery logistics (if applicable);
● team training etc.
Take care of communication
Obviously, the consumer is the focal point of the seasonal campaign and thus, communication needs to be effective to ensure a good experience. This ranges from marketing campaigns for commemorative dates toafter-sales (customer service, tracking order status, other situations).
Make process automation
Demand is often high during seasonal campaigns. To be able to better serve all customers, must invest in automated processes such as: sending messages and emails for communication on offer, issuing invoices, stock control, and customer service (for example with chatbots).
Track the results
For seasonal campaigns to actually deliver results, planning is needed, as we mentioned. But, after each memory date, it is important to identify points to improve performance to understand what and when these results are convenient. This guarantees a high return.
As we can see in this post, when well thought out, seasonal campaigns happen almost every month of the year and should be used by companies. Because they allow you to facilitate sales and even retain customers.
And speaking of seasonal promotions, is your company adequately prepared for any campaign? Find out the answer.
