It's officially summer and if you are stuck for ideas how to market your products and services, you've come to the right place. Here are 21 things you can do to capture the attention of your audience and encourage them to take action.
1. Pop-up shops
We've spent such a long time at home that it's almost everyone's dream to be around more people and enjoy the outdoors. Physical shopping is also a craving many of us couldn't satisfy for the best part of the last one year. If you normally sell your products online, think about a pop-up shop in the mall, on a busy street or even at the park. Everything we considered old and boring before 2020 is now a massive trend!
2. Beach Print Marketing
Print is not dead. In fact, print is reviving its power. Concentrate your marketing efforts on places where people love going during the summer. The beach would be a top location. If your sales are not restricted by location, it's a great opportunity to spread your wings and reach new potential customers.
3. Cross-industry Collabs
Partnerships and collaborations are great all year rounds, but they are most successful during summer. People get excited to see their friends or family and go on a holiday. There's also something about that summer vibe that makes us spend more.
Now is the perfect time to find a brand, which is not a direct competitor and resonates with your values. It actually doesn't have to be in your industry at all! Partner with a company or an
independent creator for a cross-industry collaboration and expand your audience several times.
4. Social Media Holiday Promos
Social media calendars are always useful. Especially during summer. People just want to have fun and they are more likely to pay attention to a witty post about World Avocado Day for example. There are so many different campaigns you can create by just following the social media holidays. Switch on your creativity button.
5. Hot Weather for a Hot Sale
Flash sales are a great tool. How about flash sales tied to the temperatures outside?
Here in the UK, thermometers rarely go above 30ºC, but if they do that's a good chance to announce a special sale event while the temperatures stay that high. It probably won't last more than a couple of days and despite the advanced technologies we have, weather is still relatively unpredictable. There's your element of urgency and surprise!
6. Loyalty Cards
Every loyal customer deserves a treat. In more business and marketing terms, it's the care you take of them that pushes your sales to the very bottom of your funnel. Every business's greatest goal should be to retain customers.
Create a loyalty card scheme for your most dedicated consumers and reward them for every purchase they make with you. It's a great stimuli to come back and spend more.
7. Branded Ice Lollies
Remember we said physical events and interaction with people are a hit in 2o21? It's only normal we react positively to such ideas now because for a very long time human face-to-face meetings and communication was a no-no.
But instead of giving out just flyers or the good old pens and notepads, give branded ice lollies to people on the streets or customers in your local shop/cafe/restaurant/office.
They are cost effective and a perfect incentive in the hot summer days.
8. Party Vibes
Do something fun for your audience. It could be a small street party, open air dance competition, hottest summer hits chart. You can also share cocktail recipes, holiday and staycation tips. Everything that puts your fans in a good mood and makes them dream. Dreamy people buy more often out of the desire to feel a certain way.
9. Charity Actions
Do good every single day! Summer and Christmas are not the only times in a year when you should be involved in charity projects, but for some reason these are the times people notice it the most.
Your contribution to the community doesn't have to be monetary. You can organise a local park clean up or a volunteering action in community, health and social centres. It is giving back, but it's also receiving a wider exposure of your brand and strengthening your reputation.
10. Best Summer Picture Contest
Who doesn't like contests? Most people under 50 are constantly on their phones and they love taking pictures. Announce a best summer photo competition and offer a tempting prize from your product range or issue a discount voucher to the winner.
11. Plug in the Christmas Stuff
What? Yes, you read that right. Most people may be focused on sun screen, bikini and holiday tickets, but many are thinking about their Christmas shopping in July and August. Offering your range or doing a massive sale on stock from last year is a brilliant strategy. It also helps you build and retain traction for the coming months leading up to the actual festive season.
12. SUMMERise your website
The brighter the colours, the better the mood! Make some changes to your website design and social posts. Add new graphics a banner or images that speak summer. Regular updates usually keep people interested in what you have to offer. It builds up the anticipation.
13. Be More Social
Explore new social media channels during the summer. For example, if you haven't been concentrating too much on visual platforms like Instagram or Pinterest, now is the time to do it. Also, summer months usually offer more content ideas for getting creative with Tik-Toks and IG Reels.
Best part? Those bring in huge engagement rates right now!
14. Local Scavenger Hunt
Summer is all about fun, isn't it? A fantastic marketing idea for local businesses could be organising a scavenger hunt in the area. It's particularly good if your main target audience is families. However, it could also be exciting for adults, who want to reconnect with their inner child.
15. Referral Rewards
The best form of marketing forever and ever will be word-of-mouth. That said, there are ways you can encourage the development of this approach. Prepare discount vouchers for all your loyal clients. You can also include those who bought from you before but haven't returned in a while. Send them an email, a message or letter in the post inviting them to participate in your referral scheme. For every new paying customer they bring to your business they will receive a certain discount on products and services they want to buy from you.
Here at MBC, we tried this and it works like magic!
16. Communicate Your Social Stance
Let your audience know where you stand on social issues and topics. It could be anything from LGBTQ+ rights, to Climate Change and government policies. They say don't mix business with personal life, but consumers nowadays respect brands who are vocal and have a stance. Remember, these are not your personal views, but the views and values your brand adopts and acts by! And as such, they can make or break your business.
17. Good Old 2 for 1 Sale
Sometimes it's good to try something that's well explored and known. Like the 2 for 1 sale. Create different offers for summer essentials or other products in your range and boost the sales volume by giving consumers more than they pay for.
18. Get the Kids Involved
Summer means long school holiday. For many working families this is a stressful time, because not everyone can afford several weeks off work. Think about campaigns that involve children entertainment - either physically or virtually. You can organise day or week-camps, online story sessions, drawing competitions and more.
19. Giveaway with a Branded Summer Item
Another well-known and used marketing approach is giveaways. They are easy to set up and people usually participate, especially if they like the prize. To make it more tempting choose a hot summer item that everyone in your audience might be keen to have. It doesn't have to be one of your products. You may not even have products if you are a service provider.
Once you choose the prize, don't forget to brand it. It could be just a sticker or a tag with your logo, but that's an important detail for your brand growth.
20. Free Delivery on Last-Minute Summer Shopping
Towards the end of summer you can give an additional push to sales by offering a free delivery on last-minute items. It's a good strategy to use before you turn to clearance on your summer collection.
21. Back-To-School Early Discount
Last thing on parent's mind when school is over getting stocked with back-to school items. But that's only because they are not offered widely. Most shops begin BTS campaigns in mid-August. What if you did it in July and offered an early discount? Sales spike is guaranteed!
