As a small business owner, you have the opportunity to connect with your customers in any way you like. Whether you offer a service or sell products, one of the best ways to get your customers back in the store (or visiting your website as the case may be) is by offering a sale or promotion. While nearly every store offers some type of “Black Friday” sale after thanksgiving, it is possible to get your customers excited by celebrating any number of events through the year. So, whether you are celebrating President’s Day, Back to School or the local football team making the championships, check out these tips for turning a sale into a “sale-ebration!”
- If you have a brick and mortar location, you likely decorate for the holidays—why not do the same for an online store? Adding some holiday graphics or changing the colors and fonts can make your page feel more festive.
- Tie the sale to the celebration when possible. A sale on candy around Halloween makes a lot more sense than a sale on mattresses for Flag Day. While this is not always possible, you can find some unique ways to do that if you are creative.
- Do not forget about events that are important in your particular locale. For instance, you might consider hiring freelance sports writers to give you content tying into the local college’s team making the state playoffs.
- Turn the sale into a real celebration by offering more than just a discount. Perhaps you will have a giveaway with holiday-themed merchandise or if you have a brick and mortar location, you could have an event for kids. Anything like this gives you the chance to get people excited and encourage them to visit you again.
- Tie your celebration in with other stores near you or associated with you. You may be able to increase business for both companies this way and you can share the costs for decorations, advertising and other elements.
- Take advantage of your blog, newsletters or email communication to ramp up excitement about the event or celebration before it begins. You want your customers to be excited about the prospect of your sale or event so that they are eager to get in and check out what you have available.
As you can see, there are many ways you can use a celebration or holiday to help engage your customers and get them excited about your products and services. This is one of the cheapest and most effective methods of marketing available to you—do not let it slip away!
Tracy S is a freelance writer available on WriterAccess, a marketplace where clients and expert writers connect for assignments.
