Summer is Coming - Will Your Marketing Change?

Should Your Mobile and Social Marketing Strategy Change With the Seasons?

Summer is fast approaching. More than any other season, summer has distinct characteristics which can and should effect how you market. But, it depends heavily on your demographics and location.

The biggest changes in summertime revolve around education and travel. Summer is when high school students and college students are, for the most part, out of their routine and in different locations. Travel/tourism also sees a boost. These changes effect you differently depending on your location.

The Student Demographic

Summer results in a migration of young people, mainly college students. Many return home or travel to other cities for the summer, before returning back to school in the fall. Because of this, your local area may see an influx in young people returning home, eager to find places to eat, events to go to and stores to visit while in town. Be aware of this shifting demographic and market accordingly.

You may be on the other end of the migration. Perhaps your business is in a college town or area and summer is slower than the other parts of the year. You can have fun with this by running promotions like the "Still in Town" promotion or having a "Why Did I Take Summer Classes?" special night. Embracing your situation and being relative/current helps boost your brand on social media and draw in these young customers to your location.

Summer also releases high school students into the wild. If your organization offers a product, service or events for people of this age, you may want to adjust your hours of operation or offer more specials during the day. During the summer, you have more young people out and about looking for things to do.

Tourism

If your city sees a boost in visitors during the summer, your marketing strategy needs to shift from being geared towards recurring locals to attracting people who have never been to your location before. There are various ways to accomplish this. Here are a couple:

• 1. Twitter Searches - Utilize the social conversation area in Squareberry to search for keywords on Twitter. Find people asking about restaurants, shops, and things to do. Often times when people are out of town, they turn to the web for advice on what to do and where to eat in places that are unfamiliar. Find these people and reply to them, offering your business as a possible destination for them to check out.
• 2. Utilize Your Regulars - You can also offer promotions to your regular customers who bring in first timers. This encourages people to bring friends/family who are visiting from out-of-town into your business or to your event. Let your local customers know that your place is the places to bring anyone in the area on vacation.

Not For Everyone?

Of course, these suggestions do not apply to everyone. You may not cater to student-aged people or to tourists. Your business may be entirely local. Even if this is the case, be aware of how seasons effect your organization. Various professional services and local businesses have high and low times based on the time of year, the weather and more. Always consider these factors as you lay out your marketing plan.