Hot Summer Business Marketing Tips

Thursday Thoughts, Marketing Tips for Women Entrepreneurs, Female Business Owners, Small Businesses

August hits in the Northeast and the weather is blazing. Potential customers are either on vacation with their families, basking by their pools sipping cool drinks, or working in air conditioning try to pretend it isn’t too nice out to be working. What is the average small business owner to do if their business is not a “hot” industry in the summertime but rather cool due to sales?

As a four-seasoned, three-decade business owner, I can attest to being thrown off when I first began my companies not knowing how to attract consumers to my business when the world seemed to be on vacation and no one thought too seriously about business before Labor Day Weekend came. As summer flew by for customers, sales weren’t only dripping cold water, but dipping below projections.

The first thing an entrepreneur shouldn’t do if it is their first summer sales experience is panic. Take it from me, as soon as Labor Day comes and goes, school begins, vacations end, life returns to normal and so will your business. If you can’t wait until then to feel productive, here are a few tips from me and a few other women entrepreneurs I spoke with via Zoom yesterday about the subject.

* Get Creative – Creativity in terms of fun summer contests that draw consumers to your business website or social media pages to participate. One person gave away corporate bandanas made for dogs and held a pet contest. Another raffled off a painting from their coffee shop donated by a local artist. You get the idea, think about an event and promote it.

* Cross Promote – Partner with neighboring businesses or industry vendors on summer-styled events like a community baseball night, block party, summer soiree, or ice cream social. You can share email lists or gain new followers by gathering emails at the events themselves. These emails can be used for fall and winter sales campaigns.

* Thank Repeat Customers – Current and past customers know other potential future customers for your business. By creating a fun event or contest for current customers might inspire them to share where they are going or what they won from your business with others. You can also invite your customers to bring a guest with them to an affair you are planning to let them see and taste your business style.

The last month of the summer is the perfect time to keep promoting if you can’t get someone on the phone or in your store. Remember if you host a contest or have an event take photos and share all your winners on your social media accounts because they will share them too and that will get your business in front of their circle of friends – hopefully making them remember your name the next time they need what you are selling.