Holiday Marketing for Small Businesses with Kadri & Samantha Mellone
Welcome back to Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym. In today’s episode, we’re diving into marketing for small business owners during the holiday season with Kadri Augustin, Level 3 Trainer at The Financial Gym, and Samantha Mellone.
Our guest, Samantha, is a New York-based strategic marketer on a mission to empower minority-owned businesses through the power of impactful content. With over a decade of experience, Samantha’s expertise in developing marketing strategies spans local, national, and international landscapes. This episode is a ride of insights for small business owners gearing up for the most wonderful, busy, and profitable time of the year.
Podcast Notes
Many businesses make most of their income in the last two months of the year. Black Friday plays a huge role as one of the biggest economic weekends in the US.
People are starting to plan their gifts earlier due to the extended periods of Black Friday deals and other sales.
If you’re a small business, thinking about how you will capture attention as a smaller fish in a big pond is key.
You don’t need a multi-million dollar budget to be effective.
To budget and be strategic with marketing dollars, keep it simple and consistent.
Preparing Year Around
The more ways you can directly connect with your audience, the better you’ll be set for the Q4 busy season. Social media platforms and all ad spaces are all more competitive in Q4. You want to spend your money wisely.
A database or list of emails and phone numbers that you can control is essential. Collecting as much customer contact information as possible throughout the year is one of the most powerful moves for a small business.
The goal is to collect as many emails as you can. You can do this when you do a pop-up, run a giveaway, or offer a freebie! Get creative.
Focus your time and energy on local and community-based initiatives, like niche Facebook or Whatsapp groups.
If you’re a planner, much of this work can be done beforehand. You can spend a few hours each week doing this work, so it doesn’t feel overwhelming all at once.
Some tools and programs will help you batch-create and schedule content to auto-post. If everything is planned ahead, you can analyze the results and change your strategy based on the date.
The more you can batch ahead of time, the easier it is to run your campaign during the busy season.
Action Plans During The Busy Season
During Q4, you want to focus on reaching the customers and client list you have direct control over. Figure out your message and how you will keep your specific audience interested and engaged.
If you’re not sure what the messaging should be, focus on what 1-3 products or services you want to promote. That is a great starting point.
It does not matter how good your products or services are if your customers don’t know about them.
Once your customers have purchased, the customer service must be top-notch. When people spend money, they expect a certain level of service.
If you know there will be delays, set those expectations with your customers early. This gets ahead of questions and creates a good customer experience.
Keep it Simple and Focused
You don’t have to start from scratch whenever creating content. Think about how you can use what you’ve created in multiple ways.
If you are feeling overwhelmed, take it step by step. You don’t need an elaborate plan, just a system that works for you.
Another critical aspect of marketing is reviewing the analytics and understanding what is and is not working. Data tells you what to pay attention to and where to focus your efforts.
You want to be aware of the traffic sources to your website. Double down in the areas that are doing well.
The next puzzle piece is converting new customers and serving your returning crowd. Your returning customers, who are the most loyal, will make you the most money in the long term.
The best system is one you will stick with, so remember to start simple and do what works best for you and your business.
If you want to work with a Certified Financial Trainer to navigate your small business plan during the holiday, schedule a free warm-up call today! If you have any ideas or questions for the show, send an email to trainerpodcast@fingyms.com.
Resources
Connect with Samantha Mellone
Website: Community and Content Marketing
Instagram: @communityandcontent