Last year’s holiday season was challenging on many levels. Gatherings were cancelled, social distancing was necessary and most holiday shopping was done online. Many businesses struggled and any messaging beyond “Stay safe and well” felt insensitive. This year, following a successful vaccine rollout, we're hoping things are moving back toward normal, or that we at least can settle into a new normal.
Brand Messaging
We’d like to share some thoughts around making the most of holiday marketing opportunities. Whether your business sells products or provides services, the holidays are a great time to boost sales, reward loyalty and relay strategic brand messaging. You can do all of this while remaining sensitive to your clients' state of well-being as we transition out of the pandemic.
For messaging, focus on authentic communication. Holiday season marketing is a great chance to demonstrate that your business is still going strong. We recommend focusing on language that conveys trust, security and appreciation.
At East River PR, we create holiday messaging for our clients’ through email, digital or print holiday cards or gift tags, direct mail and via social channels. This is the perfect time to share a sentimental message and to thank everyone who has supported your business this past year.
Ways to Put This Into Action
Create and send out surveys expressing gratitude and asking for feedback and reviews. As you wrap up the year, surveys serve as a great way to receive feedback and positive reviews.
Craft heartfelt messages with brand voice folded in to send out as a digital holiday card. This effort can serve to strengthen a deeper relationship with your recipients.
On social, engage your target audience with creative tactics added to the mix. Consider doing a post asking followers to post pictures of their holiday gatherings with a hashtag like #togetheragain2021.
We wish you all the best for a wonderful holiday season.
This post is part of an ongoing knowledge series from East River PR. Each of our team members have a unique skill-set and background that they bring each day to our work as we hone our craft. We’ve all gained from collaboration with our colleagues, our clients, and jobs we’ve had along the way, so we’d like to pay it forward here.