What’s the second-biggest commercial retail day after Christmas? Halloween? Thanksgiving? The Fourth-Of-July? Wrong … it’s Valentine’s Day! A massive money-maker, Valentine’s Day is a make-or-break sales juggernaut for many businesses, and one that shouldn’t be ignored.
Americans annually spend almost 3.5 billion dollars on jewelry for their Valentines. It’s a testament to love, no doubt. It’s also a heads-up for businesses to take necessary steps and feel a little of that retail love themselves. Valentine’s Day presents an opportunity for marketers to create Emotional Connections with customers.
Imagine all those chocolates, engagement rings, dinners-on-the-town, flowers, heart-shaped donuts, and weekend getaways. It’s interesting to note that over 30% of those valentine gifts will be purchased online. If you’re a web retailer, even if your product isn’t the most love-oriented kind of thing, there are ways to tie-in and Cupidify your sales.
Boosting Sales on Valentine’s Day
Plan Ahead! Don’t wait until the last minute to Valentine-it-up. Think mid-January. Most Valentine shopping begins in earnest around the beginning of February. By then, you should be up and running with things like well-targeted Facebook ad campaigns that can compartmentalize your customer base and hone-in on the customers you love most.
Social media, as with almost every concern these days, is an invaluable tool that helps you connect with your Valentine message. Twitter posts and Valentine-centric YouTube videos can reach potential customers in ways traditional TV and print advertising never could. Use them!
Creating a Memorable Customer Experience
Make sure your website reflects the look and feel of the holiday – lots of hearts and x’s and red and white. Create special Valentine deals and incentives that drive web traffic and increase customer interest. Even if you sell lug-nuts or baseball bats, there are ways to make them romantic. Heart-shaped lug-nuts may have a limited appeal, but in February, who knows? And, what if that baseball bat was pink and red? Could be a homerun!
Mostly, it’s important to LOVE your customers and let them know that you do. Too often we descend into flat, emotionless transaction, but this is Valentine’s Day! How about a special discount, a card, or some sweets for the sweetest clients? Can’t hurt. All of these go a long way toward portraying yours as a company with a heart. And that is what Valentine’s Day is all about.
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