We may not have finished with 2022 as yet, and shops are awash with festive messaging, but now is the time to start planning your 2023 key calendar days, and first off is Valentines Day! Valentines Day remains one of the key awareness days when it comes to boosting retail sales. With the right Valentine’s Day marketing campaigns, you can reach a multitude of audiences, not just couples, but singles, pet lovers and even those who hate the day with a passion! With clever marketing campaigns you can not only drive customer loyalty, but reach new customers too. Read on to find out how!
Competitions – in-store and online
Building customer engagement both in-store and online is a great way to create a buzz around your brand, widen your reach and drive sales. Ideas such as share an in-store selfie, romantic photo caption competition and giveaways.
SMS campaigns for the impulse buyers
Although many people take Valentine’s Day seriously and plan ahead, many people, just as with Christmas shopping, don’t start thinking about their present until the last minute. Automated SMS marketing campaigns are a great way to reach those customers who may then be promoted to buy. Provide direct links for ease of purchase, or discount codes to encourage a quick impulse buy.
Collaboration with a like-minded or complimentary brand
A great way to gain additional exposure is to team up with a like-minded brand for co-promotions. Chocolates and flowers are a great example of this. Collaborations result in both brands gaining access to a much wider audience and new customers being introduced.
Show your love through a loyalty scheme
Acquiring a new customer can cost five times more than retaining an existing customer, so customer retention is more important than ever. Make current customers feel special by offering loyalty schemes through discounts and added value and key dates such as Valentine’s Day can be the perfect opportunity to launch and test new programmes. Consider ideas such as a free gift with the purchase, a discount on their next purchase, a gift card, or free delivery for example.
Focus on packaging
When its done right, seasonal packaging can significantly drive sales volumes, brand awareness and impulse purchases. It can help you stand out from the competition, attract additional shelf space, and help drive consumer loyalty and repeat sales. Consider personalisation, upselling and added value for your Valentines Day promotions. Seasonal packaging is much more likely to engage and excite your customers and lead to increased impulse purchasing. Special finishes such as foil embossing or spot varnishing etc can also really make your product stand out on the shelf or through the letterbox so it is certainly worth planning your packaging strategy well in advance of all key dates through the year.
Valentines Product Displays
Nothing captures in-store shoppers’ attention more than a feature display section – typically placed right near the entrance. It’s the best place to display any Valentine’s Day-themed products that you want customers to notice. Grab and go themed products work well at the till too for further impulse purchases. If you have an e-commerce business, consider a Valentines banner on the homepage to immediately grab the attention of your visits and send them through to a Valentines Day landing page or category page – make it as easy and as simple as possible for shoppers to find what they are looking for.
Be inclusive when it comes to your target audience
While traditionally Valentine’s Day is celebrated between couples, why not broaden the scope a bit in the
spirit of greater inclusivity? It is becoming more and more popular to celebrate anyone and everyone you love on Valentines, including friends, children, pets…and even self-love! Experiment with taglines like “Treat yourself this Valentine’s Day” or “Delicious meals for you and your friends” when selling regular products desired by single adults. And don’t forget to consider which channel would be most appropriate to reach them on – rather than a one size fits all campaign.
Valentines Competitions and Giveaways
Competitions are a great way to both increase customer awareness but also engagement and interaction. Not only that but they are often relatively easy and inexpensive to plan and execute. When considering competitions, always start by defining your objectives. Are you looking to collect data, generate enquiries or build your social following? Then you need to obviously consider the prize – how many winners will there be and how will they be selected? The channels you choose to promote the competition are also important, ensure you have eye-catching artwork which will grab peoples attention and encourage them to enter!
Sharing expertise
If you company is a services industry, consider sharing the love on Valentines by sharing some of your
expertise instead? This could be in the form of useful content or downloadable Guide or E-Book, top tips and best practice. If you add value to your customers they are more likely to remain loyal and recommend you to others – win win!
If you need some fresh ideas around your next big calendar event, or would like us to create a bespoke content plan just for you, then get In touch! Start your marketing off the right way in 2023 and let OnBrand help you grow!
