Determining the "best" time to do a particular marketing event or run a promotion is a decision fraught with indecision, incomplete information, and a fair amount of hoping that the winds of fate don't conspire against you.
One easy way to tip the scales in your favor is to "calendarize" your marketing events against known holidays, events, celebrations, etc.
By taking the time to evaluate major events and activities, you can plan marketing activities to exploit these targets of opportunity. You can also prevent your marketing from conflicting with other activities that might compromise their efficacy. A good annual marketing calendar helps coordinate your overall marketing strategy. It helps you determine when to implement your advertising and other promotions and often helps you determine your marketing priorities. Understanding your annual calendar can be dynamite when planning media releases and media events.
What can happen if you don't do a calendar? You can bump against scenarios like having a reception on the night of the Academy Awards television show and have very few people attend, and of those that attend, a good portion may not be your real "target" audience. This is the type of conflict that can be avoided if you know your target audience, have factored in their interests and have scheduled events or advertising or other marketing efforts for a time and place where they will see it and be receptive to it.
It is highly advisable that you "block out" your annual calendar with dates, events, occasions that are either vital to be seen during, or times when you wish to avoid marketing efforts before you commit to your marketing strategy. Trying to market a new organic suntan lotion to Minneapolis residents in February would be an obvious mistake! By using a calendar and blocking out dates, it will allow you to generate a marketing plan that takes advantage of key events during the year.
What should you consider putting on your calendar:
1) Personal Schedule. Think about what is happening in your personal life that might impact your overall marketing and advertising strategy. Here are some examples:
Vacations
Medical procedures scheduled
Family commitments
2) External Events. There are lots of things going on in the world that could impact your business. There are many events that you can plan for or around (such as the Super Bowl, Academy Awards presentations, etc.) Here are some examples to consider:
Major elections
Major sporting events
Major TV events (e.g. Award shows)
Local community or city celebrations and events
Local expos, balls, social activities
3) Seasonal cycles. Many businesses are sensitive to seasonal or industry cycles. The sensitivity of the suntan lotion to the weather is a great example. Obviously, winter is a key season for ski resorts. Here are some other examples to consider for your calendar:
Seasonal variations that impact your business due to weather
Quarterly and annual financial reports
Tax season
Summer vacation
Winter vacation
School holidays
Government budget cycle (this is critical if you bid to the government or lobby to preserve funding)
Government procurement cycles
4) Major Industry Events. Most industries have major events that can impact businesses in that industry and many other businesses. Here are some examples:
Major tradeshows
Industry reports
Annual lobbying
Major corporate budget and procurement cycles
5) Major Holidays. You would be shocked at how many businesses fail to take into account the impact of holiday seasons on their business. Depending on what you do, holidays could mean more or less business. For example, business-to-business advertising is often ineffective during the Christmas holiday, but consumer advertising promoting Christmas gifts can be critical. Definitely consider the big holidays, but don't underrate the significance of some of the smaller holidays, particularly religious holidays.
For example, if you observe one religion, but have customers that observe another; you don't want to be insensitive to their religious observance calendar.
6) Major Competitor Activities. Understanding your competitor's key timing for their marketing efforts, or their strategic timing of events, it can help you create marketing to exploit their weaknesses and mitigate their strengths. For example, if you know your competitor will have a product release in March, you could advertise your new product in February and get first to market advantage (razor blade companies do this all the time. As soon as one announces a new item will come to market, the competition floods the market with "buy-one, get-one" offers or sends through direct mail samples, etc.). Anything that would be a major event to your business may also be a major event for your competitors. Here are some things to watch for:
Quarterly and annual financial reports
Major sales
Product releases
Major annual promotional events (if you know they will occur every year)
Major procurement activities
Major conferences and related events they will attend
7) Important Prospect and Customer Activities. This one is essential. If you understand the cyclical nature of your prospects' and customers' key annual events you can fine-tune how, when, and where to target your marketing to them. Here are things to watch for:
Preferred buying seasons
Times of the year when they won't purchase
Major events they would attend (conferences, trade shows, social events)
Holidays
If they are a business, their product cycles, financial reporting cycles, R&D cycles, budgeting cycles, vendor relations events, procurement cycles and events, and much more.
Not all of these things may apply to your industry or business. This is more of a prompt sheet to get you thinking about how the calendar can make the difference between success and failure when marketing. Look for conflicts with other events on your master calendar. How can you minimize the impact of these on your results? Look for synergies. How can you exploit these? Look for marketing opportunities you might have missed if you hadn't laid out the master calendar. Finally, based on the year's planned activities, anticipated return-on-investment and other factors, and prioritize your marketing.
If you haven't done an annual marketing calendar, take some time out before you start to execute any of your marketing plan and put one together. It can save you a lot of money and help you really optimize your marketing strategies.
David Zahn is a two-time author addressing the issues of entrepreneurship and consulting ("How To Succeed As An Independent Consultant, 4th Ed." and "The Quntessential Guide To Using Consultants") as well as being a frequent interviewee and contributor to articles in publications like, "BusinessWeekOnline, Entrepreneur, BrandWeek, Training & Development, CTPostOnline, and others. For a free "business readiness assessment," please click on http://www.startupbuilder.com
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