5 Marketing Tips to Boost Your Business in Slow Months

When you’re in business for yourself, you quickly learn that a period of brisk sales is often followed by a slowdown. And if your business is seasonal to begin with, you face an even bigger challenge. Weathering these cycles of peaks and valleys can be difficult, but rest assured, they are normal for most businesses. Still, that doesn’t mean you have to accept a slowdown sitting down. Start by examining your marketing program with an eye to incorporating these five strategies to increase customer engagement, generate excitement and boost business. 1. Re-evaluate Your Website Your website is often the first impression a client or prospect gets of your business. But when sales are brisk, it’s easy to skip on the necessary site maintenance. When did you write the last blog post? Are your graphics and headlines looking stale? Are you still ranking on search engines? Take advantage of a slowdown to revamp your website. Add some fresh SEO-friendly content, push it out on social media, and remind clients and prospects that you are still here and ready to take care of their needs. 2. Run a Promotion It’s easy to create some buzz on social media by running a Facebook, Twitter or Instagram promotion. You might offer followers a service upgrade, free shipping or a small gift if they share your promotion on their own pages. Or, increase the size of your following by simply asking people to like your page and then awarding a prize to a random new follower. Think creatively and make your promotion fun. Also, remember to encourage sharing. After all, that’s what social media is all about. 3. Offer a Discount Reward loyal clients and entice them back by offering a special email-only discount on your services. Boost the size of your target audience by encouraging clients to “bring a friend” to an event or by offering special 2-for-1 pricing. Include trackable discount codes in your social media posts to encourage followers to keep up with you and read your posts. 4. Rethink Your Season If your business is seasonal, take advantage of the power of the web and social media to bring in sales during the off-season. Poll customers to determine which other services or products they’d like to see you offer. Entice more shoppers with early-bird promotions and “Christmas in July” sales. Expand your outreach to meet the needs of customers in different areas of the country – or even across the globe. Develop a niche market of clients who need your products or services year-round, which will help smooth out the seasonality of your business. 5. Host an Event Raise awareness of your business by offering to host a fundraiser or networking event for a nonprofit, community, business or civic organization. These groups are often looking for new places to gather and it’s a win-win when you gain exposure to new audiences. Events can create significant traffic, both through your door and through your social media channels. You can also host an event to showcase your own products and services. To expand your reach, consider partnering with businesses that also appeal to your target audience. Offer discounts to all attendees and door prizes to lucky winners. Leave plenty of time in advance to promote the event through your blog or social media pages, whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest. With these five strategies in place, you should be ready to turn slow-season valleys into peak sales periods.