For many companies, the last quarter of the year is the most challenging period of the business cycle. This is the period to review the performance of your marketing throughout the past three quarters and begin planning for the following year. All these strategic activities, while important; may lead to a loss of focus on the business of marketing for the present fourth quarter. Many businesses make the mistake of taking their marketing foot off the gas pedal as the end of year approaches. I have outlined three reasons why your marketing efforts should continue well into the fourth quarter.
1. Unutilized budgetary allocations: It is quite common for some businesses or departments within a business to find that they have funds allocated to them at the beginning of the financial year that were not spent and will be lost if not used by years end. This is a huge opportunity for your business to capture some additional fourth quarter sales, having a strong marketing strategy in place will ensure you are in front of those who need to spend money on your products or services before they lose it.
2. Take advantage of the lull in market activity to put your business ahead: There is always a chance that prospective clients are on the lookout to spend a chunk of money even very late in the year to take advantage of a tax write off or two. By keeping your marketing momentum in full motion during the fourth quarter you will stand out while your competition has most likely taken the thin or no marketing approach as the year draws to a close.
3. Marketing strategy based on next year’s budget: The end of the financial year meets most departmental heads looking forward to innovative ways of ensuring they get maximum returns for the money they will be allocated. It is a period characterized by plenty of research and wish lists based on their perception of market conditions in the coming year. There is therefore no better opportunity to kick off marketing campaigns detailing to your customers the innovative products and services you have available for the coming years budget.
Add Momentum to your marketing
It is important to ensure that your products or services are always in the mind of your customers and prospects. This applies equally for when you are pushing for the final sale in the year as well as in getting set for a rampant first quarter. This is why you need to keep the communication constant in your engagement with customers to ensure there are no missed opportunities. Take special note of those prospects that have been on the fence and my “have to” spend money or lose it before the end of the year. The same goes for current clients it’s a great time to cross-sell or up-sell them for the same reason.
Marketing campaigns that bring results
It is not enough to just run campaigns throughout the fourth quarter of the year; you must retain the interest of your target customers by offering something that will be of interest to them. Communication for the sake of it can backfire spectacularly. This is especially the case if your customers begin to consider your messages as too intrusive. You can avoid offending your customers and prospects by segmenting your database to identify special interests and only addressing these in each targeted campaign.
Market aggressively throughout the year
There are many justifications to keep the marketing momentum strong up to the last day of the year. It helps to keep your brand recognition constant in a world where consumers are hit by new offers at every turn. By keeping the momentum steady, at no time will your strategy be on the back foot.
Do you need practical marketing ideas which will continue generating leads even in the fourth quarter, drive up your revenues and guarantee tangible results? Contact Us Today For A Free Consultation.
Tim Somers
Bizarre Marketing
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