Summer can be a challenging time for businesses to maintain sales momentum. With many people taking vacations, spending time outdoors, or simply relaxing, it can be tough to keep customers engaged and interested in your products and services.
It doesn’t have to be the case. There are ways to enjoy summer and make money. All it takes is some planning and creativity to beat the summer sales slump and increase revenue. There are several ways to do this; let’s get right into them.
Review Your Goals
Before the summer months start, take the time to review your business goals and set objectives specific to the summer sales period. Consider what you want to achieve during this time and how you can align your efforts to achieve these goals. It’s essential to identify what success looks like for your business and how you will measure it.
For example, if you own a retail store, you may set a goal to increase online sales during the summer season by 15% since foot traffic might be low as people are away. To achieve this, you might plan a summer sale or promotion that attracts customers to your website. You could also plan seasonal marketing campaigns, such as a beach-themed email marketing campaign or social media contest, that will appeal to your target audience.
By setting specific goals, you can track your progress throughout the summer and adjust your strategies accordingly. Remember, it’s crucial to make your goals realistic and achievable while still being ambitious. Use your current customer relationship management platform(s), like HubSpot or Klaviyo, to guide your goal-setting efforts based on sales history and industry benchmarks.
Think About Your Target Market
To maximise your summer sales, you have to consider your target market.
Start by thinking about who usually frequents your business during the summer and review your current buyer personas. Is it your normal customers, or do you attract a different target market during this time? Once you understand your audience, you can tailor your promotions and marketing campaigns to appeal to them.
Alter Your Offer
You can also survey customer groups to find out what they would like to see from your business during the summer and create promotions around it.
For example, if you run a fitness studio, you may want to survey your customers to find out what activities they enjoy doing during the summer months. You might find that your frequent customers are away on holiday, but they would like to stay active, so you could offer virtual classes or give them an infographic of a fitness routine to do on holiday.
Stick to a Theme
Another way to plan ahead is to consider the theme to go with for all your summer content or material. By having a cohesive theme, you can create unity while also celebrating the season.
Continuing the example above, it could mean that you have a fitness challenge for the summer season and release one exercise to do daily or some delicious, healthy meal ideas. Complement this with a bright colour theme or summer imagery.
Create Summer Sales Offers
Summer is a great time to offer a sale or promotion that will entice customers to make a purchase, but it’s important to choose products or services that customers need or want during this time.
For example, if you own a home decor store, you may want to offer discounts on outdoor furniture or decor items that customers can use to spruce up their patios or decks. (Make this even better by giving some decorating ideas on social media or in emails.)
Another example: You own a deli. You could decide to put together a summer picnic basket filled with cured meats, cheese, crackers, accompaniments, fresh fruit, and chocolates.
Choose the Right Communication Channels
Once you have decided on the products or services you want to promote, you need to spread the word through various channels. This includes social media, email marketing, your website, and any other platforms where your customers might be.
Think about which channels your customers are most likely to use during their time off and focus your campaigns around those channels. For example, customers could be using social media frequently so you decide to boost your content there and enlist influencers to make customers aware of your summer promotions.
Utilise Email Marketing
Email marketing transcends boundaries which means you can still reach your customers even if they aren’t at home. If they are home, customers often use their free time relaxing and they won’t necessarily check emails as frequently, so you have to adapt your email marketing strategy.
As a foundation, keep your emails short and interesting, with clear calls to action that entice customers to click through to your website or visit your store. Feature products that are purchased frequently, seasonal items, and your top promotions.
Another way to adapt your email marketing strategy is to segment your customer lists based on their preferences. This allows you to send targeted messages that are more likely to resonate with your audience. For instance, you might find that some customers only buy from you during the summer so you may want to push more emails to them.
Entertain Your Customers
The summer season is a time for relaxation and fun, and your customers will be looking for entertainment to make the most of their free time. You can provide this entertainment by giving them something to do without expecting any purchases in return.
For example, you can share other uses for some of your products they already own (like creating a summer drink with fruit), provide relaxation tips, fun activities ideas, or “how-to” instructions.
Use Seasonal Content
Providing seasonal content on your website, email, social media, and other channels can also help entertain your customers. You can create blog posts, videos, infographics, or social media posts that highlight summer-related topics such as outdoor activities, travel, and summer fashion.
Let’s use fashion as an example. You could create a “Summer Runway” campaign where you show outfit options for various events. Some items from the outfits can be from your store, and you can also show how one piece of clothing can be used in many ways.
By offering content that aligns with your customers' interests and preferences, you can increase engagement and build loyalty.
Host Events
Hosting events, both local and virtual, is another way to entertain your customers. For example, you can host a cooking class that showcases summer recipes or a DIY class that teaches customers how to make their own summer-themed decorations. Consider offering the event in-person and also recording it to place on YouTube, your website, or social media channels for any one that can’t attend but still wants the info.
Any event takes a lot of organising so you need to ensure it’s something your customers actually want to attend. These events can be an opportunity to showcase your products and services while also offering entertainment and value to your customers. Talk to your customers about what they would like to learn and base the event around their feedback.
For example, you might own a cycling store and customers frequently ask how to wash their bicycles properly or how to do routine maintenance. You decide to create a series of masterclasses that show customers how to do these tasks and present them as a live virtual event once a week. Your customers love the content because it helps them to keep their bicycles in excellent condition while they are out and about over the summer.
Host a Flash Sale
A flash sale is a limited-time sale that creates a sense of urgency and encourages customers to make a purchase. It introduces FOMO (fear of missing out) and encourages purchases, especially if it’s products customers may need during this time.
Flash sales work well for seasonal items, because customers already know that some items won’t be available for a long time. Additionally, customers may feel more relaxed during summer and spend more, so they could jump on the bandwagon if you have a flash sale.
Promote the flash sale on your website, social media channels, and email list to increase visibility and create excitement. To ensure that your flash sale is successful, start promotions in advance so customers understand the benefits and urgency of the sale.
Increase Sales With Upsells & Cross-Sells
Upselling and cross-selling are effective strategies for increasing summer sales during the summer season. Upselling involves encouraging customers to purchase a higher-end product or service, while cross-selling involves suggesting additional products or services that complement their purchase.
To effectively upsell and cross-sell, it’s important to have a deep understanding of your customers’ needs and preferences. For example, if you own a restaurant, you could upsell customers on a more expensive dinner or a larger portion, or cross-sell them on a bucket of beer or dessert.
By understanding what your customers are looking for, you can increase sales while also providing them with products that meet their needs.
Create a Contest
Creating a contest is another way to generate excitement for the summer season and upcoming sales. Do something that requires customers (and potential customers) to get involved because engagement always improves the relationship between customers and your business.
For example, it can be a social media giveaway based on UGC (user-generated content). Imagine you own a travel agency. You could ask customers to send in a photo or video explaining what their dream holiday destination would be and why. Give them hashtags to use, let them post it on social media, and reshare it on your accounts. Drum up excitement through newsletters and on your website.
When creating a contest, it’s important to keep it simple and easy to understand. Make sure that the rules and guidelines are clear, and the prize is valuable and relevant to your target audience. By creating a fun and engaging contest, you can increase brand awareness and drive summer sales.
Buy Sales Slump, Hello Revenue!
Summer definitely isn’t the time to slow down your sales, even if your customers are taking it slower. By keeping your customers’ needs in mind and ramping up your marketing efforts, it’s possible to increase summer sales. Centre your entire approach around your customers, give them value, and provide content that entertains.
As always, our team of professionals will be available throughout the summer to help your business grow. Contact us today for a free consultation.
