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Should you bother marketing during July and August?

Guest post by: Helen Dowling

Article Overview: Why should you bother doing any marketing during July and August? After all, most people are away on holiday aren’t they? No one is really around so there doesn’t seem to be much point in doing a lot of marketing. You might as well just have some time off and take things a little bit easier.

Should you bother marketing during July and August?

Why should you bother doing any marketing during July and August? After all, most people are away on holiday aren't they? No one is really around so there doesn't seem to be much point in doing a lot of marketing. You might as well just have some time off and take things a little bit easier. Well, I'm here to argue that this common assumption is wrong and thinking in this way could actually be extremely detrimental to your business come the Autumn.

Here's why I'm arguing this point.

Last year in 2010, August was my busiest month of the year. We were really, really busy and there was loads going on. There was actually a week where we couldn't handle all the workload and my husband had to step in and help us out.

How is this possible if everyone was on holiday?

Well let's look at this realistically.

Yes, there are some people off on holiday; there are some people who have childcare issues and yes, life is slightly different.

But not everyone is in this situation. People only go on holiday for one to two weeks and then they're back at work. People can make arrangements for childcare. Life doesn't stop just because it's July and August.

In addition to this, I am a firm believer in that any marketing you do today will take approximately three months to have an impact on your business. That means that if you choose not to do any marketing during July and August, come September, October and November, no business will be coming in through the door.

So here are my top tips on how you can make the most of July and August:

1. Remember that very few other business owners will be marketing their businesses during these two months so if you do some marketing, you'll be ahead of the game.

2. Keep persevering - if you can't get hold of someone because they're on holiday, make a note of when they're back and contact them then. Don't give up just because someone isn't there when you call.

3. Introduce some special offers. After all, it's summer so send out a few emails out some special deals that you're doing and see if you get any response. You might surprise yourself.

4. Plan your marketing now for September and October. Make sure you know exactly what you'll be doing later in the year so that you can start putting things in place during July and August.

As I said above life does not stop just because it's summer so neither should your business. Keep working and keep marketing and you'll be miles ahead of your competition.

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Article Tags: exceptional thinking, focus, helen dowling, marketing, small business, summer



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Re: What is your worst / best month? - Best months for my business are historically March/April/May & August/Sept/Oct Worst months: December/January (Holidays) & June/July (Vacations) I see our traffic go way up during the good months and way down during the bad months. Very cyclic. Keep in mind, my clients buy businesses and no one thinks of doing that during the holiday or during vacation.
Re: Moderators on vacation - Hi Mary, Thanks for letting us know. GT, I hope you are going to have a good time. I will be on vacation from July 20 to July 27. I don't know if I will take my laptop with me. Haven't decided yet.
Re: Moderators on vacation - I'll be on vacation starting tomorrow (July 16) until Sunday, July 24th. Have a great week. I'll catch up when I get back.


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