Image source – Sharon Spano
Roses are red, violets are blue, Valentine’s Day is approaching, but how does this effect you (and your business)?
The American National Retail Federation’s Valentine’s Day Consumer Spending Survey reveals that 54.8 percent of consumers in the States will celebrate the romantic holiday this year. On average each person is expected to spend around $146.84, adding up to a total of $19.7 billion! The numbers are huge and people are now more willing than ever to dig deep into their pockets to express their love, not only to their partners but their friends, family and even their pets!
So how can you win the hearts of these customers? Here are a few simple ways:
1) Link your product to Valentine’s Day in a creative way.
Canadian Doritos Ad, February 2016
In an interview with Marketing Magazine, Pepsi Marketing Manager Canada, Matt Webster, stated that “Knowing [Ketchup Doritos] was coming out just before Valentine’s Day, [his team] saw an opportunity to make Valentine’s Day special for guys”.
This contrasted from the focus that is more often placed on women. He went on to acknowledge the fact that “it can be really hard for women to find great gifts for guys”.
The Dorito roses sold out within hours of launching reinforcing the fact that suggesting gift ideas to your customers is a great way to attract their attention.
2) Make your product available online.
It is now much more convenient to press a few buttons on your phone than to spend endless hours traipsing around the shops! Forbes states that 17.3 percent of adults will make purchases on their tablets and another 20.3 percent will make purchases on their smartphones. Millennial men in relationships are a particularly generous bunch on Valentine’s Day. According to a Nerdwallet survey they are expected to spend much more than the average person (around $371), one reason for this being that they feel the pressure to pay for the entire bill on their romantic first date!
3) Give away free Valentine’s Day gifts
“Nothing in life is free” is a miserable phrase many of us heard from a young age. Therefore as soon as a freebie is on offer how can we possibly resist? One Maxymiser survey reveals that for Valentine’s Day, free shipping ranks #1 in online checkout preferences and is greatly desired by customers.
If this won’t work for you there’s always the options of creating offers, discounts and a personal favorite, gift-wrapping! This will significantly increase awareness about your product and business and build positive relationships with new and existing customers.
So there you have it, love is a lucrative business and it sure can help yours!
