Do you like do-overs? July 1st was Second Half of the Year Day and a reminder that it’s not too late to fulfill or recommit yourself to your 2012 New Year Resolutions, nor is it too late to set new resolutions to help you finish 2012 strong.
First, how are you measuring up against the new year resolutions you set back in January for your business? If you have gotten off track or distracted from the goals which should be your top priorities, there is no time like the present to hit the “reset” button. You can do this by eliminating, delegating or outsourcing activities which are keeping you from pursuit of those on which you should be lavishing your time and attention.
Perhaps you not only identified but have pursued specific business goals for 2012, but failed to measure and track results. Now is the perfect time to set up the measures needed in order to gauge success, communicate results and refocus the energies of your staff on the 2012 new year resolutions that will help you to finish the year out strong.
By renewing your focus on your 2012 business goals, you send the message to your employees about what is most important. Clarity and unity of purpose can help to unite your team and build cohesive momentum around those activities which will help you to achieve the results you wanted to achieve in 2012.
But maybe your January 2012 New Year Resolutions have been met or become obsolete.
This is the perfect time to set 2nd half of the year resolutions for 2012, especially if your business needs strong second half of the year, back to school and holiday sales seasons in order to thrive.
Here are some 2nd half of the new year resolutions you might incorporate into your 2012 marketing plan:
- Back to School Sales
If your business has the ability to serve or sell to students or their parents during the back to school season, you need to have back to school sales goals and a back to school marketing plan. Create top 10 lists of back to school tips, products, services or other relevant topics for your blog, web site, newsletters and social media marketing. - 2012 Holiday Sales
Some small business owners count on holiday sales for 25% or more of their annual sales. If the success of your business and your ability to thrive in 2013 depends on finishing 2012 with a strong holiday season, now is the time to identify specific goals for the 2012 holiday season and map out the tactics you will take to achieve them. - Strategic Marketing Partners
Cultivating strategic marketing partnerships for cross marketing (your business is marketed to the patrons of another business which shares some portion/s of your target markets, and vice versa) or cooperative marketing (you work with one or more businesses on shared marketing efforts, communications or events) can exponentially extend your reach when it comes to your own target markets, and does so at a much lower cost than would traditional outbound prospecting and marketing activities. And yet, few business owners have taken the time to identify businesses whose customers are closely aligned with their own target markets, let alone set out to build relationships with those businesses for mutual business benefit.Taking into account your goals for back to school, Autumn or 2012 holiday sales, identify one or more businesses with which you can successfully partner for mutual benefit in cooperative or cross marketing communications, events or advertising. - Second Half of the Year Communications Calendar
Now is a great time to utilize a tool like the 2012 Small Business Marketing Calendar (or the 2012 Marketing Calendar for Salon and Spa) to establish a schedule for consistent communications in order to let your customers and prospects know what is on top for the second half of the year. - Fall 2012 Trends
Seasonal trends make great topics for social media status updates, blog articles and newsletters; people are always interested in knowing what colors, styles, fashions and other seasonal trends are coming online in ways that they can incorporate into their own lives, homes, personal styles, etc. Creating online content on seasonal trends is also a great way to attract more organic inbound web traffic using on-page content, blog content, web site content and links, etc. by way of search engines. - Summer 2012 Marketing
It’s not too late to let customers know about your top 10 summer products or services or to attract organic web traffic via search engine as part of your inbound marketing strategy by listing local summer attractions or events, summer recreation ideas, 2012 summer color, style or fashion trends, etc.
So what are you waiting for?
Make a list of your 2nd half of the year resolutions and business goals and then map out the tactics and communications that you will use to achieve them. Finish 2012 strong, get what you need from the back-to-school sales and upcoming 2012 holiday sales and put your business into position for maximum success in 2013.
Related articles
- Use the Latest and Greatest Marketing to Engage Your Customers (365daysofmarketing.wordpress.com)
- 10 Things To Post About On Your Business Blog This Summer (365daysofmarketing.wordpress.com)
