The Ebb and Flow of Storm, Seasons and Time

This post was initially inspired in part by the passing by of #HurricaneDorian (passing by Florida; our thoughts and concerns are now focused on the Carolinas and other states up the coast, I hope they pull through fine).

When a major disruption like a hurricane arrives, or even seasonal interruptions like vacations and back-to-school, many of my clients lament the ebb in their business flow, as if they were helpless observers of the business cycle. That perspective is indeed the problem.

Like the proverbial squirrel storing nuts away for the winter, there are plenty of things you can do to counteract the effects of the business cycle, seasonality and unexpected events like the approach of a major tropical storm. They include:

• Work your customer base. This is the most important tactic. It's always much easier to get repeat business out of an existing customer than acquiring a new one. Think of the approach of the real estate industry, that encourages several touches of a prospect a year. Keep in touch with your past customers, offer them updates and specials. Actively encourage them to do business with you again and regularly. 
• Budget for the slow times. When times are good, you may feel no urgency to spend money on marketing, and those funds may wind up spent elsewhere. But just like the proverbial squirrel, you should be stocking up for those lean times, so you can bring marketing and promotional firepower to bear when times get tough. 
• Cut against the grain. What I mean here is to run promotions when no one else is. Everybody tends to promote during the obvious times like the Holidays and back-to-school. Try running your promotions during those seemingly slow times when no one else is. 
• Advertise and market consistently. Too many of my clients scramble during a slump to get out there and they're essentially playing catch-up. Budget to get your message out consistently throughout the year so people are always aware of what you have to offer. 

If you need help with any of the above, give us a call at 904-744-8877. If you're a small business with a local trading area, visit my site jacksonvillelocalmarketing.com for more local marketing ideas. 

Silence in the Storm

We've touched upon this in earlier posts when a hurricane or tropical storm rumbles through the Southeast, which let's face it seems to be all too often every summer these days. But it's worth revisiting again.

Many businesses large and small feel compelled to say something when a once-in-a-lifetime storm like Dorian approaches (of course it seems counterintuitive that we could have once-in-lifetime storms every year but that's another matter entirely). From a messaging point of view, you'll usually find yourself between a storm surge and a hard place.

If you don't offer products or services that can directly help people in the path of the storm, then you're reduced to messaging that includes some variation of thoughts and prayers, which can come across as vacuous. If you do have a product or service that can help and you heavily promote it, it can come off as mercenary. You just can' t win.

The best bet, if you do contribute to an organization that helps in the relief effort such as the Red Cross, is to highlight that support while encouraging others to do the same. Other than that, it may be best to hunker down, as we say down here in the Southeast every summer.

Stay safe (although that's another phrase that comes perilously close to thoughts and prayers).