Why you need to start planning your summer marketing now
WRITTEN BY: ALISON JOSHI, DIRECTOR OF JWJ DESIGN
As the chill of winter fades away in the UK and Spring begins to bloom, it’s time for marketers who work with indoor play centres, zoos, and family attractions to start gearing up for the summer rush. While it may seem like there’s still plenty of time before summer hits, the truth is that planning early for your summer marketing campaigns can make all the difference in ensuring a successful and bustling season.
Here’s why getting a head start on your summer marketing efforts is crucial:
Beat the competition
One of the primary reasons for planning your summer marketing early is to get ahead of the competition. As summer approaches, families start looking for entertainment options to keep their children occupied during the school break. By starting your marketing efforts early, you can capture the attention of potential visitors before your competitors do. This early engagement can help build anticipation and ensure that your establishment is top-of-mind when families are making their summer plans.
If you are planning on running any special events; mini festivals, holiday camps over the holidays, then you can always start off with ‘save the date’ messaging whilst you create your key marketing image.
Build momentum
Effective marketing is not just about attracting visitors during the summer months; it’s also about building momentum leading up to the season. By starting your marketing campaigns early, you can create a buzz around your indoor play center, zoo, or family attraction well in advance. This can help generate excitement and anticipation among your target audience, increasing the likelihood of them choosing your establishment when the time comes to make summer plans.
Maximize attendance
Planning early for your summer marketing allows you to maximise attendance during the peak season. By strategically timing your marketing efforts and promotions, you can encourage visitors to book their visits in advance, ensuring that your facility stays busy throughout the summer months. Additionally, early planning gives you the opportunity to identify and address any potential bottlenecks or capacity issues, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable experience for your guests.
Tailor campaigns effectively
Summer marketing campaigns often require careful planning and coordination. By starting early, you have the time to research your target audience, understand their needs and preferences, and tailor your campaigns accordingly. Whether it’s promoting special events, offering discounts on admission, or highlighting new attractions, early planning allows you to craft messages that resonate with your audience and drive engagement.
Optimise your budget
Early planning also gives you the advantage of optimising your marketing budget for the summer season. By allocating resources strategically and identifying cost-effective marketing channels early on, you can make the most of your budget and achieve maximum ROI. Whether it’s investing in digital advertising, social media promotions, or local partnerships, early planning allows you to make informed decisions that will help you reach your marketing goals.
Time for creativity
As an agency specialising in seasonal campaigns year-round, we’ve learned that early involvement leads to higher-quality creative output. By engaging your creative agency in the planning discussions from the outset, we gain a clear understanding of your upcoming themes or events. This enables us to begin envisioning the campaign’s visual aesthetic and determining its tone of voice.
Moreover, early collaboration facilitates the exploration of advertising formats. Whether it’s traditional out-of-home placements or digital skin designs, aligning these with the creative concept becomes much smoother when initiated early in the planning process.
We have found our free campaign calendar has been useful in getting our client’s ready for big seasonal events, you can download it here:
If you are interested in having a chat and getting organised in time for Summer then do book a zoom call and we can get planning!
