Halloween 2021 retailers experienced a huge growth over the last two years as sales rivaled 2019. That’s great news for retail and consumer businesses and it explains the increase we see in business to business products & services as companies feel more optimistic about future sales. So, what are you planning for your holiday promotions this year? Consider using the upcoming holidays and national event dates with trending hashtags to reach a wider audience (beyond those in your databases). Get started before Thanksgiving and use #BlackFriday #SmallBusinessSat #CyberMonday #GivingTuesday and #SuperSaturday in addition to other holiday dates and trending hashtags below. If you need more help, register for our free upcoming webinars or call Tailor-Made Advertising for advice or help improving your tools 310-791-6300.
How can this list of events and hashtags help your business? Look at the conversations and images following the hashtags and see how they facilitate relationships between brands and consumers. What hashtags can you create or use that will connect your brand to that holiday conversation? Be sure you have an engagement strategy for your sales and marketing team to try to capture emails and contacts as well as initiate chat on your social media channels when possible. Social Selling is outperforming traditional sales teams by starting a conversation before a consumer gets to your website or store. If you are a small business, don’t forget to register on American Express’s #ShopSmall listing to get your special deals that weekend highlighted along with others. You do not need to take American Express to participate. For more ideas, Email liz@adteamla.com for our holiday promotion planner to help you structure a better promotion.
Are you a non-profit? Did you register on charity review websites, Amazon’s Smile, GivingTuesday website and Facebook and Instagram’s Fundraising platform? If not, you’re missing out on donations that stem from Holiday Shopping. Get registered and ask your donors and volunteers to share the links that allow customers to pick the charity of choice so that your organization can benefit from every purchase.
Holiday Event Dates and Hashtags
Whether you are having a sale or you are shopping for something special, hashtags can help you 
reach more customers and find more deals, especially on social media like Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. So use them liberally but make sure you are tying into relevant and trending hashtags and not past events. There are plenty of old conversations on the internet that were relevant in their year, but not this one. Make sure you add extensions to your hashtags that include 2021 if you want to be listed with other deals that folks can find this year (not past) years. Here are some of the more popular hashtags you may want to follow and join the conversation. To make the most of your efforts, add your promotions to your latest blog, social media posts and events, as well as your email and text promotions.
Thanksgiving Day: Thursday, Nov 25 #Thanksgiving2021 – Thanksgiving Holiday is the perfect time to Thank your customers for their support and alert them about your promotions for the busiest shopping weekend of the year.
Black Friday: Friday, Nov. 26 # BlackFriday2021 – Black Friday is traditionally the best shopping day of the year in terms of dollars and officially launching the holiday shopping season. Consumers wait for #blackfridaydeals before purchasing to see the best price of the year. Keep in mind that in 2021 #BlackFriday deals have started before Halloween this year due to shipping delays and some companies have decided to offer them weekly. However, consumers are counting on the official #BlackFriday.
Small Business Saturday: Nov 27 #ShopSmall2021 – A national day set aside for Small Businesses to highlight themselves. Register on the ShopSmall Website and use the hashtags to draw attention to their story and promotions. Non-retail businesses also offer an open house or promotional event for that day as well.
#CyberMonday: Nov 29 – Traditionally the highest shopping day of the year for online sales with many special and limited deals only available one day and online.
#GivingTuesday: Nov 30 – Used as a springboard and a deadline for early non-profit donations to encourage more volunteers, donors and clients to help promote the cause. Tie in your non-profit using a gift with donation or some other benefit to donating that day or before.
Other Hashtags to consider. There are many but here are some to consider:
#HolidaySavings – Links for holiday savings
#Deals – People Tweeting deals they find as they find them
#Holidays – General excitement around the holiday season
#Christmas – Tweets about Christmas activities
#AfterChristmasSale
#BoxingDay
#WinterWonderland – Snow talk
#Hanukkah – Tweets on the Jewish holiday
#Kwanzaa – Kwanzaa Conversation
#NewYears – Talk about New Year’s resolutions
The best media mix integrates both traditional and digital media tools while maximizing your time. If you need help brainstorming to create a more targeted and effective marketing plan designed to deliver results, contact Liz Harsch by email or call Tailor-Made Advertising at 310-791-6300.
Liz Harsch is the owner of Tailor-Made Advertising in Torrance, CA. Her firm provides marketing, training and consulting to identify marketing and media alternatives for business owners. As an experienced Marketing Director, Media Planner, Liz has trained small business owners for Constant Contact, SCORE, SBDC, SBA, Cities and MWD and County outreach partners, APICS plus many Chambers of Commerce for over 20 years. She can be reached at her Torrance, CA, office at 310-791-6300 or by email at liz@adteamla.com. You can also see her upcoming training workshops calendar at http://bit.ly/workshopscal .
