“Are you ready for Christmas?” It’s the question that everyone tends to ask you at this time of year.
And let’s face it, you’re probably not ready! There’s gift shopping, travel plans, menu choices and numerous work or school functions. Time seems to be running too fast for you to get through your to-do list.
That’s why many business owners forget to consider their marketing at this time of year. It’s completely understandable. But there are real benefits for your business in setting aside a small amount of time to address your marketing over Christmas and New Year.
Here’s what you need to do.
Balance your personal and business needs
No-one is built to work relentlessly. No matter how much you love your job, you’ll benefit from a break to nurture important relationships and refresh yourself.
So, if you possibly can, take some time off and enjoy it.
Advise people of your closure dates
Most people expect that you’ll be closed for at least some days over the holidays. Once you’ve decided on your plans, it’s time to let your clients know by:
- Updating your opening hours on your Google Business Profile and your website contact page
- Posting your Christmas opening hours on your social media accounts.
Pounce while your competitors stop advertising
Business success often rests on spotting and seizing opportunities. And there’s a great one to be found here if you want it.
Most people stop advertising over the holiday period. It’s been a long year and business owners want a break. There’s nothing wrong with that at all.
But it does create an opportunity if you want to take it. All of a sudden, your competitors have dropped out of the race, giving you a chance to win some new patients or clients.
So, you might decide to keep your ads running and take advantage of the reduced competition. It’s a good chance to win patients who are taking some time off and finally have time to think about their health and resolve to take better care of themselves next year.
The benefit of maintaining your advertising when others stop theirs was amply demonstrated by one of our clients, The Brisbane Spine Clinic, during the initial COVID lockdowns of 2020.
Brisbane was in lockdown from March to May 2020, just after The Brisbane Spine Clinic opened the doors of its new North Lakes clinic. Following our advice, The Brisbane Spine Clinic maintained their marketing during the whole lockdown, providing posts and blogs on topics such as working from home.
Meanwhile, their competitors stopped marketing, reasoning that there was no point when their doors were shut. How wrong they were!
Because others stopped marketing, The Brisbane Spine Clinic increased their market share without increasing their marketing spend. When lockdown lifted, new patients came in. In fact, The Brisbane Spine Clinic increased their new patient bookings by 63%!
Expect a dip in January but a rise in February
Half of Australia goes on holiday in January, meaning a dip in patient numbers is only to be expected. This is often a good time of year to work on your business or enjoy the chance to head home early.
Then comes February. The year has started in earnest now and your diary is likely to fill up – especially if you have maintained consistent advertising throughout the holiday period.
Stay compliant
From Black Friday to Christmas Eve, we’re all exposed to increased advertising. Most of it is quite enthusiastic. It’s tempting to let that over-promising style creep into your own advertising but be careful here – in Australia, your advertising still has to comply with the advertising guidelines set down by AHPRA and the TGA.
How can Splice Marketing help?
Splice Marketing is an award-winning marketing agency dedicated to healthcare. We’ve helped many healthcare businesses to move to the next stage of their growth with a steady stream of loyal patients.
If you’d like to find out how we can help you, please book your free consultation with Splice Marketing today.