Winter weather makes staying in business hard during the year! But every smart and experienced business knows to expect it every January through March, with the hopeful end in April. The holiday months of November and December don’t really matter, because Americans are hell-bent on shopping, and snowflakes are part of most interior decors and theme music on repeat that plays in every store. But the cold and gray lull before Valentine’s Day? Shudder!
How do you get the people out from underneath their heavy blankets? It requires a lot of coaxing with constancy. Think of the fast food commercials you (used) to see at night while watching cable. You may be too young for this, but, way past the dinner hour, commercials for pizza and burgers would come on. No one was going to get up off the couch right then to drive to get the food, but the next time they were out, they would pull over.
Back to our problem of getting the people out - or at least to buy your product:
Set the scene with visuals in your Instagram and TikTok.
Send similar or different pictures in a newsletter with special SNOWDAY coupon.
Promote ways to buy from you digitally.
Examples On How To Profit On A Snow Day
Pre-Promote Delivery - The Farmer
Problem: A farmer who usually sells in-person at markets is going to lose all sales on a snow day if she can’t show up to the market.
What To Do: 2 days before the predicted snowstorm, use the regular Instagram graphic you had designed that says: SNOW DAY! FREE DELIVERY! Also send that image in a newsletter to your people. They need to be conditioned that you
A. do free delivery,
B. are going to have a hard time showing up at market,
C. they might skip going to market that day.
Make their lives easier by telling them (again, and again, and again) that you deliver. Consider including a 5% off coupon for those who book early. You don’t need to do this every time. We know you need every penny.
Need Something? Don’t have a cute Instagram graphic like this? Hire us at Katie James Inc. to make one for you! We’d love to sink our creative juices into your brand to makes something that will compel people to get off their couches.
Pre-Promote That You Will Be Open
Problem: The snow is falling, and people see inches of snow out their front doors and sidewalks. They assume everything shut down, and they are taking the day off to binge-watch something (including Instagram and TikTok).
What To Do: 1 day before the predicted snowstorm, show your shovels and salt. Tell your people that will most likely be open - that you will most likely be open. Do this in Instagram and TikTok. Schedule a newsletter in advance that let’s people know “WE’RE OPEN!” despite the snowfall. Write it the day before, and have it ready to send the next day. If you can’t open because it’s all just too much, then don’t send it.
Need Something? Don’t have time to write such a newsletter or Instagram campaign because you’re out buying salt, and then you’ll be out shoveling in order to open? Hire us at Katie James Inc. to write it and schedule it for you.
Promote Online Sales
Problem: You shoveled out, but there aren’t a lot of people out. How are you going to reach them?
What To Do: Drop the prices for limited time only. Have a sale, where people can buy the products from their phones. Use Shopify to hook up to Instagram Ads. Or, if you need something less fancy, use your Squarespace site or your Square site to sell something at a special price. This sale pricing needs from be from a certain time frame, and only for that snow day. Create an Instagram graphic that says these time ranges and sale % off. Share this also to your newsletter
Need Something? You know what we’re going to say! Hire us at Katie James Inc. to finally make or improve that website of yours. Or, if you already prepared with a slick website, hire us to create the Instagram and newsletter combo to push your sales.
Book us in advance though! We need to plan just like you do. We usually don’t need to shovel out to do our work, however. So…We’re Open!