Valentine's Day is a big opportunity for businesses. In 2020, Valentine's Day spending was expected to be $27.4 billion, which smashed the previous record set in 2019 by 32%. While that number is likely to decrease some this year due to the effects of COVID-19, businesses can still score big on Valentine's Day. 

However, for your businesses to fully take advantage of the holiday, you'll need to consider starting your Valentine's Day marketing soon. After all, if you don't get in front of your customers before the big day, they likely won't think of your business when it comes time for Valentine's Day shopping or dining. Luckily, you still have plenty of time to get in front of your customers before Valentine's Day; let's look at some of your marketing options that can help set your business up to have a successful Valentine's Day.

Update Your Website's Content

Everything on your website is a reflection of your business. So, if you're hoping for a big Valentine's Day at your company, you should consider updating your website to indicate that. This marketing strategy is known as content marketing; it's a marketing strategy predicated on creating helpful and relevant content for your audience.

Content marketing doesn't cost you anything, but it can be tricky when you first start. Basically, you'll write content that is helpful, relevant, or informative to your customers. You should focus your content on keywords that your target audience might search for. For example, suppose you're a restaurant that's offering a romantic Valentine's Day dinner. In that case, you'll want your content to contain words that have high searches surrounding what you are offering; this could be "Valentine's Day restaurant" or "romantic Valentine's Day dinner." Hopefully, when people search for that term, your website will pop up, letting them know your business is a Valentine's Day destination.

Keep in mind that it will take your content some time before it starts trending upwards on search engines. That's why it's important to start your content marketing for holidays like Valentine's Day early. Another content marketing tip is that there are websites that are available that can help you with keyword research to ensure your keywords are high searching and relevant to your audience; for example, SEMRush and Ubersuggest. 

Updating your website with Valentine's Day content might not sound like it will have a significant impact on your business. However, according to a study, 81% of shoppers conduct online research prior to shopping, so your content marketing can help you stand out during that research and convince shoppers to do business with you. 

Advertise Your Valentine's Day Specials

Companies spend millions in advertising every year for one simple reason - because it works. But, you don't need a multi-million dollar budget to advertise your Valentine's Day specials. There are many different advertising mediums, and finding the right one for your business can help push your brand ahead.

When talking about advertising, most people think of television advertisements. However, there are so many other options, like billboards, radio, online, search engine, print, and so much more. You can pick which advertising medium or mediums are right for your business by considering your budget and where your target audience is.

You can even do some advertising at your business or other local businesses. Put up signs around your store advertising your upcoming Valentine's Day specials. Or consider contacting local businesses or partners and ask if they are willing to hand out promo cards to your business to their customers. To help build your case, offer to reciprocate by handing out promo cards for their business at your company. Not only will this help get more eyes on your business, but strengthening your relationship with local businesses could come in handy in the future.

Email Marketing

Email is one of the most important forms of communication in 2020. In fact, on average, people check their email 15 times per day. You can take advantage of consumers' love of email by deploying email marketing. After all, you know your customers are likely to check their email several times a day, so it's unlikely that they'll miss your emails.

Use a Valentine's Day theme in your emails leading up to the holiday to show your customers what you have to offer and remind customers that your business is a Valentines's Day destination or that you provide Valentine's Day gifts. You can do this both in the written content of the email, but also by incorporating imagery that will remind customers of the holiday.

Just remember not to flood your customers' inboxes; if you send too many emails, they could disregard them completely or unsubscribe. You should also vary the content to ensure each email is unique and stands out from the rest.

While Valentine's Day is approaching quickly, it's not too late to get in front of your customers to ensure your business has its biggest Valentine's Day ever. If you need to supplement your marketing strategy with custom tools like gift cards, promo cards, or key tags, we can help! Please reach out to us and let us know what you need; we're always happy to help!