summer marketing ideas Archives

august marketing to do list Hard to believe August starts on Monday, so prepare your small business with my Marketing to do list August.

Back to School

If you sell anything back-to-school-related, the searches have already started. According to Google Trends, these were the top searches this past week:

“Back to School events near me” has increased over 100%.
“Back to School haircuts” and “Back to School cookie cutters” searches have both more than doubled.
“Bento boxes” searches have increased over 250%.

And the top back to school products are:

Mesh Backpacks
Clear Pencil Cases
Storage for College Dorms
Twin XL Mattress Protector
Bed Risers
Shower Caddy

Labor Day Sales Publicity

If you get the free HARO (Help a Reporter Out) emails, you will see that there have been several requests in the past week from major blogs and publications looking to feature Labor Day Sales. It’s a great way to get free publicity for your sale, and “Labor Day Sale” is one of the top searched sales of the year. Also read: Labor Day Sales Opportunity.

More PR Opportunities

If you’re a hispanic-owned business, start pitching to blogs now to be included in articles such as, “Hispanic Small Businesses to Support for National Hispanic Heritage Month”, which starts September 15th.

SEO Tips

Something as simple as adding the current year to your keywords can help your SEO, as people do search this way. i.e. Fall 2022, Back to School 2022, Halloween 2022, etc.

Create Social Media Posts

Post a reel to Instagram (as it is the most viewed type of content) of a quick pan overview of all of your new fall 2022 collection #reelsofinstagram.

Don’t forget about Pinterest, because it is still used as a search engine by millions of people. So create a Pinterest board titled with a long tail search phrase (4 to 6 words) related to what you sell and even make it seasonal i.e. The Best Fall Sweaters for 2022. Then make sure that every pin you pin to it, also has that long tail search phrase (or at least the keywords) in the pin title and description.

Be sure to read my post, Social Media Ideas for August, and my post Creating Social Media Posts Using Canva.

Halloween Products & Services

Halloween has become the second biggest retail buying occasion. Last year, spending on costumes, decorating and other Halloween items was more than US$10 billion. In fact, it is so big that many retailers have already launched their Halloween collections, which might inspire you:

More Marketing To Do Lists

My 12-Month Marketing Plans are essentially marketing to do lists, but much more detailed and specific to your business. They will help drive more traffic and sales, without spending a lot of money. Be sure to also read my post, My Top Marketing Ideas for August.

Prepare for Holiday Sales

Click to download

If you sell on Etsy, download my best-selling 2022 Etsy Holiday Sales Planner, packed with the top search phrases, product trends, planning tools, press contacts and so much more!

Me in the Press!

I was quoted in an article on Yahoo Finance called, “4 Types of Businesses to Start in the Fall“. Check it out for more inspiration!

About Me

A 20+ year marketing professional, small business consultant, ebook author & blogger, my advice has been featured in the NY Times, Forbes, Success Magazine, Yahoo Finance, American Express, GO Banking Rates, Big Commerce, Business2Community, SheKnows to name a few – so this is professional advice you can trust!

I sell online on Shopify, Etsy, Gumroad and on Amazon back in its early years. This, combined with my decades of marketing & business experience means I can advise, mentor as well as come up with creative new ideas for your business. It really does help to talk to someone who is objective to get a new, but professional, perspective.

I have also written publicity pitches for clients that resulted in them being featured in Real Simple Magazine, Apartment Therapy, House Beautiful, Vanity Fair, Houzz, Martha Stewart, Glamour Magazine, LONNY, DesignMilk, Emmaline Bride – just to name a few. Be sure to try my Publicity Pitch and other Marketing Services.

I hope you enjoyed my marketing to do list for August.

Are sales a little sluggish? Need some marketing ideas for August? Here are a few things I recommend if you need to get things going for your small business this month.

August Marketing Ideas

If you’re a female-run business, pitch your success story now to your local newspaper’s business writer for any articles they are thinking of for National Business Women’s Day on September 22^nd (they need a few weeks lead-time).
At very least, if you’re a female business owner, pose in a shirt with your business name on it, post the photo to your social media with the hashtag #nationalbusinesswomensday. Then ask followers to #like and #share for some free publicity. Also give a #shoutout to a few female businesses you support – maybe mine :).
Whether you sell online or in a brick and mortar, include a one-page holiday gift guide-type flyer for your business in every customer’s package, to get them coming back for those big Christmas sales.
Are any of your products a possible gift idea for a local business to gift to their employees and/or clients this holiday season? Then ready your pitch for early September as a way to get a few volume orders. Even if you are a service business, like a restaurant or travel agency, you can pitch gift cards or gift certificates for your business.
Did you know that “Labor Day sales” is the most searched sales weekend after Black Friday sales, and it accounted for $2.6 billion in revenue in 2020? So plan for an epic Labor Day Sale as a great way to clear out summer items and promote fall merchandise. Try something unique, like mystery boxes of products or other bulk purchase-type offers.
Fall is all about fairs, festivals and other Halloween and Thanksgiving events. So take advantage of your local market by seeing if there are affordable opportunities to advertise your business. This can be in flyers, signage and other marketing materials.

Easily and affordably market and promote your small business every month with my sure-fire tactics, outlined in my 12-Month Marketing Strategy Plans, where everything you need to do is laid out for you. Download today!

About Me

As a long time marketing consultant who has been blogging about e-commerce since 2012, I advise, coach and mentor small businesses selling online. I first got involved in e-commerce back in 2002, wanting to sell online a book I had written. After years of selling on Amazon I decided to take the experience I had in e-commerce, merge it with my professional marketing background and start a blog with marketing advice for small businesses selling online. My advice has been featured in the NY Times, Success Magazine, American Express Open Forum, Big Commerce blog, Business2Community and SheKnows to name a few.