Saturday, March 16, 2013

The Loaded Message: Promotional and Marketing Trends to Watch

Well, I just read “10 Trends to Watch for your Promotions and Marketing Mix” by Alissa Ponchione. It focuses on the bar and nightclub industry. Good tips, timely advice, but there is something between the lines that is very telling. Actually, there were several somethings...

First, while this article focuses on bars and nightclubs, the scope certainly does not end there. Other businesses from dog grooming facilities to car salesmen can benefit from at least the gist of this piece. The main push here is to know your industry. This piece talks about bar trends and nightclub trends, but, really, if you are in business, then you need to be looking at the trends within your industry. You need to know what is driving your customers, what are they gravitating to, what is at the top of their Christmas list to Santa?

Another thing that struck me is the importance that social media plays. It is becoming bigger and bigger. Ten years ago, this was not a big deal. Today, if your business doesn’t have a Facebook page and a Twitter account, people will look at you wonky and wonder just how “real” your business is. It is fascinating! But social media is pretty easy to use and access so if you aren’t utilizing it to its fullest extent, then maybe you are a little wonky.

Finally, there were some things in this piece that sort of got to me. As I read about “current trends” that included disco. I suspect it is more of an updated version of disco and I don’t think we’ll see many white polyester suits on the dance floor, but it is still intriguing. And the “drinks of the past” that are regaining popularity like the Tom Collins, Whiskey Sour and the Manhattan. The trends are coming full circle. Fascinating.

There is a lot to glean from this piece, whether you have a bar or nightclub or not. It teaches a very important lesson about knowing your niche, knowing your customer and not only aiming your promotional and marketing efforts to them, but also giving them what they want.

No comments:

Post a Comment

13 Easy Ways to Conserve Energy While Everyone’s Home

We’re all spending more time at home these days. That means computers, TVs, A/C units, and appliances are running almost constantly – and o...