Building Hype About Your Product Means Creating a Promotional Plan

The summer is full of events and activities that will keep families busy and consumers spending! From BBQ’s to baseball to summer vacations – you name it – consumers will spend to ensure they make a splash this summer.  What you need to ask yourself is if you prepared a promotional plan to target consumers this summer. What about the remainder of the year? If not, you are likely to miss out on added revenues. The good news is that there is still time to create one.

Smart marketers use a promotional calendar to plan out their strategy for the year based on key events and holidays. This provides them an overarching marketing strategy and an at-a-glance look at what is coming down the pipeline.  This strategy is essential in order to get the greatest return on a PPC campaign like NTENT.

Here are a few key tips to get you started:

• Create your own promotional calendar by looking up dates and placing them in a free calendar (e.g. Google Calendar); make sure to include only those that are most applicable to your business.

• Get organized by creating an Excel document that lists key dates, featured product messages, and promotional platforms.



• Don’t forget about the “obscure” holidays like:  Flag Day (June 14), National Chocolate Pudding Day (June 26), National Hot Dog Month (July), Parents Day (July 22), Family Fun Month (August), National Aviation Day (August 19) and more!



• Consider special promotions that apply both regionally and locally, like state fairs and local festivals.

Once you have honed in on what holidays and special celebrations make the most sense for you, the trick is to craft a promotional message for each and every one. Think about a push-and-pull strategy when crafting your message. For example, email your existing clientele and let them know you are celebrating “Family Fun” month by showing your support and offering them a discount on your product that will be sure to deliver fun for the entire family. Infuse the same key message into your PPC campaign that will run on vertical content networks. Customers will feel special, and businesses will get more revenue – thus keeping the momentum and relevance for your business the entire month long.

 

The Future of Semantic Technology

As a pioneer in semantic technology, NTENT, CEO and Co-Founder, Colin Jeavons, was recently invited to Enterprise Search Summit in NYC to speak about the evolution of semantic search technology on mobile devices. This new platform pairing has unleashed an entirely new frontier for the potential of mobile devices.  Semantic technology coupled with voice activated response unlocks an entirely new reality for both consumers and advertisers.

The launch of Siri is just the beginning, and as users demand more from their smart devices, it won’t be enough.  The ability to respond to consumers’ “instant gratification behavior” will require enhanced technology – this is where semantic search comes in.  It is essential that advertisers understand where this technology is headed and the possibilities it presents to reach consumers on the go.

Learn more about how this next evolution affects you as an advertiser.

Expert Q & A: What can I do to prepare better for mobile search?

We’ve put together the following key tips to help you better position yourself for the future of mobile search:

• Location matters – use it & infuse it. Make sure you indicate your location on your website and your entire digital outreach program. Be sure to include both local and regional information to maximize your business appeal.


• Create messages that respond to who, what, when, where. This makes the information you present to your consumer “fool proof” by keeping it simple and to the point.


• Be descriptive and engaging.  Don’t just tell consumers what your product is, make sure you tell them what your product can do for them and outline the benefits.


• Showcase recommendations and customer reviews. Showcasing customer feedback on your site is a great way to not only build up your SEO profile but it’s a great way to gain trust from consumers who are considering purchasing your product. If you have a feedback tool already enabled don’t be afraid to showcase it. If not, it’s time to start exploring a mechanism that you can include on your site.


• Develop linked user paths through descriptions. Developing a better internal linking strategy does double duty – it keeps users on your site longer and it also can help boost your SEO rankings thus making your business more visible over time.