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Fall is a favorite among people everywhere, myself included. Halloween fans just love the nostalgia and spookiness of it all – not to mention the candy. Even for those who aren’t crazy about the holiday, there are things you can do to play up on the season, grow your business, and booooost your profits.
Marketing Ideas for Halloween
No matter what industry you’re in, these Halloween marketing ideas for small businesses can help you generate a buzz for the fall season and boost your product/service sales!
Create a Themed Product
People absolutely love to get in the mood when it comes to all things fall and Halloween. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past decade or so, you’re likely aware of the rage surrounding pumpkin spice. In 2020, Starbucks decided to take things to the next level for their Halloween marketing campaign by creating a special drink that was only available on their secret menu: The Jack Skellington. This created excitement in a number of different ways, of course, because it played on a pop culture hit, and also because it created a feeling of exclusivity by placing it on the secret menu. Having a fall-themed product is a great way to generate a buzz and boost sales this season. If you’re a service-based business owner, you can create a themed package instead, even if it’s all just in the name (“spooktacular 25% off sale,” etc.)
Decorate
If you have a physical location, adding some decorative touches can make a world of difference. You don’t need to go overboard, but hanging a few pieces here and there can change the atmosphere and engage customers. Then: there’s your digital presence. Changing things like profile photos and/or banners is a fun and simple way to get in the spirit of the season and enhance your Halloween marketing campaigns. Use a site like Canva, and search for eye-catching images you like that resonate with your business and make you smile. Chances are if the graphics give you that fall vibe when you’re looking for Halloween marketing ideas for small businesses, they’ll do the same for your clients!
Launch a Promo Video
This month is the perfect time for you to connect with your customers, and show them your playful side. Creating a promotional video can be a fun and effective way to boost sales over the next several weeks. You can go about this in a number of different ways, one of which is to create a short how-to video that infuses some seasonal comedy into an informative piece that’s sure to impress your customers. Once you’ve gotten your video (or a few!) putten together, you can launch it on TikTok or YouTube and share it on your other social platforms for more exposure.
Give Them a Peek Behind the Scenes
Do you usually just stick to posting messages geared toward clients, advertisements, etc? Do you ever give your customers a look at what’s going on behind the scenes when it comes to your business? Halloween (and the weeks leading up to it) is an excellent time to do just that. Are you getting ready to go to a costume event? Snap some pictures or a short video of you and the staff and post it on your social media pages with a cute caption. It’ll make your customers feel like they’re closer to you, which is effective when it comes to marketing.
Create a BOGO
This technique is an amazing way to generate excitement and awareness around your brand any time of year. People love free stuff. Create a great BOGO offer to incentivize customers to purchase your products or services!
Host a Contest
Hosting a costume contest is hands down one of the best ways to drive traffic to your door (either physical or digital.) If you don’t have a store, or you don’t want to host a live contest, you can always create a virtual event on your company’s social media pages. If a costume contest really doesn’t suit your business, you can always try a different type, like a “how many candy corns are in this container” contest, etc. In any case, make sure you continue to post about it leading up to the day of the event to generate excitement and don’t forget to line up a prize that’s worth winning!
Hashtags are crucial to determining the number of views you receive on your posts, especially on a few of the social media platforms. Hashtagging your posts means that even people who aren’t following you will be able to find them. If someone heads to the search bar and types #yourhashtaghere, your post will pop up, and BOOM, you’ve got someone who’s genuinely interested in what you have to offer and now you have a new follower/customer. This month, it will allow for a ton of new eyes to discover your brand, simply by hashtagging content with things like #HalloweenBOGO, etc. Be sure you’re using the right number of hashtags on each platform as well. On sites like Instagram and Pinterest, you want to use the maximum number they’ll allow, but on Facebook and Twitter, less is more.
Post Themed Content All Month
Once fall is in the air, there’s really no turning back. Don’t just post one promo video at the beginning of the month and then return to posting generic things that have nothing to do with the season. Keep up the momentum all month long! Even better, strategize and schedule your posts, or create a social media scavenger hunt that lasts throughout the weeks.
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Erika Sellmer is a digital content specialist with a passion for remote work and empathic design.
