It may be September, but Q4 is just days away. Often these last three months are the biggest in terms of growth. However, because we get busy with day-to-day operations, we don’t take time to strategically plan for our end-of-year goals.
As a former end-of-year-procrastinator, and because I’ve worked with clients who are also end-of-year-procrastinators, I’ve compiled three tips that you can do to ensure your Q4 goals aren’t threatened by lack of planning.
#1 Start Early
The end of the year, especially the holidays, are a busy season for everyone. Your customer will be busy with get-togethers and events. You will be busy finishing up end-of-year work. Your favorite marketing manager will be busy with projects for their clients.
Start planning your end-of-year marketing in advance. This will give you time to do it well and hire someone to help you if needed. The more time you allow yourself to be strategic, the more opportunity you’ll have.
You don’t have to wait til the last minute. And if you don’t, you’ll be ahead of your competition.
#2 Know Your Goals
A business doesn’t survive with nebulous goals. Neither does a marketing plan. Your goals need to be clear so you can make a marketing plan that supports those goals.
Are you trying to build your follower base? Do you want more sales? How many new clients do you want? How much do you need to fundraise?
Once you have your goal set, you can focus on marketing streams that push your business forward. If you’re focusing on fundraising, you might leverage your email marketing rather than social media ads. If you want more clients, you might focus on your sales funnel.
Knowing your goals will prevent you from wasting your time on marketing streams that won’t advance your business.
#3 Be Consistent
Once you have an end-of-year marketing plan in place (because you’ve started early and you know your goals), you must be consistent. Don’t give up on your social media feed. Don’t stop sending out emails to prospective clients.
You will only reach your end-of-year goals if you are consistent in marketing to your audience.
If you already know that your end-of-year is going to be busy, consider using a scheduler (Coschedule is our favorite). Write up your social media posts and marketing emails ahead of time. Schedule them on the dates you want your audience to see them. Let parts of your marketing plan run on auto-pilot while you focus on the work at hand.
If you lead a business or non-profit, you probably know that the final 3-4 months of your year may be crucial to meeting your annual budgets. Poor planning can jeopardize your success if you’re not careful.
When it comes to your marketing, find the end-of-year success by planning early, knowing your goals and being consistent. You don’t have to wonder if you’ll reach those goals when you have a plan!
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