Sponsored Post: As Temperatures Soar, So Should Local Marketing

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Summertime has arrived.

To kick off the season, folks are uncovering their grills for the first time in eight or nine months and firing up some ‘shrimp on the barbie.’ A little corn on the cob, freshly-sliced watermelon and homemade cherry cobbler round out the all-American picnics taking place in backyards across the country.

School’s probably out, which means that little ones are full of energy. They’re eager to spend the next few months riding bikes with neighborhood friends and chasing lightening bugs at night. Day after day, they’re begging and pleading to head to the pool—after all, it’s hot outside.

And vacations are in full swing. Families are packing their SUVs and driving to beach houses and inns in coastal towns, pitching tents in national parks and spending quality time with cousins and grandparents who live states away.

There’s no denying it: Summer is here.

And it feels like a new beginning.

The change in season also means a drastic change in consumer behavior. With temperatures on the rise, so is consumer spending.

Research shows that people are online and on their devices (smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc.) more during the warmer months of the year.

And the data is compelling:

  • Mobile usage grows 86% faster
  • With 77-degree temperatures, online shopping increases 49%
  • Facebook users share photos in summer 24% more than spring, 23% more than winter and 5% more than fall
  • Content posted on Facebook mobile grows by 26% and video posts grow by 43%
  • 34% of people say they watch more on their smartphones (with cooking videos topping the list)

But that’s not all: Not surprisingly, people are more active (and not just athletically) throughout the summer:

  • 48% dine out more
  • 50% of homes are sold
  • 80% of Americans plan a summer vacation, with an average spend of $941 per person
  • Emergency room visits increase 15–27%

This information is intriguing—and important—for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), whether a string of fast casual restaurants, a bed and breakfast, a daycare and boarding facility for four-legged friends or an auto-repair shop that specializes in German cars.

With summer upon us, now is the time to ramp up marketing campaigns and get in front of the flurry of potential customers out and about for the season

Vivial is here to help.

We’re a marketing technology company that offers customer engagement tools to help SMBs increase their visibility, connect with customers, build loyalty, manage content and track results. Essentially, our business is to help local businesses grow through easy-to-use and affordable marketing technology.

And that’s why we’re pleased to offer a free eBook to help SMBs enhance their digital presence based on seasonal trends. 

This guide was specifically designed to support local business efforts to rank the highest, trend the hottest and make the biggest splash this season.

Organized into four sections—Summer Stats, Search & Maps, Social Media and Creative Inspiration—the user-friendly and visually-driven online format:

  1. Delivers compelling statistics that build the case for stepping up customer engagement and outreach over the next few months
  2. Provides practical tips for getting started with Google ads and boosting searchability through paid listings, Google Maps and organic search
  3. Offers steps for developing social media profiles
  4. Serves up ideas for posts, from popular hashtags to trending topics and themes
  5. Includes complimentary resources that are downloadable at the click of a button

If Google Search seems intimidating, look no further. The eBook offers “3 Things You Can Do Right Now” to fine-tune marketing campaigns and help businesses appear at the top of Google search.

Noting the hefty jump in social media usage when it’s warm, the eBook includes a dedicated section that equips SMBs with the know-how to leverage profiles on key networks that reach their target customer—and make the most sense for that particular industry. This includes specific guidelines for launching pages that generate activity on Facebook, Google +, Instagram, Pinterest, Yelp, LinkedIn, YouTube and Twitter, including:

  • Creating a profile
  • Writing a full bio
  • Including photos
  • Taking clear action
  • Being social on social
  • Encouraging reviews
  • Paying to boost a profile
  • Analyzing to improve

And if those creative juices dry up, a Social Media Summer Cheat Sheet is chock full of suggestions for posts to help SMBs better share their message and tell their story.

All of our best advice in one place to help carry the backbone of America — locally-owned businesses — from Memorial Day to the Fourth of July to Labor Day and beyond.

Because cool things should happen when the weather warms up.

Access Vivial’s free eBook at https://vivial.net/what-your-business-needs-this-summer/.

To learn more about how we take the complexity out of digital marketing to help SMBs translate likes and shares to dollars and cents, visit www.vivial.net.

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