UPDATE: 26 March 2020 – Marketing in the time of COVID-19

Apologies for not providing this update sooner.  Right now we are in a time of crisis with pretty much the whole world dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.

It’s understandable that many marketers are wondering…

(1) Should I stop marketing altogether?

(2) If I carry on marketing, do I need to make changes and how do I avoid looking like a tone-deaf jerk?

Ryan Deiss at Digital Marketer has put together a great video briefing that I think makes a lot of sense and provides valuable guidance.

Well worth watching the whole briefing, simply click on the following link…

“How to market in a time of crisis”.

Here are the key points… [Read more…]

A few months back…Ace marketer Malcolm Auld published a post titled…

“Your Marketing 101 Guide By The Numbers…”

Malcolm is working on a book about B2B Marketing to help address what he sees as a serious issue in the current business world…

“The B2B category has a lot of executives in marketing roles who have no prior marketing qualifications. They have sales, product or technical backgrounds. Some even call themselves social sellers.”

Implied in Malcolm’s post is that many of these individuals are not entirely sure what marketing is all about…

…and end up flailing around somewhat aimlessly.

Although Malcolm’s post is specifically concerned with B2B marketing…

…I think all marketers will find useful what he has to say.

Here are three points that stood out for me… [Read more…]

Time to look ahead at the month of March 2020 at the events, anniversaries and holidays that we can use to build a marketing calendar for campaigns, product launches or promotions.

The main occasion of general interest is St Patrick’s Day on March 17. Plenty of scope for ideas based around luck, good fortune and finding that elusive “pot of gold” at the end of the rainbow.

There is also the change of season with the March Equinox (March 20 at 03.50 UT). Daylight Savings Time changes this month as well in many countries.

In the UK it’s “Mother’s Day” on Sunday, March 22…

…and Easter is approaching. This year it falls on April 10 – 13.

Moving on to other events… [Read more…]

Let’s take a look at the coming month of February 2020 for the various holidays, events and anniversaries that smart marketers can use as the basis for a promotion or campaign and to create a marketing calendar for February 2020.

Valentine’s Day (February 14) is the standout occasion for the month pretty much everywhere. Remember also “Groundhog Day” (February 2), now part of the popular consciousness thanks to the classic Bill Murray movie.

This year, 2020, is a Leap Year…the extra day falls on the 29th. 

In the world of entertainment…the 92nd Academy Awards (the “Oscars”) take place on February 9th.

Easter is approaching…

…and this year Shrove Tuesday (25th) and Ash Wednesday (26th) fall in February.

Looking at general events… [Read more…]

2019 is not yet over…we still have Christmas and the New Year to enjoy…

…but it’s not too soon to get started on putting together a marketing calendar for January 2020. So let’s take a look ahead at some of the events, anniversaries and other occasions that we can put to use for an event-driven marketing event or promotion.

Of course, the New Year itself is a great reason for a promotion. At this time, most people are making plans for the year ahead and often looking to make a “fresh start”.

“New Year Sales” are a staple pretty much around the world and no reason why you can’t make use of this.

Also…

…in 2020 Chinese New Year falls on January 25th (the start of the “Year of the Rat”).

Other events of note… [Read more…]