The Rolling Stones have released a couple of albums recently…

…a new compilation album “Honk”…

…and a live set “Bridges to Bremen” from a gig in 1998.

Now, it would be completely understandable if your reaction is “Does the world really need another compilation or live album from the Rolling Stones?”

After all, there are already plenty to choose from. UNCUT magazine’s “Rolling Stones – Ultimate Collector’s Edition” lists 29 different compilations along with a selection of 20 live sets from the many that are available.

Well…based on what matters most to marketers…sales…the answer is…

Time for our regular look ahead…this time at the month of July 2019. Let’s take a look at the coming month for events, occasions, holidays and anniversaries that can form the basis for a marketing campaign or promotion and that you can use to create a marketing calendar for July 2019.

Two big themes or ideas.

First, now that we are in the second half of the year. July 1 is sometimes referred to as “Second Half Of The Year Day”.

As with any milestones like this, it’s an opportunity to give people a bit of a jolt and get them to review their goals and plans for the year.

Of course, if they are off-track a little you might well be able to help them get back on track!

Secondly, it’s Summer (in the northern hemisphere)…

…but the depths of Winter if you’re in the southern hemisphere.

In the USA July 4 is the great national occasion “Independence Day”. This theme of independence is very much a universal ideal and so can be used pretty much in any country. The idea of “personal independence” can be the basis for a promotion in many different markets. It’s worth keeping in mind that one of the primary reasons people go into business for themselves is the desire for freedom and independence.

Taking a look at some specific occasions… [Read more…]

With the month of June is approaching…

…we’re almost halfway through 2019!

That in itself can be used as the basis for a marketing promotion…

…along with the other holidays and events that fall in the coming month…

…to create your own marketing calendar for June 2019.

Also…

…did you know that June is the biggest month for weddings in the USA? Likely to be the same in other northern hemisphere countries. South of the Equator, the months of January, February and March are the most popular.

If you’re in the northern hemisphere…

…the broad theme can be thought of as “Summer”.

The Summer Solstice occurs at 15.54 UT on June 21.

There’s also Father’s Day (Sunday, June 16) in the USA, UK and Canada.

Other events… [Read more…]

May 2019 is approaching…

…so time for smart marketers to plan ahead and look at some of the holidays, events and anniversaries in the coming month that can be used as part of an “event driven marketing” strategy. You can then use these ideas to put together your own Marketing Calendar for May 2019.

Two notable occasions are…

…firstly “May Day” (May 1, of course)…

…and then in most places (apart from the UK) “Mother’s Day”, which this year falls on Sunday May 12.

“May Day” (May 1) is an occasion widely observed in the northern hemisphere and originally was a pagan festival linked to Spring and fertility.

Wikipedia has more about May Day traditions…

…including in the UK the May Pole, the May Queen and Morris Dancing.

Like many originally pagan festivals, May Day has been co-opted by the Church and in many Catholic countries May is a month honouring the Virgin Mary.

In the modern era, May Day has also come to be known as “International Workers’ Day” and associated with the labour movement.

Also in May…

…we have “Be A Millionaire Day” on May 20! This is a day to think and dream about what it would be like to be a millionaire.

It’s understood that the term “millionaire” was first used in the English language by Lord Byron in a letter written in 1816. At the time, there were only a handful of millionaires. Today it’s reckoned there are more than 13 million millionaires scattered around the globe. The origins of “Be a Millionaire Day” are not clear, but the day honours the desire to enjoy the freedom and power associated with being financially secure.

Here’s a more detailed list of events… [Read more…]

The great Tom Fishburne at marketoonist.com delivers yet again with a useful reminder for marketers…

Here we go again. Marketers are circling around a hot new social media property heralded to be the next big thing. One representative FOMO headline — ‘Brands not on TikTok in 2019 will be left behind.”

From a marketing perspective, TikTok promises a perfect storm of big numbers (500 million monthly active numbers and record app downloads), a hard to reach young demographic (Generation Z), and high engagement. The New York Times wrote a fascinating article on the impact of TikTok on social media at large: “How TikTok Is Rewriting the World.”

You can read the whole thing at “tiktok and the next big thing”.

At the risk of coming across as a complete marketing dinosaur…I confess I had never heard of TikTok before coming across Tom’s cartoon and article.  Then again, I’m not a “Gen Z”. But it does mean that if, for some reason, I was your target audience, then you wouldn’t have much success reaching me through TikTok.

Now, TIkTok may possibly turn out to be a great opportunity for marketers. However, before investing time and money in exploring this avenue, it’s probably worth reviewing these points… [Read more…]