One of the highest payoff activities in marketing is to prepare a marketing calendar. And it’s never too early to map out a calendar for the coming year!
As well as this article to give you ideas…
…here’s a great post from copywriter Ray Edwards…
“How To Create A One-Page Marketing Plan”.
It’s taken from one of Ray’s regular podcasts, so you can listen along if you wish.
And the focus is very much on creating a marketing plan for the year ahead, 2013.
In passing, included in that article is a GREAT resource for event-driven marketers…
…a comprehensive calendar of events!
Even better, there’s a specific calendar for every major country, so you can create your own list of events that are relevant to your local area!
So here’s a selection of events, holidays and anniversaries you can use to prepare a core marketing calendar for your business.
Compared to the previous year, there aren’t too many big occasions outside of the regular events and anniversaries.
The UK may well see the arrival of a new royal baby (babies?) and it’s the 40th anniversary of joining the EEC (January 1).
Concerning major anniversaries…
…150 years ago the US Civil War was raging, so there are numerous anniversaries of major battles.
None more significant than the Battle Of Gettysburg (1-3 July 1863), widely regarded as one of the decisive events of the war.
Also, this year sees the 70th anniversary of many events from the Second World War.
Other anniversaries…
1 July – 50th anniversary of the introduction of Zip Codes in the USA
8 August – 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream speech”
10 October – 200th anniversary of the birth of the composer Verdi
29 October – 150th anniversary of the founding of the International Red Cross
22 November – 50th anniversary of the (still controversial) assassination of President John F. Kennedy
Next a core calendar that can be used pretty much anywhere for the coming year 2013.
January – New Year
February – Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day
March – St Patrick’s Day
April – Easter
June – Mid Year (mid-summer northern hemisphere, mid-winter southern hemisphere)
October – Halloween
December – Christmas
To fill out the schedule
Two fairly universal events are…
Mother’s Day – March 10 (UK), May 12 (USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand)
Father’s Day – June 16 (UK, Canada, USA), September 1 (Australia, New Zealand)
Remember as well the solstices (June 21 and December 21) and the equinoxes (March 20 and September 22).
In the USA…
July – Independence Day
September – “Back to School”
November – Thanksgiving
In Canada…
July – Canada Day
August – August Civic Holiday
October – Thanksgiving
In Australia…
January – Australia Day
April – ANZAC Day
June – End Of Financial Year
November – Melbourne Cup
To note, in Australia, 2013 sees the 100th anniversary of the official founding of the nation’s capital, Canberra (12 March 1913).
Remember as well dates such as the end of the financial (or tax) year, local events and anniversaries and occasions specific to your own business.
I’ll update this post as and when I come across other noteworthy event and occasions.
But for the time being this should be enough to get you started on a sales-boosting, profit-pulling marketing calendar for 2013!