Summer is a season of rest, relaxation, and fun. With school out, it’s the perfect time for kids to kick back and enjoy some much-deserved downtime. No wonder kids get so excited about it! And, for business owners, it can be an equally exciting time. Many parents are eager to get kids out of the house (and out of their hair), making it a prime time for local businesses to welcome visitors with open arms. Â
If you run a kids’ activity center and your loyal customers aren’t already aware of your summer promotions, now is the perfect time to reach out to them with a personalized marketing campaign. And what better way to do so than by amplifying your presence through activities during summer break?
Don’t miss out on the most profitable time of the year
Summer is full of opportunities to bring in more profits than all other times of the year combined. A multitude of industries reap the benefits of summer vacation. Hotels and rental cars have high demand during this time. As places of leisure, restaurants and retail stores can rake in even higher profits, given that many people prefer to stay indoors instead of venturing out in the heat. And kids activity centers are primed to join those industries in terms of raking in the summer profits and increasing customer reach, namely by offering summer specials and camps.
Parents are often eager to fill kids’ schedules with structured physical activities. Gymnastics and dance, for example, are two of the top choices for parents looking for summer options for their little ones. Most parents are likely to spend more than any other time of year; the overall relaxed state of mind many experience during summer means a lot more splurging, especially when it comes to kids’ experiences.Â
What to do in your marketing campaign
Summer is a great season to promote your kids’ activity center. There are many ways you can do this:
- Offer special pricing during the summer: Offering discounts during summer is a great way to increase sales. If your activities are cheaper during the summer, more customers will visit. Â
- Provide coupons for preferred customers: If you have a preferred customer program, you should use the summer to communicate with them. Make sure to send out emails, create Facebook and Instagram ads, and post on social media to remind people about your summer specials. And be sure to make the extra effort to keep these communications seasonal; people generally prefer seasonal messages.Â
- Update social media images with summer themes: People prefer seasonal marketing, so update your social media with summer-y themes. Summer is a season full of fun and relaxation, so it would make sense to use those elements for extra fun in your social media posts.Â
- Host themed summer activities: Summer is a great time to host themed activities for the kids and families who attend your center. You could host a soccer game, a hockey game, or a cookout–you can even have multiple events with different themes each time to add a little extra summer fun. You’ll also want to allow kids to invite their friends–that makes your event a community building and awareness event and gets more eyes on your business.Â
- Create targeted ads that speak to your potential customers: While kids are your clientele, parents and guardians are the ones looking for opportunities to enroll their kids into summer activities, so they are your target audience. Understand your ideal target customer, and create digital ads that reach them when they are most active. Be sure to create text and visuals that will compel them to sign up.
Why summer marketing is so effective
Summer is, quite simply, the most popular time of the year when it comes to travel and activities. This is when people want to spend more time with family and take vacations. But it’s also a time when parents want to keep their kids occupied with fun and enriching activities.Â
Whether families are looking for vacations or staycations, they’re more likely to spend a little more on summer activities than they would other times of the year. Amplifying your presence during summer is a great way to inspire more visitors to visit your business.Â
A step-by-step guide to creating a marketing strategy for summer activities
Now that you know why summer is the best time to market your business let’s talk about how to do it. Here are four steps to follow when creating a marketing strategy for your summer activities:
- Research. Before starting your summer marketing campaign, you’ll need to do some research. Find out what activities and keywords your customers are looking for. Once you know this, you can tailor your summer marketing campaign to address these activities and keywords.
- Communication. During summer, people are in the mood to relax and unwind. Lean into that by keeping your summer marketing communications seasonal. Make sure your copy and images are fun, relaxed, and inviting!
- Schedule. Summer is a busy season, so you’ll want to plan your marketing accordingly. Use your summer marketing campaign to plan which activities or special promotions you will run throughout the season. Consider offering shorter programs for busy families that travel a lot during the summer (half-days or one-day-a-week options) and longer programs to help parents looking to get their kids out of their hair for longer (one week or one-month options).
- Amplify. Summer is a great time to market your business, and it also happens to be the most profitable season. You can use summer as an opportunity to create brand awareness and inspire more customers to visit. Using strategic targeting, businesses can see increased engagement through digital ads during the summer.Â
Bottom line
Summer is a great time to market your business, and it’s an excellent opportunity to create brand awareness and inspire more customers to visit. Use these tips to amp up your summer marketing campaign and ensure as many people see your business as possible.Â
If you’re looking for help growing, Creatively Disruptive has helped hundreds of kid’s activity centers grow their enrollments and crush their summer revenue goals. Visit https://calendly.com/creativelydisruptive/schedule-a-call?month=2022-06 to book a call with us!
