Almost everyone loves fireworks; when done correctly, the experience is awe-inspiring. A business that can replicate an experience like that online and make their customers feel connects more deeply with them. Customers who have a personal connection to a brand are more likely to purchase from them – those are your loyal customers, your brand advocates. That being said, here are a few ideas to light up your site this Independence Day:
1. Set off fireworks, literally
Twitter now allows GIFs to be included in posts, and if you happen to be running some kind of promotional offer or social media campaign for Independence Day, including a GIF, video, or image of fireworks can help promote your content.
2. Offer a promo to loyal customers.
Your loyal customers are your lifeline – use the holiday as another excuse to thank them. Loyal customers have lifetime value for your business and are more likely to respond to promotional offers that are personalized to them. If you have a wishlist feature, holidays are a good time to offer personalized promos.
3. Offer a promo to new customers encouraging them to become loyal customers.
Encourage new business by offering a promotion geared specifically to new customers to encourage loyalty. Show them how your brand will earn their loyalty by answering one question - “What’s in it for me?”
4. Team up with a cause.
Use the holiday to celebrate military members and their families and help make America a better place. You can have pride in your country and still push towards a brighter future. By pairing up with a cause that matters for you, your company, and your customers, you can make your holiday sales benefit something bigger, and maybe generate some love for your brand along the way.
5. Break a world record.
Find a world record that you think you could break and give it a try. You can encourage your customers to help you and even surprise them with a reward after their participation.
6. Run a contest.
Running a contest encourages existing customers and potential customer to engage with your brand. You could run a photo contest. Customize it for the holiday by awarding the most patriotic selfie or the best uses of red, white, & blue for a product. Whatever it is, make sure the reward will encourage participation and keep the focus on building the community.
7. Host an event.
Host a local 4th of July event to participate in the community as a brand and reach potential customers. If your town usually sets off fireworks, set up a comfy viewing area and host a pre-fireworks party. If it works for your products, allow people to see what you have to offer or just offer a great experience and practice those networking skills.
8. Volunteer at a local parade or event.
This one is pretty simple – you have to put some good in in order to get some good in return. Do this one because it’s the right thing to do, not just for the good vibes and awesome publicity. If you make yourself a part of the community by helping them out, they’ll welcome you with open arms. This is a chance for your brand to set a positive example and be a trendsetter, take it and move full speed ahead.
9. Encourage user-generated content.
User-generated content is a great type of content to have on your site. It tends to be trusted more and other users tend to view it as more authentic & persuasive. Set up a gallery where users can upload their own pictures to be featured on your site – turn it into an interactive social campaign for even more potential engagement.
10. Promote a special product collection.
Create a product collection specifically around the holiday and promote it. You could even include some kind of promotional offer to go along with it. For the 4th of July, you could have a red collection, a blue collection, a white collection, and/or a collection that includes all three colors. Get creative and come up with a useful collection that still fits the theme of the holiday. You could even open up the strategy before the holiday to your customers, surveying and asking them for their input on what the collection should be.
No matter the holiday you’re celebrating get creative, be interactive, focus on the community, and enjoy! If you’re building activities with a focus on your audience, on your community, and have fun doing it, your community of customers will have fun with it too.