Building An Effective Content Strategy This Holiday Season

I’ve heard for a while now that retail stores have been marketing Christmas items since before Halloween. But we all know that big push starts with Black Friday . . . and the countdown is on! Have you determined your marketing plan for the holidays?

If you haven’t, fear not, we’ve got some tips to get you on your way!

If you are selling a product, and really, we all do in some way or another, then do a quick inventory of your products and services and then take a look at our Daktronics Best Practices Digital Campaign Guide.

These tips are for all advertising cycles–monthly, quarterly and annually, but for now, focus on your holiday goals, planning and content creation to develop a campaign and advertising strategy.

According to the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, U.S. consumers say they will spend an average of $1,007.24 during the holiday season this year, up 4.1% from last year!

Your Daktronics display is a natural extension of your marketing efforts.  You can use it to promote Product, you may also want to advertise Services, Community messages, Time Sensitive, and of course Branding!

Start with a worksheet (like the one in the Daktronics Best Practices Digital Campaign Guide) and list out under each heading what you want to promote for each of these categories. Then grab your calendar and start sketching out what you want to run and when. Daktronics recommends 7-10 pieces of content each week or month depending on the industry you are in.

Once you know WHAT to advertise, turn your attention to HOW you can create that great holiday content!  Remember, less is more!  If you can use a picture to tell your story rather than all text, do so.  It is much easier in a short glance to understand what you are selling if I can see a picture rather than read text. For a refresher you can use our Content Best Practices.

Next, preview your created message.  Here’s a tip! Try to read the message at least 5 times before the layout changes.  If reading it 5 times was a stretch, you need to trim it down. Remember, your audience is in motion. Give them every opportunity to engage with your message (and your business.) It’s more than okay to rethink your traditional advertising. Isolate an idea, keep the key points and remove extra wording.

Take a look at the graphics below for examples of how to optimize your content from just okay to great!  By using our best practices to build an effective LED campaign, you can turn your attention to enjoying a happy and successful holiday season.