Find Yourself a Valentine

I mean, a Valentine for your event – a partner who does not belong to the same industry (and hence is not a competitor). You can offer their products at your event for a discount, while at their store they could offer a discount code for tickets to their customers. Basically, you build a symbiotic relationship with them. Make sure you’re choosing partners that innately draw couples during the Valentine’s season – cafés, theaters, confectioners, gift shops etc.

Offer Seasons Freebies

Go a little beyond greeting cards and give away special notepads or other trinkets that carry the essence of Valentine’s Day in them. You can either send these over to your registrants after they’ve registered, or you could give these away during or after the event.

Host a Competition

Organizing a creative competition based on the Valentine theme will attract your target audience and also the media. Competitions that are quirky, like the longest kiss or the best proposal, will be enthusiastically received by all kinds of couples. You need not have the competition at a physical location; you can always use your event’s Facebook page, Twitter handle, or YouTube channel for the same. Hosting the contest before your event will give it massive promotion and provide a build-up for it. Announcing the results of the competition during the event will also boost up event ticket sales.

Be an Early Bird

Early Bird is a concept that is not only meant to be a ticket category. To make sure you’re creating a buzz about your event, you need to start early with the promotions. Right after New Year, start telling people about your event so that whenever they think about planning how to spend their Valentine’s, they instantly get reminded of your event. Send customized post-cards and newsletters, put up banners and flyers in target locations, and maybe send over special hampers to your past attendees who have attended a lot of your events.

It’s okay to be a little repetitive as long as you’re not annoying your target audience. Always having a high sales pitch might irritate your potential attendees and drive them away, so come up with fun stuff that they’d want more of.

The post Valentine’s Day Event Ideas for Event Presenters appeared first on Yapsody.

And what does Christmas bring apart from joy and prosperity and mistletoes? Loads and loads of shopping and spending and partying, of course. Which is why you, as someone with a business to run, could use this festive season to your advantage and while you attempt to do so, these promotional tips could come really handy.

1. 50% DISCOUNT

Even posing as a sub-title in a blog post, those words act like eyeball magnets. Though it’s a very old promotional tactic, you could give it a savvy edge while luring customers. Pick out the biggest spenders to offer a discount, or run a competition. Time your discounts so that they stay in demand. For example, Yapsody continues to offer a 50% rebate on Reserved Seating owing to the overbearing response from our presenters. (Now, that’s a promotional tactic, if you see what I did there. *wink*)

2. GIFT CARDS

You need some stock calculation with this tactic to make sure what you’re offering always seems fresh and new. Rotate your stock and keep gift cards limited to a specific range of stock, mostly incorporating your bestsellers. Keep in mind what your customers really need and want while drawing up the gift cards and ensure a fresh stock on December 26.

3. 12 DAYS OF GIVEAWAYS

If you watch The Ellen Show, you can act smug and have the “I know what this is about” face on. This is a classic Christmas theme and you can definitely use it as a promotional strategy by offering discounts on twelve products, a different one every day in the twelve days leading up to Christmas. You’ll be able to expose a wide range of your products to your customers and push them to actually try them out.

4. IN-STORE AUCTIONS

For all customers with a big amount on their receipts, you could ask them to carry their receipts to an in-store auction where they can bid for products, starting at a minimum $5 maybe. Your sales are bound to skyrocket if you try this out.

5. OFFERS FOR THEM, BY THEM

Customers often have favorite products when they consider stores and brands. You can offer them a choice to get any product they like at a flat 20% discount. Don’t automatically restock the products that have been bought, because new and fresh products will spark more interest. On the other hand, if you’re a premium brand, give your customers complementary goods on regular purchases instead of offering flat discounts as this will add more value to your image.

6. REWARD YOUR SPECIAL CUSTOMERS

If you’re a store, don’t wait for your best and values customers to walk in to get them introduced to your special offers. Print out fliers or pamphlets and have them delivered to them. Give them privileged or personalized discounts on products they like. If you’re an online brand, you could mail them their coupon codes and offers. Making them feel special in this season would easily lead up to them opening their wallets.

But, don’t make this a one-time thing. If you really like a girl and are going to ask her out for Christmas Eve, you’ll keep her engaged and interested months before that. It works the same way with your customers, too.

7. HOST A CHRISTMAS EVENT

An invite-only event will speed up your promotions and add a real spark to your Christmas offers. Handpick special customers and send them free plus-one invites to your Christmas event where you can offer 50% discounts on your best products. Use Yapsody for selling your event tickets online to make your event look professional and top-notch. Add good food, some music, and your event will be the talk of the town. Not only will your customers feel valued, people will try to get on the invite list by becoming loyal to your brand or store.

8. TREAT YOUR CUSTOMERS

And treat them right. This not only refers to the kind of service you’re providing, this means you ought to give them stuff that they really want and would appreciate. Know your customers and treat them to the kind of things they’d like – an exquisite dinner, a sports event, a musical at the Broadway etc. Whatever you offer, make sure it reflects the image of your brand.

9. GIFT HAMPERS

This is a domain where you can go absolutely crazy with the promotions. You can have tailor-made hampers for individual customers, and you can include new products that you want to introduce your customers to. Hampers can be big or small and don’t necessarily have to be expensive.

10. TEAM UP

Partner with other businesses that are relevant to your own or belong to the same industry and offer joint packages. You could also tie up with a charity and do some good to the world. This will not only help you in building a good brand image, but also play your part in this world during the auspicious Christmas season.

A Merry Christmas, y’all!

The post 10 Tips for Last Minute Christmas Promotions appeared first on Yapsody.