In the world of kitchen marketing, things are starting to slow down about now.
It’s not a shock. In fact, it happens every December.
As the days get shorter and the nights get colder, consumers’ attention turns increasingly towards festive logistics – buying presents, organising family get-togethers and whose turn it is to dress as Santa.
Search volume goes down. Website hits drop too. Clicks, impressions - nearly everything that can be gauged – will be on a descending trajectory.
This is no bad thing for plenty of kitchen retailers, busy as they are getting the final installations completed before the natural deadline that is the Christmas break.
So, with demand for kitchens dropping off right now, what should you be doing from a marketing perspective?
Well, the important thing to remember is that what goes down WILL come up, as sure as day follows night.
Over the years, we’ve seen an upsurge in demand as soon as January arrives. As a kitchen retailer, your focus right now needs to be on preparing for that burst.
You know how it goes - people have more time on their hands after Christmas and into January. It’s cold, wet, and the nights are long and dark, giving them plenty of opportunity to get things done and make big plans for the year ahead, including any home improvements.
And so the research begins.
Google searches, website visits, trawls through Google reviews, evenings flicking through brochures, guides and glossy magazines looking for inspiration. It’s all happening in January, and you need to be there to meet your prospect.
The next question: How?
From everything I’ve seen over the last five years, there are two key things you need to be doing right now:
1. Make sure you’re going to get found when search volume increases
When people are searching, you need to be found, and now’s the time to put things in place to ensure that happens. So, put some effort into SEO, get ready to increase your Google Ads budget (or plan to start running ads in January), and make sure your Google My Business listing is tickety boo. Doing those things now will pay dividends in the New Year.
2. Get visible
The more visible you can be, the more familiar people will be with your brand when they come to start their research post-Christmas. Get posting and advertising on social media, and perhaps book ads and/or editorial in the local magazines or radio.
Becoming known before you’re needed will always stand you in great stead when demand increases, and the time to do that is now.
Maybe you’ve had a mixed Autumn, or perhaps it’s been the best one ever.
Either way, the way to hit the ground running in 2022 is to get organised NOW.
A great start to a New Year can make all the difference – filling your pipeline, building your lead bank, and booking in work. Get as much of that done in January and February as possible, and that could be the difference between a good year and a great year.
