Valentine’s Day is a short yet intensive season for Australian newsagents and retailers more generally. Making the most of the season means planning a multi-faceted attack well in advance. Here are some left-field marketing tips you could consider to supplement the traditional approach around greeting cards, plush and chocolates. It is not too late to engage and pushthe boundaries this Valentine’s Day:
- Heart wall. Get customers to submit heart themed art. Stick it all up on a wall. Have a small prize for the winner.
- Romance graffiti wall. Put up a white board or butchers paper have invite customers to write anonymous notes of romance on the wall.
- Romantic poetry competition. Invite your customers to submit a romantic poem. Invite the local school English department to adjudicate.
- Papier mache heart competition. Newsagents are the best place to source what you need to be creative at home. This idea is about creating a worthwhile activity and connecting with the season. Put them on display and award a prize.
- Romance vouchers. Create a sheet of vouchers which could be given with a Valentine’s Day card. The vouchers could be for a home cooked meal, a back rub or a day at the beach together. This idea connects with a do-it-yourself approach for the cost conscious.
- Have good gifts. Don’t rely just on cards. Create a good gift offer beyond the usual chocolates, flowers, plush and balloons. Consider cuff links for men and a gift voucher to a local spa for women.
- Do some good. Connect with a local charity and offer donation to them from each Valentine’s Day sale – promote the connection. Charity cards do well at Christmas so why not Valentine’s Day?
There are plenty of other ideas. Keep thinking. The keys are to have fun, engage with your customers and be unique.
Click here to see the tips I published last year.
And the pigs? They are part of the Valentine’s Day range we have for our Sophie Randall businesses. They are different and something different is what gift customers like to find.