You refuse to buy anything pumpkin spice-flavored. You pretend not to hear the marching band, wear shorts and flip flops as the temperature plummets and keep humming “Cruel Summer,” even as the leaves fall around your feet.
You can deny it all you want, but 2025 is just around the corner. And instead of waiting for it to arrive, why not go and get it for a change?
We’re talking about your marketing strategy, of course. Nothing tells the calendar you’re the one in charge like chugging some candy corn, strapping on that leaf blower backpack and creating some really beautiful content schedules.
It’s time to get ready for 2025, and by thinking ahead and planning early, it’s going to feel a whole lot less like 2025 is happening to you. You are what is happening.
Take a look at some of the many reasons why it’s important you get started on your marketing strategy now:
You’ll Spot Trends: If you are the type who really has no idea if you are supposed to think mom jeans are cool (they are, indeed, having a moment), then you might want to put some focus on determining whether your marketing strategy is in line with the biggest marketing trends.
For instance, video has been a marketing powerhouse for a while now, but if your strategy is still relying heavily on text-only content, you may want to regroup and pull in more video content. Even if you do have some good video content, you may want to revisit video length and be sure your videos are providing the amount of content your audiences want.
You’ll Be More Consistent: When you dedicate time to your marketing strategy, you’ll be able to ensure that you’re staying consistent. If you’re already pretty consistent, use the time to fine-tune your strategy. Your look, tone and feel of your brand should be perfected, so that when a member of your target audience spots one of your posts, they’ll know it’s yours in a glance.
Think about what your brand would be like if it were a person. How would they talk and what phrases would they use? What colors would they wear? Would they be telling you a joke or helping you feel calm? Taking time to consider these questions can help you create a consistent brand image.
Spend Money in the Right Places: Starting your marketing strategy in autumn gives you time to take a careful look at the past year of activity. Maybe in 2023 and 2024 you were prioritizing TikTok posts because you had documented the platform as a place your target audience spent a lot of time. But then in the third quarter of 2024 you saw a decline in engagement on TikTok, so you begin to consider where you might shift some of your investment.
Dedicating time to your marketing strategy gives you the insights that help you dedicate resources to the right channels and platforms.
Invest in Storytelling: People love stories. If your storytelling has mostly involved your company history or the rolling out of a new product, it may be time to dive into this area of your marketing a little more. By getting a jump on your marketing strategy, you allow your team some time to craft really great stories.
Get beyond company history. Do some customer testimonials, share about a service opportunity where your company volunteered or show a day-in-the-life video of one of your employees. The possibilities are extensive, and these tend to engage audiences. So get creative!
Leverage New Technology: Come on, you know you’ve been wanting to try some AI marketing tools. Think about tapping into AI for brainstorming some new content topic ideas or try an automatic scheduler for your social posts. There are a lot of great ways to involve new technology into your marketing strategy.
Spy on the Competition: Spying might be a little too intense, but let’s agree to casually peruse what your competition is up to. Act like you’re not even that interested, you just happen to be searching them on social.
Taking a look at what your competition is doing helps you spot trends, see what kinds of posts are getting the best engagement and which are falling flat. You would never want to mimic a competitor, but you definitely want a general idea of what they are doing with their strategy.
Tighten Up Target Audiences: Understanding your target audiences is central to a successful marketing strategy. Take time to make sure you’re talking to who you think you are talking to. Over time, those most likely to purchase from you can shift, so if it’s been a couple of years since you identified your target audiences and developed your buyer personas, it’s probably time to revisit them.
If the end of the year has a tendency to make you feel like life is passing you by, it’s time to take charge. It’s time to tell 2025 that you are coming and you’re bringing a solid marketing strategy with you. Contact SJC Marketing and let’s get a cup of coffee. We’re going to get you ready for next year, but it’s best if we’re all caffeinated. 2025, here we come.