I attended a conference is a fantastic hotel earlier this year. It was an informative conference and I learned a lot. We talked about the “state of our industry” which is “ok” then we had some interesting discussions of trends. I’d have to say it was like many conferences everyone has attended. Then we had a break and as you can expect… we headed to the restrooms.
Well, I can only report on the ladies room. It was clean. Then I noticed a subtle marketing display in the corner on the countertop. I knew it was a fancy hotel when they were not afraid it would be stolen. It was advertising their facilities for the upcoming holiday season, you know… their banquet rooms & food and beverage services. Awesome idea! I mean it’s fantastic, where else do you have a little time to process advertising, especially created in such a nice presentation. (The photo is below) – they had a nice bowl with things in it and a frame holding the advertisement. If you have a restroom at your business, consider this approach – it’s a captive audience!
Anyway… There was a problem. The message was book by 11/30 and I was in the hotel for a conference on March 3rd. It goes to show… it’s easy to forget. Again, the countertop was super clean so everyday that display needed to be moved, just no one noticed the date! This also happens online… especially when you have several pages on your website. I mean how many times to you actually visit your webpage once it’s posted? I don’t!
Two tips: 1) Make a calendar of expiring deadlines. It will help you go back and refresh with ease. 2) Include the year the special ends when ever you make an webpage or marketing piece. This can become critical in the event you forget a webpage and you’re offering a discount… Including the date insures there is no confusion as to when the special ended (your marketing will look stale, but at least you won’t be bound to honor the discount that has since expired) .
