In mid-summer, when the sun is shining and the Pimms is flowing, the last thing you want to think about is Christmas!
But, if you want to use video in your marketing campaigns, we’re sorry to say that although you might have BBQs on the mind, you need to be thinking Turkey!
If you want a series of festive video messages to start rolling out in November, when your customers start their Christmas shopping, you need to leave yourself plenty of time to plan. You don’t want to miss the boat.
Whether you choose to create an animated video or a live action video there is a process to follow, which ensures the end result is exactly what you were hoping for. This is a tried and test process and one that shouldn’t be rushed.
Wine Merchants – we can manage mince pies in summer!
Sticking with the Christmas theme for the moment, it’s quite easy for us to stage a festive scene for a wine merchant, showing off their popular party wines, with a few mince pies and a sprig of holly, whilst it’s 28 degrees outside. Then, adding some stock footage of a couple of champagne glasses clinking, is really quite simple.
Hotels – Shoot videos 18 months in advance
However, for hotels that undergo a huge transformation at Christmas with 6’, bauble bedecked trees and floor to ceiling tinsel, it’s not quite so simple.
We suggest plans start 18-months in advance. Why’s this? Well, it’s not practical to create a pretend Christmas time in a hotel that is fully functioning 24/7. The footage for the video needs to be captured when Christmas hotel life is in full swing. This means filming in November or December in one year so that the marketing campaigns are ready to roll the following October, when Christmas Party Bookings are promoted.
The same goes for video that needs to be shot outdoors capturing wintery scenes with leafless trees and a glistening frosty ground. Planning needs to be at least a year in advance.
Christmas isn’t the only seasonal impact. Here are a few more we came up with:
Boiler installers – Create your video in summer ready for the cold snap
Boilers typically break down as soon as a cold snap strikes. The boiler installer that has their marketing campaign ready to go exactly when it’s needed, will win the day. To be ready for the cold snap, it’s wise to start planning the marketing campaign and shooting the video in the summer.
Travel Companies and Travel Consultants – beating the January blues and helping honeymooners
Christmas is a popular time to get engaged. When New Year arrives, honeymoon planning begins. January also sees a surge of people booking holidays as a result of the January blues. This is a perfect time for Travel Companies and Travel Consultants, to grab these opportunities, by capturing the attention and the imagination of these holiday makers. Video as part of a New Year campaign will certainly do this. Again, stock footage means we can create some very enticing and exciting videos, without having to travel around the world to capture the footage.
Schools and Colleges – Time to enrol in an exciting new year
Parents have a quite a choice when it comes to where they’d can send their children to gain an excellent education. Colleges also vie for the students’ choice. With an intake of new students just once each year, marketing campaigns have to be planned and ready to go just at the right time. Video is a great way for schools and colleges to showcase the wide range of subjects they offer, as well as the ethos and culture of the school. These images can be most compelling.
Do you have a seasonal business?
If you need to ‘make hay whilst the sun shines’ and grab all the opportunities that present themselves at certain times of the year, use the quieter periods to plan and prepare. Video can be one of the most compelling means to present your message.
