Small Business Success: Why Marketing In The Off Season Matters More

We’re going to be taking a deep dive into some things that we feel matter most of all to small businesses, especially those in our local area here in Southwest Montana. We’ll be posting new parts weekly, so be sure to stay tuned!

September is here, and tourist season is still in full swing across Montana and the Rocky Mountain West. The crowds of visiting families have been replaced by an older demographic, and couples strolling down the street have replaced the young families of early summer. Tourist season typically slows down in October, and with how this year is going that will be here fast. 

After a busy and successful season, small business owners might be tempted to ease off the gas and coast for a few months. A well-deserved rest is certainly in order, but too often we see small businesses hit a hard slump in the off season and barely scrape by until next year’s influx of tourist dollars. 

Businesses in tourist areas often exist in a boom and bust cycle that follows the yearly tourism patterns. Some places are lucky enough to have a second boom during winter, but this depends on a lot more factors than summer tourism. Regardless, there is always a down period after the peak months.

During the boom months of peak tourist season, business is easy to come by. You don’t have to work too hard to fill seats, book rooms, and sell products. There is a lot of work to be done to ensure you can capitalize on the opportunity, but getting customers in the door is always easier than the off season. Putting time, effort, and thought into a marketing strategy for the off season will ensure that your small business reaches your local audience, continues to keep money flowing in, and can achieve a more balanced cash flow through the entire year. 

A few things to consider when looking at marketing in the off season are: 

Shore Up Your Digital Presence 

Take a step back and deeply audit your digital presence. Does your website need a refresh? How is the workflow for online orders? Does your social media look and feel on brand? Is now the time to launch a new platform or finally get those videos done that you’ve been talking about for so long? The off season gives you a bit of time to experiment with new ideas, new formulas, and new messages.

Easing into the off season after a busy summer is a great time to work on these projects and polish up your digital presence before another busy cycle. The audit will help you see what worked and what didn’t, and what you need to work on. One of the most common things you’ll likely notice is that there just isn’t time to do it all yourself! If that sounds familiar, let’s talk. 

Stay Consistent With Social Media

Having a consistent voice and message on social media is one of the key factors to success, regardless of the platform. While it’s tempting to drop a posting cadence down to just a couple times a month to let yourself take a breather, don’t let up! Maintaining a consistent schedule on social media will continue to grow your audience and spread your brand message. 

Pivot Your Messaging To Locals 

Locals are the backbone of any business, especially service and food related businesses. They can often be overlooked during the booming tourist season, but you should never forget they are there. Your regulars are important, and they are the ones keeping the lights on all year long. 

During the off season, you can pivot your messaging more toward the local audience. This requires a solid understanding of what really matters to them. Knowing and understanding the local audience is absolutely crucial for any business, and will drastically increase your success with any marketing effort.  

Provide Value, Always 

Giving your audience something of value should always, always, always be at the heart of whatever it is you’re doing. It doesn’t matter what time of year it is, who you are trying to speak to, and what message you are trying to get across - always make it worth your audience’s time to engage with you. Publishing content just for the sake of getting something out on social might be good for short term engagement, but it hurts your brand in the long term. 

Having a thorough and well-planned digital strategy means that instead of trying to come up with posts on the fly, you have a consistent voice throughout. Value becomes the standard, not the occasional benefit. 

Be Looking Ahead To Next Year and Beyond 

The off season is a great time to set up success for next year and beyond. By mid October, many people and places are already starting to book for the next summer. Capitalize on the hype of the end of a season and catapult yourself forward through the new year. The train never stops running, and you can either ride it or be left behind. Running digital ads in the slower months can be a stellar idea, especially for businesses that rely on bookings like lodges, guides, and tours. 

It’s been a busy year, and you can certainly take the time to pat yourself on the back and catch your breath. You deserve it. But don’t let the entire off season slip by before realizing you should have started marketing your business six months ago. 

Want to get started on getting your business off to the races? Let’s chat.