The early bird catches the BIG holiday season worm
While spring is just beginning, the school year will be over before you know it. People are already starting to plan summer vacations; not me, however.
Me, my mind is already past summer and thinking of Christmas and the holiday season. If you have a product or service which is a good fit for a holiday gift guide, yours should be too.
Gift guides start showing up in print media as well as on TV, come November each year.
These special sections and blocks of programming take a lot of lead time, so print media outlets in particular begin planning them in the summer. The earlier you can get in on these gift guides, the better. Spring is really the best time to begin making your case for your gift ideas if you want to be featured.
These are the typical deadlines for these featured spots in various media:
* Magazines – July
* Wires and Syndicates – September
* Newspapers – October
* TV – November
If you want to start maximizing your holiday sales long before the first snowflake falls, you’ll want to do the following:
- Try to position your gift suggestion as appropriate for multiple categories. For instance, I created pitches for a client who owns a skincare line as gifts for women, gifts for expectant mothers, gifts for your girlfriends as well as stocking stuffers.
- Keep your pitch short and snappy. Two, possibly three paragraphs at the very most. Hit all the high points of the product, provide photos and your contact details and if you can, include product samples for review.
- Do some research and learn who is leading the gift guide at the media outlet in question. Find out what information they’re looking for. Some of these people may need only a pitch, while others will be looking for a product sample and standard press kit.
Of course, there is more than gift guides to occupy you when it comes to the holidays. You can use the concept of the holiday as a platform for selling your product or service – such as offering some tips on countering holiday stress via relaxation if you have spa services to sell, or holiday decorating tips if you’re an interior decorating business.
If you want holiday publicity for your product or service, the time to plan is NOW!
