Get Ahead of the Competition this October with These Marketing Tips

October is around the corner and that means you should be thinking (or not thinking) about your Halloween and Columbus Day marketing campaign. 532 years after Columbus’ came to “India,” 1,415 years of All Hallows’ Eve, 113 years of Halloween Costumes, and 108 years of trick-or-treating show just how much the holidays evolved over the years. Trick-or-treating and dressing up have become more popular with age as Columbus’ Day is being less recognized and renamed Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Utilize these marketing tips and have LiftEngine help you on your next marketing campaign.

Halloween

What was once All Hallows Eve, a night of pranks before All Saints Day, is now a huge American spending holiday. We cannot forget a large consumer of sugar as well! 

Halloween Fun Facts  

• Pumpkins are a fruit and not a vegetable 
• The U.K. shortly banned the song “Monster Mash” for being too morbid 
• Michael Myers mask was a modified William Shatner mask 
• Harry Houdini (1874-1926) died on Halloween Night 
• October 31st is also National Doorbell Day 

Halloween Statistics 

• 61% of Americans say they will be celebrating Halloween in 2024* 
• 97% of households said they will make a purchase for Halloween before Christmas at 96%.* 
• 2023 total expected spending was $12.2 Billion* 
• 2023 average expected spending per person was $108.24* 
• 68% of people were expected to hand out candy in 2023* 
• 69% of people were expected to spend on costumes in 2023* 
• 77% of people were expected to spend on decorations in 2023* 

Halloween Marketing Strategies 

With these Halloween statistics in mind, marketers can create campaigns that appeal to consumers’ needs and desires. Companies that don’t have products or services that pertain to Halloween can make this an opportunity for brand awareness campaigns by including customers in custom and fun related messaging.  

2023 Halloween resumed to pre-pandemic levels with record numbers of spending! Households are going all out for Halloween. NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said “More Americans than ever will be reaching into their wallets and spending a record amount of money to celebrate Halloween this year. Consumers will be shopping early for festive décor and other related items and retailers are prepared with the inventory to help customers and their families take part in this popular and fun tradition.” Even more reason why businesses should start preparing their Halloween marketing campaigns NOW!  

Sales

Spook-ify your sales! Make your Halloween branding consistent for both online and offline. Make your Halloween seasonal items easily available. Make catchy and “punny” sale slogans to catch attention even if the sales items aren’t related to Halloween. 

Advertising 

Make sure your business is visible during Halloween time by placing ads in local newspapers, direct mail, and online ads. This will help ensure that people are aware of your company and what you have to offer. Sales and discounts catch attention, but advertising for brand awareness is just as important. Many companies that you wouldn’t normally relate to Halloween make great advertisements that grab attention. 

Like Heinz’s rebranding of their Ketchup as limited-edition Tomato Blood. Scary short commercials have been seen and shared throughout recent years on social media. Burger King created a clown campaign video mocking their competitor’s mascot. Lego, StarWars, and Disney+ collaborated to create a Halloween campaign and content called Halloweenstream. 

Take the opportunity to spotlight your holiday-specific items. 

Events 

Events are always a great way to draw in a crowd and get brand recognition. There are so many different event opportunities. Some great events are 

• Invite Trick-or-Treaters 
  • Host a Trunk-or-Treat 
  • Give out candy 
  • Branded promotional gifts 
• Host a costume contest 
• Do giveaways 
• Pumpkin carving contest 

Social Media 

Use social media to reach out and wish everyone a happy Halloween. You can also use it to promote any special offers or events you may be having. Spotlight your above strategies through your social media pages.  

Create conversation to attract more organic traffic. 

• What is your favorite candy? Share them with us in the comments below! 
• What costume will you wear this year? 
• What is your favorite scary movie? 

Email Marketing 

Send out an email blast to your customers and subscribers letting them know about any special deals, events, or promotions you are offering with your consistent holiday branding. 

Whatever the campaign may be, it is important to target the right audience and deliver the right message. With a little planning and creativity, your marketing campaign is sure to be a success! 

Christopher Columbus Day / Indigenous Peoples’ Day 

“In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue” is something ingrained in our education as we learned how Christopher Columbus arrived in America, or what he thought was India, mistakenly calling the indigenous people Native Indians, which are now known as Native Americans. This day has been celebrated on October 10th (originally October 12th) every year as a federal holiday since 1934.

Until recently, Columbus Day was observed without acknowledging all the harm brought to the region by the colonizers. Indigenous Peoples’ Day came as an alternative holiday, being celebrated as early as October 10th, 1992, in Berkeley, California, 500 years after Columbus’ arrival. This alternative has picked up traction and started being recognized as state holidays while the federal government has kept Columbus Day as the federal holiday.

States aren’t the only ones dropping Christopher Columbus Day, we see more and more companies coming forward on their stance and dropping their related sales. The holiday has become too big of a liability to run any marketing campaigns. Some well-known companies no longer supporting the holiday are Lowes, Home Depot, and Ashley Furniture. Accordingly, as we move towards recognizing October 14th as Indigenous Peoples’ Day as a nation, brands are now creating sales around the newly rename holiday. 

Knowing your customer base is extremely important in deciding if a holiday campaign will be an asset or a liability. Many companies are dropping the holiday completely and changing their campaigns to have and Autumn theme around the same timeframe as Columbus Day sales, without naming it as such.  

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