Halloween Marketing in the Time of Covid-19
October 1, 2020
Halloween is fast approaching – the second-largest commercial holiday in the U.S. after Christmas. Normally, your business might be gathering Halloween decorations or stocking up on candy for trick-or-treaters, but this year due to Covid-19 things will be more than a little different. This year businesses will need to get creative with their Halloween marketing.
Recent studies by the Halloween Industry Association show that the majority of consumers get their Halloween products and services via the influence of social media. Given the already vital importance of online marketing in the current climate, this means you should be taking advantage of the results of these studies. Even if your business isn’t directly Halloween related, you can still take advantage of social media to create Halloween opportunities – both creating fun for families and kids and showing your community spirit.
People are coming up with ever creative ideas for this Halloween season. One example includes Zoom-o-Ween which would have kids virtually sharing their costumes online with others. Tweak this idea a bit to incorporate your business’s Facebook page – hold a virtual Halloween costume contest with people submitting photos of themselves in order to win. By letting people vote for their favorite costumes by liking photos, you create a bigger sense of community. Plus, by offering a prize from your business (whatever that may be) you’ll be getting your brand out in front of more people.
Another example is the trunk’or’treat, an idea that has already been growing in popularity over the years. This is when a group of people park their cars in a parking lot, decorate their car trunks, and hand out candy there, thus making trick-or-treating a bit safer. If your business has a parking lot you can offer the use to a local group looking to do this, then create event pages on Facebook and tweet out the date & time to your Twitter followers. Afterward, you can post photos of the even to your Instagram to share the fun with everyone.
You can also simply use social media to participate in getting people into the Halloween spirit. Update your page’s headers and profile pics to Halloween related photos or use the month of October to post Halloween related images and content (back in 2013, Tide created a spoof of the movie “Carrie” on Vine using the tagline “stains better be scared”). You can also use Instagram or Snapchat to post short videos of your store’s Halloween decorations or your staff’s costumes. The sky’s the limit when it comes to social media. All you need is a little imagination!
Finally, consider creating a Halloween guide on your social media channels. For example, a hotel could put together something like “The Spooky New Jersey Guide” and include spooky landmarks, any events that might still be happening, a list of movies that are set in the local area, and more. Restaurants could create “The Ultimate Halloween Foodie Guide” with links to recipes, short videos showing how to make Halloween treats, and more. No matter your business (seriously – hardware store? You have the material for “The Zombie Apocalypse Survival Guide”), this is one place you can seriously shine.
Covid-19 has changed the world – it’s changed how we do things, how we interact, and how we operate our businesses. Online marketing is more important than ever in this new reality and it will continue to become ever more important as we all recover from the past year and get back to the new normal. All you really need to succeed is a little creativity and consistent messaging. Spread a little spookiness (and a little happiness) this Halloween season with these ideas and comment on our Facebook page with your own. And if you need a little help this holiday season, reach out and give us a call at (973) 265-2833 to set up your free consultation. Happy Halloween season!
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Author
- Kelly Jones
Social Media Manager
