I was listening to NPR this morning, and someone from an Ad Agency in Virginia was saying that because of the election, there’s been little opportunity for local businesses to get their own ads for the holidays and more on TV, and the inventory of open time looks tight and expensive, at least through the first of the year.
If I were associated with this agency, I might start to suggest that if they hadn’t already, this might be a great tome to experiment with a social media strategy. Offer coupons via Foursquare (free). Start a Facebook page if you don’t already have one, and even try Facebook ads, targeted at a local market. If you can’t do the typical TV ad, why not put that same ad on YouTube and build a channel there? Why not start a blog, or take some time to spruce up your website, looking at calls to action and conversions? Why not make sure you have a good analytics package on the site, and even a pop up asking for email addresses, to boost your business database over the busy holiday season?
Sometimes, being shut out of one medium offers up possibilities in others. Why not experiment? It’s better than sitting on the sidelines, wishing things were different, that’s for sure.