December Is The Best Time To Promote – Bar None!!! (written December, 1994)

I have heard many rumors about December being a bad time of the month to promote. I believe this is hog wash. If you believe in this so called “rule of thumb”, you’ll never succeed in the money making opportunity business. Before you wonder, I’ll explain…..

First off, you should never stop promoting your business at any time of year. Does McDonalds stop promoting? Do any big companies stop promoting ever? Promotion is what creates orders for your company, so the minute you stop promoting will be when orders stop coming in. So right off the bat, to stop promoting in December or at any time of year for that matter is not intelligent at all.  Your business is not like a light switch that you turn on and off. It is more like the electrical current that we never see, but is always working. So the minute you cut the power, your business is dead.

Second, whether or not to promote heavy or light should be based on the industry you are in. In the industry we are in, it is better to promote heavy during the holiday season than with many other industries. Why? Because we are selling hope for a better future.  We are selling a chance at a better life.  We are selling money making opportunities to enhance their lives and their family’s lives. What better time of year to do that than during the holidays when everyone “re-evaluates” themselves and plan new goals for the upcoming year –“New Year’s Resolutions”.  Did you ever hear of that?  Granted, if you were selling landscaping services and equipment during December, sales would be very slow. That still doesn’t not mean you shouldn’t promote!  You might send a Christmas card to all your customers wishing them a Happy New Year and advising them that you look forward to serving them again in the upcoming Spring Season.  However we are not selling landscaping services or equipment, so sales should not be slow!! We are not a seasonal business. Last December, for example, was my greatest sales month ever. It could be your greatest month too – when you promote.

Third, since so many people fall for this “silliness” of not promoting during December, my offers are competing with less offers, so therefore, I contribute that too much of my success of having a great month last December. Let’s face it – if a prospect normally gets 8 offers a day in the mail and then in December, that is reduced to 2 or 3 because a lot of naïve people stop promoting, do you think our offer has a better chance to getting read and seriously considered by our prospect?  Because of this “silliness”, you and I can take advantage of that and utilize December as a great promoting month.

Lastly, even if we don’t have a banner month in December, all of our promotion will benefit us in January by more than quadruple. When people are making their resolutions in December, wouldn’t you rather have your offer in front of their face instead of sending it to them in January after they already have seen and read someone else’s offer a dozen times? In fact, the last few January’s have been fantastic for me because of all the promotion I did in December.  Even more so by consistently promoting throughout the year, my advertising is like that electric current in your home or office – it is always on and always working but you always forget about it except when the power goes down.  When you stop promoting, you are shutting your power down.  You are seeping the life blood from your business’s body.  Don’t allow that to happen.  Always promote!! And promote heavier during the Holidays – unless you are a Landscaper of course.

Hey, don’t fall for the “silliness” of the naive and ignorant people.  Promote your business all year round and look for the holidays to be banner months for you. By the way, have a great holiday season! May all your dreams and aspirations come true.  Happy New Year!

The author of this article is Larry Costello, President of All-American Print & Mail, 2200 Wilson Blvd #102-57, Arlington, VA 22201.