Mother's Day Promotions

Mother’s Day is fast approaching and you likely already have your Mother’s Day promotion plans in motion, but if not, here are a couple last minute ideas that also incorporate the use of social media marketing.

Something to keep in mind: women do most of the household shopping and make up the majority of users when it comes to social media sites like facebook and twitter.

Host a shopping party – Display all of your most popular Mother’s Day gift ideas prominently with signage so that they're easy to browse. Before the store opens, take a video of your store display and the products. Post the video to your facebook page with a post that your store is the local "Mother’s Day Gift Headquarters."

Host a mother/child shopping event – Have a special shopping day for mothers to bring younger children so they can shop together. Serve tea and cupcakes to draw in customers… you could have crafty gifts that children can personalise right in the store to give to mum. To tie in social media, take videos of children talking about why they love their mum and post it on your Facebook page, tagging mum so all of her online friends can see the video.

Offer a gift with purchase – A gift with purchase promotion is common, but put a new spin on it by offering it to your facebook fans only. Use the promotion as a way to get new fans by promoting the gift with purchase in other marketing you do, such as your e-newsletter and listing the free gift with purchase as a benefit to “liking” your facebook page.

Last year consumers spent an average of $150 each on Mother’s Day gifts for their mums, wives, daughters, aunts and other special women in their lives. That was up more than 10% from the previous year, and there is reason to believe that this could be another great year for retailers when it comes to the sale of gifts and gift cards for Mother’s Day.
If you sell items that would make great Mother’s Day gifts, or you can transform your goods and services into gift baskets or even non-traditional, creative Mother’s Day gifts, it’s time for you to go into full on Mother’s Day marketing mode!

To that end, here are some Mother’s Day marketing ideas to help you woo Mother’s Day shoppers in 2016:

• Make sure you know what women want. More specifically, find out what the women among your customers, your target markets, or the wives and mothers of your customers actually want.
• Survey your customers as to what they want to receive for Mother’s Day, what their favourite Mother’s Day gift was in the past, or what they plan to purchase for their own mum for Mother’s Day this year. Use your social media platforms to survey your readers using the same questions.
• Use a poll not only to solicit customer and reader feedback as to what women want for Mother’s Day this year, but to make specific Mother’s Day gift suggestions by listing great Mother’s Day gift ideas as the choices for your poll question.
• Make it easy. Make it very, very easy. Make it easier for people to buy Mother's Day gifts than you ever have before, and easier to buy their Mother's Day gifts from you than from anyone else!  
• Use your email newsletter to make specific Mother’s Day gift suggestions to your subscribers with ‘one-click’ ordering, order ahead for store pickup or include wrapping, gift card and delivery service.
• Make specific suggestions that would be most appropriate for the different women in their lives (mums, daughters, aunts, etc.)
• Put a sign or set up a display at your point of sale stating that Sunday, May 11, 2014  is Mother's Day and reminding them of the great Mother's Day gift options you offer.
• Include gift wrapping and gift cards along with Mother's Day gifts or gift baskets.
• Provide (and promote) last minute creative Mother’s Day gift options.
• Prepackage gift baskets for Mother’s Day with themed items; such as a bundled package for outdoor lovers, exercise lovers, food lovers, movie lovers, makeup or pampering products, etc.

Create a cross marketing opportunity and create Mother’s Day gift offers which include something from your business along with something from a partnering business and promote this special Mother’s Day gift package to customers and contact lists of both businesses (or all participating businesses).