So you are back to work after the first of the year. The Christmas holiday season has come to an end and the new year has begun. The ball dropped in Times Square days ago and now it’s time to start putting into action the plans you have for business in 2019.

Now is the time to grab hold of a unique marketing opportunity. If you are like many people, just getting business restarted after a lengthy holiday season can be a daunting task. This is where you can make a big impact with your marketing. Everyone has places of discomfort and pain. What is a common source of business anxiety in the new year? What about being overwhelmed by all the projects that have been put off until after the first of the year? How does your product or service ease the pain? Now is a prime time to get the attention of those who are overwhelmed and to offer your product/service as a solution.

How do you take advantage of this post-season angst? Let me lend you some advice. Get your marketing working first, especially that which is designed to make your target market aware of your brand. As people get back from the holidays and turn their attention to business, you want to be one of the first brands that they see. Beyond getting your brand in front of them, make sure you are promoting it as a solution to their problems.

What are some good methods to hit the road running with your marketing awareness campaign to end business pain? That all depends upon your target market. One of the least expensive ways to get a message in front of your target market is by email blasts coupled with a well-crafted, to-the-point landing page. From an immediate marketing impact, e-blasts are hard to beat. You will know in real time who has opened the e-blast. It will allow you to follow up quickly with a sales call. Social media also can deliver your message quickly. However, if your target market is less likely to look at e-mail or social media, you need to find a different marketing method. Years ago, I was working with a client who was marketing to the heads of maintenance for buildings and grounds. They rarely looked at email. They did respond to text messaging, but we had to have their opt-in to send a text to their phones. We found they responded best to the traditional method of direct mail. Oversized post cards with a message designed to emphasize a solution to their pain points worked very well. Why? Although most of them did not look at their email daily, and had no time for social media in their work day, they did look at their mail. The pieces of their job that regularly delivered in the mail, such as parts for broken machinery, invoices, etc. had them looking at it daily. Find out what communication method your target market frequents the most and use it to deliver your marketing message.

If awareness marketing is the first thing you need to do in the new year, following up on your marketing leads should follow closely behind. This is where marketing and sales have to be working together. It is the job of marketing to draw the attention of would-be customers and create interest. So often any momentum you gain by offering a solution to a business problem is lost by a slow response to prospective customers. One of the smartest things you can do in business is to coordinate your marketing with your sales activities. In most cases, a marketing lead needs a follow up call within 48 hours of the initial interest. If not, you are wasting your marketing efforts. If you want to jump start your new year, make sure your marketing is handing off leads to sales and sales is following up quickly. A CSM (Customer Service Management) software program is good for this. However, CSMs are only as good as the information input. Communication is key.

How long does this new year’s opportunity for marketing last? You have about 2-3 weeks before everyone gets back in the groove of regular business again, so use your time and your marketing efforts wisely. A marketing boost during these few weeks can have an impact on the rest of your year.