Valentine’s Day presents a great opportunity for marketers to reach out and engage with customers, followers, and fans. Those five words- “Will you be my Valentine?”- are often the catalyst to stir up many more words associated with Valentine’s Day. We selected ten of our favorite Valentine’s Day words to see how often marketers used them in conjunction with their Valentine’s-themed blogs, tweets, and Facebook posts from February 2011.
Our list of words included:
Here are three takeaways from our analysis of the use of these words that marketers should consider when sending their Valentine’s Day communications this year:
1. Make your Valentine stand out from the crowd.
The most common of the 10 words used in Valentine’s Day communications was “love.” In fact, it was used more than twice as often as the next closest words — “date, ” “card, ” “heart, ” and “romantic. ” While “love” seemed to be the preferred word to use in Valentine’s Day communications, marketers who want to stand out from the crowd should consider using words like “cupid” and “flower” in their communications. These words were used the least out of the 10 words and could present an opportunity to make your Valentine’s Day communications unique. Don’t be afraid to stand out from the crowd and grab the attention of your customers.
2. It’s never too late to send your Valentine.
Timing was a recurring theme across Valentine’s Day communications for 2011. It was no surprise that the highest-volume day for sending communications was February 14, with the second-highest day being February 7, one week out from Valentine’s Day. However, it’s also interesting to note that there was a spike in sending Valentine-themed messages the weekend following Valentine’s Day. February 14 fell on a Monday in 2011, and perhaps many people were waiting for the weekend to celebrate with their sweethearts. This presented an opportunity for marketers to prolong the holiday and extend it past February 14. If Valentine’s Day snuck up on your business this year, it’s not too late to reach out to your customers and send a message this weekend to catch those who are celebrating Valentine’s Day later in the week.
3. Send your Valentine through multiple channels
The two most commonly used channels for Valentine’s Day communications in 2011 were blogs and Facebook. Social media is a powerful way to reach new and existing followers that businesses should look to integrate into their holiday marketing plans. In addition to Facebook, don’t forget about Twitter, YouTube, and other social media channels when sending your Valentine’s Day communications. If you’re a restaurant owner, tweet about Valentine’s Day dinner specials. If your business is in the hospitality/travel industry, post videos of great vacation destinations for a romantic post–Valentine’s Day trip. The possibilities to market with social media are numerous no matter what industry your business spans.
How are you engaging with your customers and fans this Valentine’s day?