While summer has most of us fantasizing about lying by the pool and sipping fruity drinks with umbrellas, online merchants are left figuring out strategic ways to attract customers and increase sales during this notoriously slow time of the year. We have eased the process by compiling a list of seven hot marketing tactics that will help get customers out of the heat and onto your website. Check them out below:

1. Sizzling Social

Just because consumers will be spending the majority of their time at picnics and parks this summer, doesn’t mean they won’t be checking in with social networks on their mobile devices. This is why an active social presence can greatly benefit merchants during the summer months. Merchants should use these channels to promote products, sales and events. However, in order to capture attention, it is important to keep all status updates relevant (for example, don’t promote a bathing suit on a rainy day), as well as to include a variety of content, such as images and videos. Marketers can even save time by cross-promoting social content. For example, if a clothing retailer uploads a filtered photo of a best-selling outfit on Instagram or creates a video about summer’s hottest fashion trends on YouTube, that content can also be shared to networks like Facebook, Twitter and Google+ to reach a larger audience.

2. Effective Email

Just as consumers check their social networks while on their way to their favorite summer activity, they also check their email, which is why it is important for email campaigns to be mobile friendly. That said, in order to influence consumers to skip the BBQ for a shopping trip to your brick-and-mortar store, merchants should re-evaluate their email strategy. For instance, maybe it’s time to consider implementing better targeting features so that messages are more relevant. On the other hand, it’s probably a good idea to retest delivery times, because the change in season often brings changes in schedules. However, aside from launching more targeted messages and prominently featuring sales, merchants can also try to influence customers into making purchases by incorporating ratings and reviews into their messages.

3. Hot Pricing

Although it is always a best practice to maintain competitive pricing, this is especially vital during the summer months. This is because an extra-low price or big sale could give consumers the extra bit of incentive needed to convert. In fact, merchants should use the summer holidays and events, such as Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day and “back-to-school” time, to launch and publicize promotions and discounts. Moreover, featuring a “Summer Clearance” section on your site and spreading the word about it through social and email can help to boost sales and clean out some inventory.

4. Must-Attend Events

Summer is a time for special projects, so why not throw an event to gain some exposure for your business? While brick-and-mortar retailers have the ability to throw an event at their physical location, online retailers can get innovative by hosting an event at a local park or with a platform like Google Hangouts. For example, a brick-and-mortar beauty store could host a skincare workshop, while an online pet supply store could throw a “picnic in the park” event at a local dog park (with the park’s permission, of course). Furthermore, both types of retailers can throw an event, like a Q&A or new product showcase, on Google+ with Google Hangouts.

5. Real-Time Targeting

In order to influence the purchasing decisions of the consumers who have taken time out of their busy summer to visit your site, consider implementing real-time targeting to help close the sale. Fanplayr, for instance, offers a Smart & Targeted product that analyzes a merchant’s site to determine the profiles of visitors that would be the most receptive to specific offers. According to the company, these real-time offers can increase conversion rates by up to 30 percent and average order values by up to 50 percent. Conversely, SteelHouse has a Real Time Offers platform that also allows merchants to provide personalized offers to shoppers based on their real-time behavior.

6. Blog for Traffic

As previously stated, summer is a time for special projects, so if your business doesn’t already maintain a blog, it’s time to start (Cyber Bytes can assist you in creating an eye pleasing design for as little as $99). Blogging can help merchants improve their visibility, as well as provides extra content for social and email campaigns. In fact, a HubSpot study reveals that on average, companies that publish 15 or more blog articles per month generate five times more traffic than companies that don’t blog at all. Blog content should stay true to your brand and touch on topics relevant to your industry. Additionally, you can reach out to industry professionals for contributed content to post on your blog. Not only will this help you foster relationships with influential people in your industry, but it will also boost the visibility of your business, as the professional will most likely market the content to their friends and social networks.

7. Fresh Advertising

Last, but certainly not least, merchants should launch a solid advertising campaign this summer. In fact, brick-and-mortar merchants in particular should be using Google’s new Enhanced Campaigns to reach customers who are on-the-go. For example, merchants can launch mobile-specific ads that target consumers within a certain location, such as within 5 miles of the brick-and-mortar establishment, and during a specific time-of-day, like business hours. Moreover, since summer is a time for vacationing to new places, merchants should consider launching ads on Yelp to target traveling consumers. Not only can merchants launch daily deals on this location-based service, but they can also advertise at the top of the Yelp search results and on the pages of related businesses.

Every holiday, event and change of the season provides marketers with a timely promotional angle. Naturally all brands take a different approach in their holiday-related campaigns. Here’s an example, a retailer typically promotes products as gift ideas, while content publishers create relevant content or contests to increase engagement. Yet, the best and most complete strategies combine multiple techniques in order to cater to every fan and followers’ preferences.

We have five stellar Mother’s Day social examples to offer inspiration for this holiday and future ones, too.

#1

Goal: Get People Talking

Brand: Seventh Generation

Social Network: Facebook

Strategy: Seventh Generation took to Facebook to ask a feel-good question and remind us how important moms are in our lives. The company’s use of an image to assist in asking the question “What is the best advice your mom has ever given you?” certainly grabs fans’ attention better than a text-based post and most likely leads to better engagement rates. Additionally, these fan interactions help Seventh Generation foster better relationships with its customers, as well as helps to increase brand awareness.

#2

Goal: Generate Conversions

Brand: Sephora

Social Network: Pinterest

Strategy: Retailers and Pinterest go together like peanut butter and jelly, as this social network has proven to drive valuable traffic to e-commerce websites. Beauty company Sephora is taking advantage of this influential social network by creating an entire board devoted to Mother’s Day gift ideas. Not only do these featured items take visitors directly to product pages on Sephora’s website when clicked on, but many of the images also include the hashtag, #mothersday, in order to increase the product’s and Sephora’s visibility on the pin boarding social network.

#3

Goal: Boost Follower Numbers

Brand: ExtraTV

Social Network: Twitter

Strategy: Giveaways and contests are always a good tactic for increasing your social following, so why not combine these promotions with a timely event? Not only does this strategy from ExtraTV help the brand obtain more followers, but since the company asks for retweets, it also increases their visibility. Plus, this strategy will ultimately leave the two winning followers very happy.

ExtraTV
@extratv

We’re giving away 2 @BFFLco gift bags for #MothersDay! Follow @ExtraTV & RT this message for your chance to win! http://bit.ly/MDWin 

1:01 PM – 7 May 2013

#4

Goal: Increase Brand Awareness

Brand: Google

Social Network: Google+

Strategy: Another feel-good strategy comes from Google, who has chosen to use Sunday’s holiday as a way to shamelessly promote its very own social network. That said, this video is very easy to relate too (almost a tear-jerker), and truly shows how technology can be used to connect with the most important people in your life.

#5

Goal: Improve Visibility and Engagement 

Brand: Beats By Dre

Social Network: Twitter

Strategy: Advertisements are always a good way to increase your brand’s visibility, but Beats By Dre takes this strategy a step further by using an interactive and timely Promoted Tweet to reach new audience members. In fact, once someone clicks on the link to make a #Pillconfession (Pill is the name of one the company’s wireless speakers), they are directed to the company’s website where they can explore products and interact with the #Pillconfession campaign by posting a Mother’s Day confession either on Twitter or Facebook. Additionally, visitors can view the confessions of other consumers at the bottom of the webpage, which features an interactive collage of tweets and posts.

Beats By Dre
@beatsbydre

The good:

• Interactivity

Flash’s Actionscript opens up a vast field of possibilities. Programmers and designers have used Flash to create interactive features ranging from very lively feedback forms to attractive Flash-based games. This whole new level of interactivity will always leave visitors coming back for more.

• A standardized site

With Flash, you do not have to worry about cross-browser compatibility. No more woes over how a certain css code displays differently in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera. When you position your site elements in Flash, they will always appear as they are as long as the user has Flash Player installed.

• Better expression through animation

In Flash, one can make use of its animating features to convey a message in a much more efficient and effective way. Flash is a lightweight option for animation because it is vector based (and hence smaller file sizes) as opposed to real “movie files” that are raster based and hence much larger in size.

The bad:

• The Flash player

People have to download the Flash player in advance before they can view Flash movies, so by using Flash your visitor range will decrease considerably because not everyone will be willing to download the Flash player just to view your site. You’ll also have to put in additional work in redirecting the user to the Flash download page if he or she doesn’t have the player installed.

• Site optimization

If your content was presented in Flash, most search engines wouldn’t be able to index your content. Hence, you will not be able to rank well in search engines and there will be less traffic heading to your site.

• Loading time

Users have to wait longer than usual to load Flash content compared to regular text and images, and some visitors might just lose their patience and click the Back button. The longer your Flash takes to load, the more you risk losing visitors.

The best way to go is to use Flash only when you absolutely need the interactivity and motion that comes with it. Otherwise, use a mixture of Flash and HTML or use pure text if your site is purely to present simple textual and graphical information.

• Not mobile friendly

Flash sites are not mobile friendly, try to view a flash based website from your iPhone, iPad and most tablets… You will notice you will not see anything flash based 99% of the time (some androids are capable of viewing flash,however Apple products won’t at all currently.)

Bartering is the process of obtaining goods or services by direct exchange without the use of currency. In times of economic instability or currency devaluation, it can be a great way to ensure the flow of necessary items and services into your household or small business without using cash. Historically, face-to-face exchanges between familiar parties were most common, but the Internet has opened up a new medium for bartering opportunities for both person-to-person exchanges and business-to-business facilitated transactions.

Why would you barter for Web, Graphic or even Printing Services?

Who wouldn’t? There are many reasons to participate in a barter. Due to the recent recession, many people have found themselves unemployed or with a limited cash flow, and bartering is a great way to attain products and services when times are tough.

You can use bartering to cut costs with your small business or to reduce personal expenses. For example, a web designer can trade services with a dentist. Each person is still getting paid for their work, in a sense, and it can lead to referrals to cash-carrying customers without costing a penny. However, the essence of bartering is simply to trade something you have for something you want or need – and you can do this whether you are struggling financially or have a steady income.

From housecleaning and haircuts, to recliners and digital music players, bartering is limited only by your imagination. In 2010, 17-year-old Steven Ortiz made national headlines by bartering a cell phone to start a series of trades that ultimately put him in the driver’s seat of a Porsche. Even healthcare isn’t out of reach: In 2011, Matthew Wagner of Connecticut was able to exchange his photography services for Lasik eye surgery through a barter exchange.

Bartering Methods

1. Face-to-Face

Occasionally, you may find bartering opportunities arise while you’re with a group of friends or acquaintances. For example, a family friend has a large property with chickens and an abundance of eggs. If you’re baking bread for your family, always bake an extra loaf and trade it for any of their surplus.

Bartering with friends will often start informally. In this case, a friend was lamenting the possibility of the extra eggs spoiling, while at the same time relaying how much she loved the others fresh-baked bread. The suggestion to trade eggs for bread was met with an enthusiastic response, and now they trade regularly.

You can even set up a barter group that allows multiple people to trade their wares and services. This is particularly handy during Christmas time and any other gift-giving season.

2. Online via the Internet

Sometimes you may have something to trade, but no one to trade with. However, the Internet has facilitated a unique system of bartering with strangers. There is no need for introductions through friends, as in most cases you can place a personalized ad describing what you have to offer, and what you seek in exchange.

However, it is important to always exercise caution when utilizing the Internet for bartering purposes. Not every bartering or swapping website, nor every person using these sites, are reputable or open to noncommercial traders.

Craigslist
Craigslist is well-known as a place to find a job, sell old stuff, or purchase furniture and other used goods, but it also has a section dedicated to barter options. To utilize this feature, you simply go through the same process you would to post any other job or item for sale, and it’s completely free.

While it may be free, there is no one monitoring the barter ads, so you must be aware of potential Craigslist scams, and realize that you are always at risk when it comes to meetups and exchanges. For example, about a year ago, I arranged to trade massage gift certificates for housecleaning. Since the individual was coming to my home, I was more nervous than usual. However, she offered good previous references, and we  arranged for a time to meet when my husband would be home, in case an odd, unexpected, or even dangerous situation arose.

You should always attempt to have an initial meeting in a public place, such as a local coffee shop. It’s also helpful to have someone with you. Just make sure you let the other person know someone will be accompanying you for their peace of mind and caution.

U-Exchange.com
U-Exchange is a bartering website that allows people to find trade-able goods and services in a specific geographical area. Search your country, narrow it to your state, and start browsing away. The site requires a membership to post and begin exchanging, but it is a free service that is supplemented by banner advertisements.

Just like Craigslist, U-Exchange is a general posting site, and you assume all risk and responsibility for contacts and exchanges you make. When you see a trade that you are interested in making, click on the member’s name. You will be provided with their contact information, and from there it proceeds much as a face-to-face exchange.

A quick glance in the Oregon region includes someone looking for vacation lodging, someone trading a classic car for a four-wheel-drive SUV, and people trading body piercing, mechanic services, landscaping, and more.

3. Time Banks

What happens if person A wants a massage and can trade haircuts, person B wants a haircut and can trade landscaping services, person C wants lawn care and can trade auto detailing, and so on? How can all of these people’s wishes be met?

A barter exchange, or “time bank,” allows you to “bank” what you’ve earned from services you’ve provided and use those “funds” once you find the service you’re looking for. In this case, the currency is time, so if you spend an hour performing a service that earns you a “time dollar,” that can be redeemed for any service requiring a “time dollar.”

For instance, person A could give person B a haircut, and use the time dollar to trade for the auto detailing from person C. Though you run the risk of never finding something you want, the chances of that are quite low.

To try a time bank, search online for one in your local area using TimeBanks.org. How time banks are managed varies according to the region, so it is important (and often mandatory) to attend an initial meeting that explains the general rules of your local chapter. Once you do this, you’re ready to start trading away. Your services and contacts are identified through the local time bank website.

A time bank may require a membership fee, although it may be just a few “time dollars” a quarter. However, you gain the benefits of trading within a local organization that can allow you to verify the services of participants.

!! Caution !!

Availability

Simply put, the bartering market is not nearly as liquid as other markets. You may find yourself with something to trade, but no one to trade with. Unless you’re using a barter exchange service like a time bank that allows you to bank your investment, you may have to wait a long time to make your trade.

Unequal Bartering

Inevitably some people may feel like they were taken advantage of. One way to diminish inequities is to engage in dollar-for-dollar trades. For example, if you would like to trade your housecleaning service for someone’s couch, try to break down the goods and services to the dollar amount. If the two of you decide that the value of the couch is worth $200, why don’t you supply a gift certificate for $200 worth of housecleaning services? It’s a wise course and ensures all parties know what they are getting and what they are offering.

However, this isn’t always possible. For instance, you may have a $150 digital music player and want a small refrigerator worth $100. In this case, if both parties are certain of what they want and understand the difference in value, there should be no barterer’s remorse. Alternatively, you can ask for the mini-fridge plus $50 to make the trade – the worst anyone can say is “no.”

Taxes

When exchanging services, it’s important to remember that bartering is considered income. While you may be able to write off expenses you incur during the barter, you must claim the fair market value of the services you provided as income. For example, if you charge $60 an hour as a massage therapist, and you trade a one-hour massage for housecleaning services, you may have to claim the equivalent income. When you trade assets, you may even be responsible for tracking capital gains or losses. If you have any doubts or questions, consult the IRS website.

Rules

1. Remember, Safety First. Don’t be afraid to ask someone to come with you to an exchange, and meet in a public place if possible.
2. Always Be Inquisitive. I would never have known how wonderful farm-fresh eggs taste if I hadn’t asked for a trade. The worst thing anyone can ever say is “no.”
3. Consider All the Goods and Services at Your Disposal. I’ve seen many cases where people posted what they wanted, followed by a large list of different items or skills they were willing to exchange. If you go in thinking of only one thing you are willing to trade, you may miss a great opportunity.
4. Be Skeptical When Necessary. People may offer professional services – even legal or medical – that do not seem legit. If you wouldn’t pay that particular person for their services, don’t barter with them either.
5. Don’t Barter Something You Don’t Want to Give. If your friend is trying to get you to trade Grandma’s hand-crocheted baby blanket, you can simply walk away. You should never trade something you’ll later regret.
6. Don’t Barter for Something You Don’t Want. Unless you’re trying to salvage the pride of a friend who won’t take charity, there is no reason to accept goods or services that are unnecessary or unwanted.
7. Test Items to Be Sure They Work. But remember, there are no guarantees. An item that powers up may still have a dying battery.
8. Don’t Blame the Other Party for a Bad Trade. You can always decline a trade, so that responsibility is yours. You may not have made the best decision, but the same thing happens when making a retail purchase.

Interested in Bartering with us?

It’s easy. Just follow several simple steps:

The first method is to make sure the typography of your content is suitable. If you have large blocks of text, make sure to use CSS to space out the lines accordingly. The longer a single line of text is, the greater the line-height of each line should be. Also, make sure the font size of your text is big enough to read easily. Some sites have 10-pixel-tall text in Verdana font; while that may look neat and tidy, you have to really strain your eyes to read the actual text.

Make it easy for visitors to find content that they want on your site. If you have thousands of articles on your site and a certain visitor wants to find one single article from that pile, you have to provide a feasible means to enable visitors to do that without hassle. Be it an SQL-driven database search engine or just a glossary or index of articles that you have, providing such a feature will make sure your visitors can use your site with ease.

Ensure that your site loads fast if you do not want to lose visitors. Most internet users will leave a website if it doesn’t load completely within 15 seconds, so make sure the crème de la crème of your website is delivered to the visitors as soon as possible to retain their attention.

Last of all, test each and every link on your site before it goes online. There is nothing more effective in tarnishing your professional image than broken links, so be very careful about that.

You can actually build up a targeted list of prospects that are interested in your products by offering a relevant download on your website. For example, let’s take a look at a very good example — apple.com. When you download the free iTunes and Quicktime software from their site, they will ask you to fill in an optional name and email form so that they can send you offers on songs that you can purchase via — guess where — iTunes!

In reality, you do not need to offer such a “heavyweight” download such as a full-feature software like iTunes.  You can attract prospects equally well with some quality freebies such as a simple report, a free wallpaper, and so on. The important thing is that your download offers enough value for the prospect to be willing to give away his/her own email address to get it.

However, slapping together a simple download and putting a link on your website won’t be enough to attract qualified prospects. You will have to do some homework in order for your lead-generating mechanism to work well for you.

First of all, you must place your download form prominently on your website. Preferably, dedicate a page to it and link to that page from every other page of your website. That way, there is no way your visitors cannot find the download page, and when they do, you’ll get some of them converted into your prospects!

Also, you have to put a little effort into promoting your download. Explain and elaborate on the values of the download, and why your visitors should download it. You might think why would anyone want to pass on a freebie, but most of your visitors would be too lazy to take the effort to download it because most of their downloads just sit on the harddisk collecting virtual dust. It is hence important to show your visitors why they should download your freebie.

1) Do not use splash pages

Splash pages are the first pages you see when you arrive at a website. They normally have a very beautiful image with words like “welcome” or “click here to enter”. In fact, they are just that — pretty vases with no real purpose. Do not let your visitors have a reason to click on the “back” button! Give them the value of your site up front without the splash page.

2) Do not use excessive banner advertisements

Even the least net savvy people have trained themselves to ignore banner advertisements so you will be wasting valuable website real estate. Instead, provide more valuable content and weave relevant affiliate links into your content, and let your visitors feel that they want to buy instead of being pushed to buy.

3) Have a simple and clear navigation

You have to provide a simple and very straightforward navigation menu so that even a young child will know how to use it. Stay away from complicated Flash based menus or multiple tiered drop-down menus. If your visitors don’t know how to navigate, they will leave your site.

4) Have a clear indication of where the user is

When visitors are deeply engrossed in browsing your site, you will want to make sure they know which part of the site they are in at that moment. That way, they will be able to browse relevant information or navigate to any section of the site easily. Don’t confuse your visitors because confusion means “abandon ship”!

5) Avoid using audio on your site

If your visitor is going to stay a long time at your site, reading your content, you will want to make sure they’re not annoyed by some audio looping on and on, on your website. If you insist on adding audio, make sure they have some control over it — volume or muting controls would work fine.

Apple’s App Store contains thousands of applications, which can make it very time consuming for anyone to discover the best apps to keep them connected. Luckily, we have found a few must haves and have highlighted what we believe are some of the top apps for Internet professionals below:

• Google Drive
  Need an important file while away from your desktop? No problem. Just download the Google Drive app and sign up with the cloud service to receive 5GB of free storage. This free app allows users to edit and create Google documents and spreadsheets, share photos and view documents offline.
• Foursquare for Business
  While Foursquare is not the most popular social network, businesses should maintain a presence here in order to increase visibility. With the Foursquare for Business app, brands can increase their visibility while on the go. This app allows social media managers to create updates to be shared on Foursquare, Facebook and Twitter. Users can use this app to manage multiple business profiles, turn specials on and off, as well as monitor other important data such as recent check-ins.
• GoDaddy
  Purchase domains from anywhere with the GoDaddy app. This app can be leveraged to buy and manage domains, purchase hosting, Web Builder, SSL certificates and more. Users can access their Go Daddy email from within the app’s Mobile Workspace feature, as well as store and access files from the Online Storage file manager.
• Analytics Tile App
  Got analytics on the brain? This engaging app allows users to monitor and interact with performance data. The apps interface is customizable, as it allows users to add and remove reports via drag and drop functionality. Tiles can further be customized with a variety of color options, and users can view additional details from a report by tapping on its tile. It is important to note that users must also have a Google Analytics account with at least one active website in order to use the app.
• Office Time
  Track all of your hours and expenses from your iOS mobile device with the free OfficeTime app. This time tracker allows users to track time by project and category, track time with multiple hourly rates, run multiple timers and work offline. Moreover, users that upgrade to the paid version have the ability to export time data to Excel or Numbers and track an unlimited number of projects and categories.

Why? Because Foursquare will automatically feature any business that offers a special in its search results. This can help businesses not only increase their visibility, but also help with foot traffic. In fact, the social network even provides participating businesses with a sign that they can print out and put in their windows to publicize their promotions.

In addition to publicizing your promotion in-stores, you should also consider sharing your Foursquare promotion with your Facebook and Twitter followers in order to reach a larger audience.

Not only is email marketing holding its own with social, it also is the most effective marketing tool for a majority of small business owners. In 2012, email marketing outperformed both social and search when it came to converting prospects to new business. All this can be a lot to deal with for most small business owners. Constant Contact’s Solution Providers are a great resource for those that don’t like the thought of navigating a constantly changing marketing landscape alone. Whether you do things yourself, or choose to let a Solution Provider help you out, use the following five tips to be sure you’re getting the most from email marketing.

It’s true that many of the ways we communicate with customers are changing. But much is staying the same. It’s still all about effectively communicating relevant messages to your audience. Rather than the traditional methods, you’ll be sending emails or  engaging on social media to build relationships, strengthen loyalty and stay top-of-mind to your customers.

When they start buzzing with enthusiasm, it provides more opportunities to grow your business than ever before. Plus with one of our Solution Providers by your side to help, you’ll be getting the results you crave in no time. Get your free 60 Day Trial, no credit card required, no strings attached.