Wacky holidays are commonplace on social media, so it’s time your brand gets in on the fun, too. Here are 3 easy steps.
There’s a bizarre holiday happening every day of the year, and while largely unofficial, they have a tendency of taking social media by storm. From National Pi Day to the Great American Pie Month, there’s an online celebration for anything you can imagine, meaning there’s ample opportunity for your brand to get in the mix.
Savvy brands will usually plan something special for one specific holiday, then use others to hop in conversations relevant to their target audience. Take our client, the American Migraine Foundation, for example. We spend months planning out our strategy for Migraine and Headache Awareness Month (#MHAM) strategy, to make sure that they create a huge, lasting impact that extends beyond their current followers. Even with that major event, we still celebrate other social media holidays like National Doctor’s Day and World Health Day across their platforms. We do all this with some planning and creative thinking, and you can too, following these three steps.
#1 Separate the Contenders
Social media holidays are happening every single day, so identifying the ones you want to get involved in takes planning. Before you start drafting social content for an upcoming month, find a reliable list of all the holidays taking place during that month. Websites like NationalDay.com are updating constantly, and allow you to look into what holidays are coming up, and Hubspot’s downloadable guide to social media holidays can help you map out your calendar far in advance. Scan the list, and mark the holidays that resonate with your brand. You don’t have to choose many, since a lot of them are pretty niche. For example, yesterday was National Garfield the Cat Day. So, unless you’re a lasagna company, you can probably skip it.
#2 Find Your Big Win
Once you’ve made note of all the obvious contenders, do a second scan and see which one has the greatest relevance to your brand. Look for a holiday that inspires more longevity than just a social post — International Day of Friendship (July 30) and National Book Lover’s Day (August 9) are just two examples. To get the most out of this holiday and increase engagement across your social platforms, build a campaign around it, or host a giveaway. The other holidays can be used as opportunities to further establish your brand or to showcase company culture. So, go ahead, show off your office’s stellar sundae bar for National Ice Cream Day on July 15 or your office’s cutest pups for National Dog Day on August 26.
#3 Interact With Your Audience
Social media holidays often reach trending pages, so their potential reach is a lot larger than a typical post. End your post with a practical call to action that people will want to respond to. Ask people to share a photo or a story with a branded hashtag, and give them a shout-out when they do. Create a dialogue, and you’ll foster a relationship that lasts well beyond the end of the celebration. For example, throughout National Migraine and Headache Awareness Month, we asked our followers to participate in our social challenges and share their migraine stories with #MHAMSocialChallenge.
Social media holidays are an excellent way to have fun with your typical content schedule. Want more cool ways to upgrade your content? Contact Yakkety Yak. We’d love to help you make a social game plan that delivers.
