Who doesn’t love the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day? With all the parties, good cheer and chocolate floating around the office, you might think it’s a great time of year to put on a silly sweater, grab a cup of eggnog and cruise into January while you wait for your clients and colleagues to snap back to reality.
Time to put your feet up? Think again. The holidays are actually an ideal time to get some important work done. We’re not suggesting that you shouldn’t have fun (you know us better than that!), but we are reminding you not to drop the ball as the year comes to an end (unless it’s this ball). Here are a few ideas on how to make the holidays matter beyond all the merriment.
Issue a year-end list. People LOVE year-end lists, a holiday tradition that never gets old. Make yours special by tailoring it to your clients’ businesses and industries. List their top successes from this year and their goals for next year; reflect on the top PR trends in ’17 and predict what’s in store for ’18; highlight the major news events from the past year and their impact. Whichever direction you decide to go in, make sure it’s informative, shareable and relevant to your audience.
Be extra social. The holidays provide a natural, built-in opportunity to be super-social online and in real-time. Holiday themes will be trending heavily on social media, so get in the mix with content that rides the festive wave and shows the world how cheerful and engaged you and your clients are during the most wonderful time of the year. Which ties in perfectly with our next tip…
Make a pitch for charity. If your clients or your own firm have made a commitment to give back during the holiday season (or have been doing so all year long) share that story throughout your top media channels. It’s more than just positive PR for your clients—it’s a great way to showcase the causes you care about at a time of year when people are often seeking out charitable organizations to contribute time and money to. A picture perfect holiday PR win-win.
Look ahead. Don’t wait until January to get serious about the new year. Start now. Review your hits and misses from this year, devise new strategies and tactics based on what worked and what didn’t, set goals, plan your content calendar and get pumped up for your best year yet!
Let us know how you balance the holiday revelries with your day-to-day responsibilities and end-of-year goals. And be sure to follow us and share your holiday fun on Twitter at @criticalmention.
From all of us at Critical Mention, have a safe and happy holiday season!
