Fall Marketing That Makes a Cozy Connection

As leaves start their annual fashion show and the air turns crisp like a perfectly baked apple crumble, businesses have a once-in-a-year chance to connect with their audience. Fall, with its kaleidoscope of vibrant colors, festive traditions, and slew of holidays, offers fertile ground for brands to engage with customers.

From harnessing the essence of holidays to crafting visually appealing content and leveraging hashtags, these tips will empower your company to make a lasting impression faster than you can say “sweater weather.”

So, let's dive in and discover how to leave your digital footprint amidst the foliage of the season.

1. Map Out Your Autumnal Social Media Calendar

Just like picking the perfect pumpkin, planning your social media content ahead of time is crucial. Craft a fall-flavored social media calendar that's as organized as a squirrel's stash of acorns. Highlight key dates like Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and even National Hot Cocoa Day (December 13th) to keep your audience engaged. Remember, flexibility is your friend, especially when you want to jump on the latest fall trends.

Your social media calendar isn't set in stone. It should be flexible enough to adapt to unexpected events or trends that might emerge during the holiday season. Staying agile and responsive to the shifting landscape of social media will help you maintain your brand's relevance and capture the attention of your followers amidst the holiday hustle and bustle.

While you’re having fun with fall social, don’t forget: any seasonal posts should tie back to your brand’s unique ethos and fit brand guidelines. Also, make sure your post copy suits your brand voice and tone for social media. 

In this Thanksgiving Day example, Hot Wheels does a great job tying in the playfulness of the brand to pumpkin pie:

2. Harvest Fun from Fall Holidays

Fall is like a treasure chest of holidays and observances, waiting for you to unlock its potential. Let’s dive into these examples that might relate to your business:

• Halloween: Perfect for retail businesses, share costume ideas featuring your products, or run a Halloween-themed contest. If you're selling, well, anything, there's a way to spookify it.
  
  Hershey’s created a short video showing their followers how to create their own DIY Halloween crafts.
  
  
  
  
• National Financial Planning Month (October): Financial institutions can help folks prepare their wallets for the holiday season with budgeting tips.
• National Home Improvement Month (October):
  Building and home improvement companies can share fall home maintenance tips, showcase DIY fall home improvement projects, or share the quirkiest before-and-after transformations.
• Thanksgiving: For hospitality and food-related businesses, promote special Thanksgiving menus or share gratitude-themed content. Foodie businesses, this one's your jam. Show off your culinary skills with Thanksgiving-themed delights.
  
  Home-related businesses can feature Thanksgiving decor in a way that ties into their brand personality, such as in this insightful TJMaxx example:
  
  
  
  
• Black Friday and Cyber Monday: Retailers and resort industries, start the buzz early with tantalizing teasers and exclusive online deals.

Think about which fall festivities align with your brand's spirit, and you'll leave a warm impression.

3. Craft Fall-tastic Content

Fall is a feast for the eyes, so make your content visually delicious. People love seeing content that reflects the beauty of autumn. Consider these ideas:

• Fall-related quotes: Sprinkle your posts with quotes that capture the autumn spirit. Think nostalgic or inspiring.
• Seasonal products or services: Showcase items that scream "fall," from sweaters to pumpkin-spiced offerings. It might feel more than a bit tongue-in-cheek, but that’s the spirit of the season. Goodreads used the beginning of fall to showcase some of their fall-themed books:
  
  
  
  
• Engaging questions: Get your audience talking with questions like, "Favorite October Getaways: mountains or beach?"
• Niche-specific fall tips: Offer expert advice related to your industry, like "7 Must-Have Gadgets for Fall Camping” or “Best Fall DIY Projects.” In this example, REI subtly promoted products to assist in enjoying fall scenery:
  
  
• Behind-the-scenes content: Pull back the curtain on your team's fall adventures. Share photos of your staff at your annual chili cook-off or building a Habitat for Humanity home. 

Serve these content ideas with a dollop of creativity and a sprinkle of humor, and you'll have your audience “falling” for your brand.

4. Cook up a Fall-Related Social Media Contest

Contests are like the sprinkles on latte—they add that extra bit of excitement to your fall marketing strategy. But why settle for the ordinary when you can create a contest that's memorable.

To add a dash of competitive spirit, encourage participants to use your product or service as a prop in their storytelling. And instead of a traditional prize, offer an experience that fits the spirit of the season.

In this Halloween Instagram contest example from Fancy Sprinkles, entrants submitted photos of scary movie-themed cakes with a unique hashtag to track entries:

For a movie-release partnership, Hershey's created a fun themed costume contest, with an engaging video.

Contests not only engage your existing customer base but also harvest a bountiful crop of user-generated content. And by weaving your product into these tales, you're not just selling; you're becoming a part of their cherished fall memories.

5. Drop Some Colorful Hashtags

Hashtags are essential for increasing the visibility of your posts on social media platforms. During the fall season, make sure to incorporate relevant fall-themed hashtags. Here are some examples:

#FallVibes
#AutumnColors
#FallFavorites
#CozySeason
#PumpkinEverything
#FallFashion
#ThanksgivingPrep
#FallInLove 
#LeafPeeping 
#SweaterWeather 
#PumpkinParadise 
#FallFashionFrenzy 
#TurkeyDayTales 
#BlackFridayDeals
#CyberMondayMania

With Instagram's permission to use up to 30 hashtags per post, mix and match these to maximize your reach, and you'll be raking in the likes.

In a nutshell, fall is your chance to connect with your audience and share the warmth of your brand. By leveraging holidays, creating engaging fall-themed content, running contests, and a sprinkle of autumn hashtags, you can make the most of this vibrant season to boost your online presence and engage with your customers.

So, grab your oversized scarf, your favorite chai tea or toddy, and start planning your seasonal marketing campaigns today!

Like what you read? Contact us to see how we may be able to help you meet your marketing goals.