Cool Holidays for Unique Marketing Ideas

The holidays are enormously profitable for many businesses, yet most companies tend to stick with holiday promotions for only the most popular holidays: Christmas, New Year, Independence Day, Valentine’s Day, Memorial Day, and the Fourth of July. Sure, a few others have sneaked in to common celebrations – Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Mardi Gras, and even Cinco de Mayo – but there are so many more holidays companies can take advantage of to promote their products and services.

Some lesser-known holidays are cool for their uniqueness alone; others are cool because they can be tied to specific types of businesses. One great marketing idea for your business is to latch on to a lesser-known holiday and make it your own. Find relevance in a unique holiday and host a creative sales celebration. For your inspiration, here are some cool holidays that can generate unique marketing ideas (for even more, check out Holiday Insights).

Dress Up Your Pet Day – January 14

This holiday seems to cater to pet stores, dog groomers, and the like; but just about any business could hold a contest for “best dressed pet!”

National Popcorn Day – January 19

Who doesn’t love popcorn? You could give popcorn away on this day to bring customers to your store. Or, partner with a grocer or popcorn maker to give away microwave popcorn with each sale.

Fun At Work Day – January 28

Encourage your employees to have a great time at work – and to engage your customers in the good times, too. This could be a great opportunity to get to meet customers on a more personal level.

Boy Scout Day – February 8

Offer a discount to any Boy Scouts (and other scouts – Webelos, Cubs, etc.) who make purchases at your store on this day. Or, work with a local Scout troop to set up a food or donation drive, and contribute your share.

Random Acts of Kindness Day – February 17

Take to the streets to conduct random acts of kindness all day. Have an employee videotape it and upload the video to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, and/or your website.

International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day – February 23

Another pet-related holiday; you could get creative and offer an incentive to anyone who eats a dog biscuit at your store. Film the results and see how fast your video goes viral!

Girl Scouts Day – March 12

Just like Boy Scouts Day, but this time you’re catering to the girls.

Proposal Day – March 20

A special incentive for the recently-engaged might be an appropriate promotion for this holiday. Or, come up with your own proposal and publicly submit it to Congress or your local Council.

Take A Walk in the Park Day – March 30

Take your wares to a popular local park to celebrate this holiday; entertain passers-by with product demonstrations from a makeshift booth. Take plenty of business cards and brochures along to hand out.

Golfer’s Day – April 10

Perfect for companies that serve golfers; if your company doesn’t you can still partner with golf courses or pro shops to develop an incentive package for customers.

National High Five Day – April 17

Anyone who gives you a high five gets five percent off!

Kiss Your Mate Day – April 28

Could you host a “best kiss” contest with an awesome prize for the winner (and discounts for others who participate)? If so, you could draw a good crowd of customers and shoot a viral video at the same time!

Star Wars Day – May 4

Host a Star Wars-themed sale, or reward those brave enough to come in costume with a special incentive.

No Diet Day – May 6

Promote all the junk food you can for this very special day; if you don’t sell it, give it away! This promotion would be perfect for a grocer, health shop, gym, personal trainer, or related business.

Frog Jumping Day – May 13

Can you host your own frog races on-location? Can the winning frog earn special incentives for its backer?

Dare Day – June 1

Dare customers to switch from your competitors, to try a new product, or to do something else altogether to earn an incentive.

World Juggler’s Day – Saturday closes to June 17

Hire a juggler to perform on-location to get passers-by interested in your storefront.

Sunglasses Day – June 27

Are your products so bright, you gotta wear shades?

National Nude Day – July 14

We’ll let you come up with a promotion to, uh, cover this holiday.

Amelia Earhart Day – July 24

Can you come up with a zany promotion for the famed lost aviator? You don’t have to be in the aviation industry to take advantage of this holiday.

Friendship Day – First Sunday in August

Send your best customers greeting cards for Friendship Day, and generate long-term customer loyalty.

National Watermelon Day – August 3

Host a watermelon-throwing contest, serve watermelon salad, have kids paint watermelons and then take them home to eat – there are a ton of fun things you can do with watermelons!

Left Handers’ Day – August 13

Cater exclusively to left-handed people on this day. Remember Burger King’s left-handed Whopper?

Defy Superstition Day – September 13

Brainstorm unique ways you and your customers can defy superstition on this holiday – then promote it heavily. Anything from having black cats on-hand to walking under ladders to breaking mirrors would cork!

International Talk Like A Pirate Day – September 19

Arrghh, this be a fun holiday for ye employees. Shiver me timbers! Have your employees talk like pirates all day, then offer a reward for any customers who follow suit.

Miniature Golf Day – September 21

Set up a putting hole on-location and offer discounts for holes-in-one. You could also start with, say, a discount tier: 20 percent off for a hole-in-one, 10 percent off for two strokes, 5 percent off for three.

Name Your Car Day – October 2

Perfect inspiration for a car wash, mechanic, detailer, or car dealership! You could host a car-naming contest; or, you could have on-location a professional “car namer” to offer names for each car that comes in. Offer a discount on service this day to generate more business.

Come And Take It Day – October 6

The perfect holiday for a freebie giveaway or a buy-one-get-one-free sale. Tell customers to “come and take it” – just make sure they know what they’re allowed to take!

Punk For A Day Day – October 25

Blast punk music and style that blue mohawk you’ve always wanted. Or, offer an incentive for “best-dressed” punk. This type of promotion isn’t for everyone, but if it fits your company’s attitude it could be a hit.

America Recycles Day – November 15

Join or start a recycling drive and get the entire community involved. Brainstorm ways your business can uniquely contribute to recycling. Ask media members to get involved to help promote your recycling drive or event, which will in turn help promote your brand.

Button Day – November 16

Have customers push a button to see what they’ve won, if anything. This could make for another fun viral video, provided you’re willing to get creative and have a little fun with it. One person might win, say, a banana; while another wins a 20 percent off coupon!

Shopping Reminder Day – November 26

With Black Friday on the horizon, does anyone really need a reminder to shop? Yes, if you want them to shop with you! Send a final postcard to get the word out about your very best offers.

Bathtub Party Day – December 5

While we don’t suggest throwing a “bathtub party” at your location, if you’re in the bath and body business you can definitely find inspiration for sales on this holiday. Create bathtub party packs to sell multiple items at once.

Ice Cream Day – December 13

Ice cream in the middle of winter? It would definitely be a unique promotion to “soft serve” your customers. You don’t have to operate an ice cream shop to pull this off, either – just get your own boxed ice cream.

Festivus Day – December 23

Cater to those who don’t celebrate “traditional” holidays with a special Festivus sale! If your prices are good, everyone will want in.

As you can see, there are many unique holidays your business can take advantage of to launch unique, attention-getting, and memorable marketing campaigns. You don’t have to take the suggestions here; in fact, it’s best to position any holiday to be relevant to both your business and your customers. You’re best-positioned to do just that. Again, don’t be afraid to get creative and push the envelope a bit. Contact media members to get great free PR. Shoot photos and videos and upload to social media to give your unique holiday promotions long-term viral value. With a bit of creativity, you can turn even the most obscure holidays into profitable days for your business.

Cool Holidays for Unique Marketing Ideas