It’s September 3rd: World Beard Day.
Honestly who comes up with these?!
My first management role was as an Admissions Coordinator for a Skilled Nursing Facility, and I’ll never forget my first meeting. I sat down amidst those on their laptops finishing their work as quick as possible and last-minute preparing for the meeting. The administrator walked into the room and sat down, looked at our Activities Director and said, “Go ahead and start, Pam.”
“Today is national corndog day!”
(I’m sorry but can we stop right here – um, what?)
Our meetings proceeded this exact same way every day, and it was actually a lot of fun. I eventually, like any normal person expanding in their career, ventured off to other roles/facilities. And you know what? Noone else ever talked about the National Day of the Month. But they should! What a simple, easy, and fun way to market your business. I mean seriously, what do corn dogs have to do with a nursing home? Absolutely nothing… on a normal day. But on National Corn Dog Day? They have everything to do with it, if you want!
Never again will you be stuck in trying to find a new marketing campaign idea, even if it’s only for a day! Honestly, marketing aside – these holidays can also be used as morale boosts for your staff. Lighten their day a little by incorporating the day of the month activities! On National Day Today, you can view all of the national holidays for the calendar year.
So, what the heck can you do with these random holidays?!
Host a “beard contest” and get your coworkers and/or clients to all wear their craziest beard-wigs. Maybe the winner gets a gift card to a barber or stylist! Snap a photo… viola!
Give out teddy bears to your staff in case they need a hug!
Must I really give an example?! Fruitcake bake-sales, fruitcake contests, or just bring in some fruitcakes for staff.
Bring your staff some bagels or bring some bagels to your referral partners!
So. Many. Ideas. For this! Giveaways like bath salts, chocolates, notebooks – so many! Encourage your staff or clients to relax.
Consider incorporating nationally recognized dates into your social media calendar.
If you work in marketing, you should always be looking for fun new ideas to spread the word about your business. Use the national holidays! Keep it light, keep it fun, but most of all keep it relevant.
To use national days to boost community engagement, focus on the most appropriate days to celebrate for your business. For example: I work in healthcare. Now granted, Pam had us celebrating (or at least acknowledging) every national day, but we easily could have hyper-focused on healthcare related dates.
Have the staff sign and send thank you cards or flowers to local emergency department nurses.
If you work at a nursing home, you are familiar with the local emergency medical staff professionals. So why not recognize them? Give them a thank you each time they transport a new resident into the facility or bring some thank you cards to their headquarters.
The entire month of September is World Alzheimer’s Awareness Month. Recognize those who care for patients with this disease. Share facts or other expertise in the form of a newsletter or email campaign. Set up donations, get involved. Remember, these national dates are more than just marketing opportunities; they can and should also constitute as learning opportunities, as well as opportunities to spread awareness.
The point is, there are so many fun days you can recognize to keep your business in the spotlight without that much effort. Visit the National Day Today website for an array of nationally recognized dates to encourage community engagement for your business.
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