How to send to a World Cup audience during the busiest messaging weeks of the year 

Marketers are already up to their ears in strategies intended to maximize revenue during a critical (and economically uncertain) time. Whether you’re an ecommerce merchant looking to deliver a record sales performance during the FIFA World Cup, or a marketer looking to piggy back on the looming World Cup fever for higher engagement – or both – there are ways to make sure you’re successful.

By now, most will have a plan in place that is well on its way to ensuring holiday success. Here are three ways you can double check your strategies to make sure they are not trading long-term gains for short-term wins.

1. Will your list expect to hear from you?

The holiday sending period is known for increased volumes. Audiences are naturally larger and there are more things to communicate.

As a customer, I want to know what’s going on with the brands I love and I’m more likely to have some purchase goals to take advantage of seasonal deals. Targeted emails from marketers who are smart with their data analysis show me exactly what I want and are highly valuable. Unwanted messages clutter my inbox, hiding the ones I’m really looking for – this makes for a frustrating experience and I’m more likely to complain or move messages to the spam folder.

As you’re preparing to communicate the wonderful things you have to offer to your recipients, take a hard look at the risk of sending to those that aren’t expecting to hear from you and proceed with caution.

2. Are you giving your recipients choices?

There are always going to be people who, for one reason or another, don’t want to hear about a specific holiday or sporting event.

For people experiencing grief or hard times, they may not be looking forward to Thanksgiving as much this year. For the World Cup specifically, it’s no secret that there‘s some controversy about the host country chosen by FIFA. When it comes to social issues, you need to ask if or how you as a brand have chosen to respond, and whether it will alienate your recipients and jeopardize ROI.

Along with giving recipients the ability to opt-out of holiday emails, give them the ability to choose not to hear about the World Cup as well. This makes sure you’re maximizing your efforts to give your recipients what they want.

3. Have you incorporated all channels?

Take a look at what you have planned for Black Friday and Cyber Monday – is it cohesive with your World Cup strategy?

Having a strategy that elegantly combines both will ensure your recipients needs are the focus and ultimately get you the best success. Remember that there are other ways to communicate with your recipients. Make sure to use SMS or other channels where email doesn’t make sense.

Using an approach that strategically incorporates all methods so that everything is working together will make for the best success.

This is a fun time of year, and all of us are doing what we can to make sure we are prepared and helping our businesses be successful. It’s important to be reviewing the plans we have in place to make sure we are set up for wins. Look critically at your strategies, and then go enjoy something festive – I’ll be having some pumpkin pie.