Valentine’s Day Strategies to Warm Your Heart

February 06, 2019

Valentine’s Day is oftentimes undervalued. It’s known to get overlooked as plans focus on wrapping up the holidays vs. strategically preparing for marketing to a specific audience during the weeks leading up to V-Day.

U.S. consumers are expected to spend an average $143.56 on Valentine’s Day as 55% of the population celebrates, an increase from 2017’s $136.57, according to the annual survey released by NRF and Prosper Insights & Analytics. Total spending is expected to reach $19.6 billion, up from $18.2 billion last year. The numbers are the second-highest in the survey’s 15-year history, topped only by the record $146.84 and $19.7 billion seen in 2016. And nothing says “I love you” more than gifts. Spending stretches multiple categories including flowers, candy, jewelry, greeting cards, and apparel.

Here’s how you can make a love connection with consumers this Valentine’s Day and beyond:

Love at first swipe

Whether booking a last-minute dinner for two or hastily shopping for gifts, consumers are reaching for their phones. According to the NRF study above, over half of celebrants plan to use smartphones to assist with V-Day purchase decisions. 36.9% plan to use them for researching products and comparing prices. Similarly, 44.7% plan to use their tablets, with a third saying they’ll do so for price comparisons and product research. Make sure that your online content is tapping into V-Day related keywords to pick up on some of those searches and have your retargeting pixels appropriately placed on product pages that might be relevant, as consumers who are searching may be convinced to return to finalize a purchase they were investigating while on their phones!

Gender matters

Although men spend nearly double on gift giving for V-day, search trends show some discrepancies with gender. According to Google Trends data, searches for “gifts for boyfriend” outnumbers “gifts for girlfriend”, and on the flipside “gift for wife” significantly outnumbers “gift for husband”.

Marketers should tailor campaigns to the demographics that are spending the most during Valentine’s Day. Knowing that unmarried couples are spending more on Valentine’s Day gifts, and searches on gifts for boyfriend outnumber gifts for girlfriend, can help you target demographics focused on unmarried or younger adult women. For married couples, focusing on publishers that have a heavy male demographic can ensure you’re taking advantage of search trends when it comes to looking for gifts for wives.

Make a lasting connection with long-form video

The growing trend of long-form video is creating more engagement and lasting relationships between marketers and consumers. In a world of accessible wifi and unlimited data plans, the preferred device for watching video is whatever is nearby. And improved video processing technology means that longer videos are no longer a problem (specifically on mobile devices).

Because consumers have the ability to easily compare prices and reviews, engaging with them emotionally is imperative. Go ahead, make a connection this Valentine’s Day. The result could be a long-lasting relationship with an ROI that warms any marketers’ heart.