50 marketing mistakes / Mistake #48
Mistake #48 of 50Don’t forget timing.
Sunscreen in July makes sense. Calendars in February, not so much.
What it costs you
Right thing, wrong month.
Most people spend all their time picking the item.
Almost nobody picks the moment.
So the calendar shows up after everybody already has one. The ice scraper shows up in July.
When you hand it over matters as much as what you hand over.
Show up a month early, and you’re the one they call. Show up a week late, and somebody else already got the job.
A real example
Same towel, different month
Two pool companies give their customers the same beach towel.
The first one hands it over in September, at the last cleaning of the year. It gets folded and put on a shelf in the garage. Nobody’s swimming until next year.
The second one hands it over in May, the day the pool opens.
That towel goes straight onto the lounge chair. It’s there all summer. Every swim, every barbecue, every time the neighbors come over.
And every time somebody says, “The water looks great,” the pool company’s name is sitting right there.
Same towel. Same price. Different month.
Why it happens
Why timing gets missed
Nothing about the item changes. Only the moment does.
Do this instead
Get there before the season.
Here’s when the same items do their best work. Not one of them changed. Only the moment did.
| Item | Right moment |
|---|---|
| Calendar | Mailed in October, right when people start planning next year. Not January. |
| Ice scraper | The week before the first frost. Not July. |
| Sunscreen | The Friday before Memorial Day. Not December. |
| Air-conditioning tune-up magnet | April, before the first heat wave. |
| Power bank | Handed out fully charged at 3 p.m. at the trade show, not in the bag at 9 a.m. |
| Air freshener | Hung on the mirror at the end of the oil change, not left in a bowl on the counter. |
Mark your year. Twelve months, one line each: what your customers are about to need. Order a month ahead of each one, and put the hand-off on the calendar with a name next to it.
Do this today
- 1
Look at the next thing you’re planning to hand out.
- 2
Name the moment it’s for: before the season, the end of the job, a milestone.
- 3
Count back a month, and put the order date on your calendar.
- 4
Decide who hands it over, and what they ask for: “Call us before the first cold snap.”
The right thing at the wrong moment is a waste. The right thing at the right moment rings your phone.
From the book
Chapter 10: Pick the Moment
Starts on page 95. The whole chapter, plus 250+ ways to market your business, in the free book.
Download the free bookIdeas that fix it
The right thing, right on time.
Idea 179 · book page 351Beach Towels$10–$25 eachA huge imprint, laid out in public.
Idea 160 · book page 341Calendars$6–$15 eachOn the wall all year long.
Idea 111 · book page 317Ice Scrapers$2–$5 eachLives in the car all winter.
Idea 106 · book page 314Sunscreen$1.50–$4 eachExactly what people need at an outdoor event.
Idea 173 · book page 348Beanies$8–$25 eachWorn all winter.Want a 12-month plan for what to hand out, and when?
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