Holiday Marketing Opportunities for Easter & Spring
American consumers need something to look forward to; Spring and Easter could be a turning point
The Easter holiday is more than just a one-time event on April 4th; it’s an entire season, including the Spring season and celebrating warmer weather. This will be our second Easter and Spring under the cloud of the pandemic, but rest assured, Americans are keen to celebrate in a big way as we are literally looking for any excuse to distract ourselves from our daily stress.
Even in a pandemic with varying levels of restrictions here in the USA, below are a few of the “mini events” brands can still build shopper marketing around leading up to Easter on April 4th.
HOW MANY ‘MINI EVENTS’ (OR BUYING OPPORTUNITIES) CAN YOU THINK OF FOR THE SPRING + EASTER SEASON?
Spruce up for Spring - Many Americans like to welcome Spring (whenever it begins to actually feel like Spring) by sprucing up the outside and insides of their homes with spring decorations and seasonal flowers. Grocery stores and garden centers are keen to promote and sell flowers, like tulips and peonies. In addition to pretty, Spring flowers, many Americans like to dress up their home entrance with season-appropriate welcome mats and garden decor.
Outdoor picnics - Getting outside for sunshine and fresh air is one of the best things we can do for ourselves during these cooped up, pandemic days. Once the weather is warm enough to play outside, you better believe we’ll all be out there taking nature walks, exercising, playing at playgrounds and having picnics. While we expect to be masked up and socially distanced for quite some time, Americans are hopeful that come Spring things can possibly loosen up a little bit. After over a year of staying home and virtual everything, we are all craving physical, in-person experiences with others. Here’s hoping that vaccine can get to a lot more people come Spring.
Easter dress - For households with children, normally buying an Easter outfit is on the agenda for some Americans. The difference is this year, there’s basically no where to go if you get all dressed up. Still, some people will go for it. For little ladies and big ones too, this can especially be a big deal. Parents often use this time as a good excuse to get professional photos made of the kids or the entire family. I personally like to have matching dresses for my daughter and I, and I’ve already got my photographer lined up for Spring family photos.
Dying Easter eggs - To decorate for Easter and Spring, a lot of households will hard boil eggs and dye them different Spring colors. There are egg-dying kits to buy, or some people may opt for natural, plant-based dyes. After the eggs are properly colored and dried, they make pretty decor items for the household.
Easter baskets - Easter baskets filled with treats are a traditional Easter gift, especially for children. While the focus tends to be on confectionary products, like Peeps (sugar covered marshmallows in the shape of baby chickens,) Easter eggs with prizes inside, chocolate Easter bunnies, and Easter-themed candy, a lot of gifts will extend to toys, clothes, games, etc. Adults can certainly be given Easter baskets too.
Treat bags to welcome Spring & Easter - Since many community events (like neighborhood or church Easter egg hunts) will still be off the table, some American neighborhoods (especially suburban areas) are likely to bring joy by dropping off treat bags at the front doors of their friends and neighbors’ homes. Some of the people I’ve conducted research with recently tell me that they are planning to drop off goodies to friends and neighbors (in particular, parents/grandparents, elderly neighbors, neighborhood families with children — basically everyone who would use a good cheering up) to welcome Spring on the first day of Spring and also again for Easter.
The big grocery shop - Even for our smaller celebrations this year, Americans will be heading to their grocery store (or ordering online) to do a big Easter shop. This is when they’ll pick up their Easter ham or lamb, ingredients for any baking, drinks and probably some flowers too.
Easter day - Americans’ celebrations for Easter day can vary. Church-going folks may rise extra early for a sunrise church service (likely to be outside.) Typically most Easter meals tend to focus around lunch or dinner — mostly at home this year, or perhaps outdoor seating at restaurants for those in non-restricted areas. Some mainstays for the day include specific food traditions and for children, an Easter egg hunt. Traditional food on Easter can include: ham, leg of lamb, deviled eggs, baked goods, etc.
Orthodox Easter - Don’t forget, there are actually two Easters. Orthodox Christians will celebrate Orthodox Easter almost a full month later, on May 2nd. Orthodox Easter can look like a repeat of the regular Easter, but with a few notable differences — mainly, serving a whole lamb. For example, my husband’s Greek family has a tradition of slaughtering a lamb at a local farm and roasting the whole lamb on our spit grill in the back yard in time for our big, Greek Easter party. Sadly, no big party for us this year, but we will likely still roast an entire lamb, but just for our own household, freezing the leftovers.
Easter bunny cake
Koulourakia, traditional Easter cookies from Greek culture
Holiday Planning Help
Is Spring or Easter a major selling season for your brand? How is your company planning to connect with consumers during the Spring & Easter season? Do you know what your consumers are most looking forward to for Spring, or what their needs will be?
Contact me to discuss how your brand or retailer can leverage the next season (Spring) or holiday (Easter) in your consumer marketing. We can conduct virtual research now with our panel of American consumers to test ideas & ask questions about their plans for Spring, or we can explore planning or implementing a holiday/seasonal marketing campaign for your brand.
Lisa Mabe Founder & CEO, Green Purse