Official Holidays vs. Unofficial Holidays – Does it Relate to Your Brand?
Official Holidays vs. Unofficial Holidays – Are you adding to the noise?
Have you ever wondered if you are capturing your audience’s attention by posting content around “National Margarita Day” even though you work in retail? Are you constantly considering whether you should be posting for every “unofficial” social media holiday? Well, you’re not alone!
The days of “National this” or “National that” have begun – in June alone, there are at least 150 unofficial socially-focused holidays. That’s not counting the month’s only Federally-recognized holiday, Juneteenth. Could you imagine scrolling past over 150 social media posts from a single profile? Now, multiply that by every professional account you follow. That’s a lot of content to consume that likely has nothing to do with your interests. But, before we get too negative surrounding holidays on social media, let’s first look at the difference between an unofficial and official holiday.
Unofficial Holidays
On June 1st alone, we saw nine unofficial holidays according to HubSpot. Not only is it World Milk Day, but it’s National Go Barefoot Day, National Heimlich Maneuver Day, and more! With varying holidays, the question at hand is “should your business be participating in these unofficial holidays? The answer, it’s complicated.
Participating in unofficial holidays is not a bad idea if it relates to your brand. However, if Nike creates a simple post recognizing World Milk Day, there is bound to be some confusion among their audience. Whereas, if Hood® creates a post about World Milk Day, it directly aligns with their product offering. If Nike created a post about National Shoe Day, that is something their audience could expect to see.
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On World Milk Day, Hood® posted on their Instagram. Taking a look at the post, we learn that not only is World Mike Day on June 1st, but June is National Dairy Month. They are generating awareness and informing their audience on how their industry is being recognized throughout June. They even went a step further and created a call to action (CTA) to have their audience go to the link in their bio to find some recipes to enjoy during National Dairy Month. The post was relevant to the brand and it mobilized their audience to join them in the celebration.
Official Holidays
Even when it comes to official holidays, there is no written rule saying you must create a social post. If that was the case, we’d see social media platforms flooded with “happy holidays” content. Like unofficial holidays, you do not always need to recognize those holidays that don’t fit within your brand voice or traditional content strategy.
For example, Pepsi, a large corporation, didn’t post content for Memorial Day weekend. So why does your brand need to? The answer is, you don’t. If you believe it is something that relates to your brand, strategy, or industry, then absolutely. But, if you’re posting because “everyone else is,” then you’re likely just adding to the noise.
Let’s Take a Step Back
Worldwide there are over 4.2 billion social media users. On average, these users will spend 2 hours and 27 minutes a day on social media. While that might seem like a long time, it’s not!
You are competing with the other billion users on social media – whether they’re a business, influencer, or friends/family. That’s why it is important to make sure that you are not just adding noise to the conversation. You have a small window to capture the attention of your audience. Being strategic when posting about official or unofficial holidays is essential to your content’s success.
Here are some simple tips that might help when publishing content for official and unofficial holidays:
Do
- Post if it relates to your brand;
- Strategically use it in your content planning;
- Post meaningful content – bring awareness to or educate your audience.
Don’t
- Post it just to post – you are just adding to the noise;
- Post if it might interfere with any other marketing campaigns or efforts taking place;
- Post if it doesn’t fit your brand.
Now, go take a look at your social media calendar to see what official or unofficial holiday content you have planned. If you have none, take a look to see what can be added. If you have a ton, maybe it’s time to weed out the ones that don’t resonate with your brand.
