When people across the world were ringing in the New Year – celebrating the start of a new decade and bidding good riddance to 2019 – many couldn’t fathom how tumultuous the start of 2020 would be. Between the impending U.S. presidential election, unseasonable weather patterns, and unprecedented global pandemic, many are already looking forward to a fresh start in 2021.
While it may seem premature to start planning for the holiday season in May, a forward-thinking mindset will serve marketers well when it comes to planning their holiday print campaigns, especially this year. With the economy hit hard by business closures in the first half of the year, marketers are going to bank heavily on holiday to recoup some of their lost revenue.
COVID-19 has dominated news headlines for the past several weeks, pushing election news to the back burner. But as things return to “normal” and November gets closer, the election will begin to dominate again. There are always marketing disruptions before and temporarily after an election, which will shorten the holiday marketing window for 2020, making it all the more crucial to start planning now.
Paper is available and printers are already quoting pieces for fourth quarter, as print windows are quickly filling in. Planning in advance will enable your production team to order paper, reserve press time, and secure best pricing through early commitments.
