With 4th of July 2015. behind us, we can ponder about the how this very important event in the US calendar has influenced us, as well as how it has provided a platform for organisations, brands, people and causes to showcase themselves while in red, white and blue.

A lot of blogs tell brands to just hold special sales or promotion “because it works”, and that the products in mind don’t have to be patriotic to be marketed as a July 4th special. While I would agree that what you are offering doesn’t have to be especially patriotic, doing the same as everybody else defeats the purpose of personal marketing. And freedom. We need to make you stand out, as the US does on July 4th.

1. Help People Celebrate With Your Expertise (It’s Searchable)

As you can see from the thousands of tweets and Instagram pics, people like dressing up, prepping, designing and – well – just getting ready for 4th of July by being a bit more creative than the rest of the year. The motives are obvious and give a framework with which to work with.

Give #4thofJuly Advice

Expect people then to be looking for tips and tricks in how to make their own July 4th more enjoyable. They will be looking out for tips on their Facebook feed or Googling how to create either decorations or maybe a whole marketing campain. And it won’t stop with “getting prepared” but also getting everything sorted afterwords as we will mentioned in the rest of the article: Imagine a “Post July 4th Workout Plan” podcast that helps potential fitness customers get off their butts to take care of what those weekend burgers did to them.

• Designers: How to design the ultimately patriotic Facebook cover, How to prepare your brand logo for July 4th…
• Small business owners: 5 products you think you don’t need this July 4th, The only service that will make you safe for July 4th is this…
• Fashion designers and bloggers: How to wear red, white and blue with style, The flag is not your outfit, this is…

What you have to keep in mind is that July 4th gives you the opportunity to put your skill or product in the context of a particular use case. You, better than anyone else, will know what that might be, but here are a few examples:

Create a July 4th Service

A step beyond just telling people what they will do is actually doing it for them. Not everyone will have time to create the cover we mentioned or follow a workout plan themselves, so your service might be needed. While it will take more time, it does end up contributing to your bottom line, combining your expertise with a time-based call of action on eagle’s wings.

An example would be going to Fiverr and creating multiple gigs that help people with small tasks that they need done for July 4th. If you look at “gig” website Fiverr, dozens of people are already using this tactic, offering 200+ 4th of July recipes, 4th of July graphics, transforming your logo to a 4th of July theme… All things that we’ve already talked about – so why wouldn’t be you using the opportunity?

2. A Flag Doesn’t Make a Visual

As the various American flag generators show, it’s so easy to paste a flag to the avatar use on Facebook, or the brand visuals you are planning to highlight on your corporate website. But a flag a great visual does not make, and I’d venture that being lazy about making a good red, white and blue visual is sort of unpatriotic.

Since you’re (probably) not a model, just wearing something with US flag motives won’t really garner that much interest and might just end up looking a bit weird. If you’ve never used your own photos in your promotion, it will just seem weird to all of a sudden don a “costume”, no matter how patriotic.

Instead, opt for a more subtle imagery in the manner of elements that make sense with your personal brand or the image you are trying to foster. If you’re a designer, “sketches” of flags or star-spangled wallpaper will make sense as the environment in which you work in, as will a red, white and blue wrench if you’re a handyman with a great personal website. You want to use 4th of July visuals in a subtle, meaningful way that will not make it seem like you’re just using the holiday to promote yourself.

Keep in mind that while people might not be out right looking for a “patriotic” service from you (some probably will take that in consideration), just the fact that you stand our visually on their Instagram or Facebook feed will make them pause a bit while going over your social media posts. And that might just be enough to land you your next gig.

3. 4th of July Isn’t About One Day

While the 4th of July actually is just one day in the year (it says so in the calendar), Independence Day as an event is something we think of in the weeks leading up to the day, as well as think of how it went at least in the 3 or 5 days after. Hence this post for example. It’s obviously not July 4th anymore.

In the same way, marketeers will think about the campaigns they can prepare for their customers, while parents plan the cute meals they are going to prepare for their kids. So don’t think about it just as the 4th, but also July 1st – as well as 10th.

Giving people content before July 4th is helpful because it gives them time to prepare for the holiday, using the expertise we already mentioned to give them something to do, that will – in their minds – position you as an expert. And because holidays such as 4th of July are something that we remember more, your potential customers will remember you as well, as the guy or gal that helped them prepare!

4. July 4th May Be Over, But Christmas…

And I know what you’re thinking – July 4th has passed and while you would love, just LOVE to use some of these tips, it’s too late.

No, it’s not.

There are numerous holidays and events both in the US and across the globe that offer you the chance to offer something related to them. It might be Christmas, Easter of Black friday… Feel the heat outside? It’ summer! While it might not offer the patriotic element you were looking to add to your products or services, your customers still want ice cream and are sweating because it’s the summer.

It’s different than other parts of the year so your services should be (a bit) different and special as well – to help your personal brand stand out. That’s why along with the Fiverr guy offering the 4th of July logo treatment, there’s this other designer offering to give your logo any occasion holiday theme.