Brands in any industry can have slow periods. But it’s what they decide to do with that time that matters most.

Seasonality affects many industries. While this is simply part of the nature of these markets, it’s vital that these seasons are used correctly to ensure the sustainability of business throughout the year.

There are several ways that this downtime can be strategically utilized to maximize revenue. Let’s discuss some strategies below:

Riding the wave

While some businesses have more obvious seasonal trends than others, many experience periods in the year when business is known to be quieter for various reasons. For example, the cruise ship industry has perhaps one of the most obvious seasonal trends. So much so that they’ve coined a term for it: the wave season. Regardless of whether you’re in travel, education or telecoms, slow periods are inevitable. It’s what you do with them that matters.

While your customers may not be purchasing at a high rate during the slow season, that doesn’t mean they aren’t still looking for information and assessing available purchase opportunities during that time. If you are not reaching out to them during this period, by the time wave season arrives, it’s already too late.

Success in seasonal industries works through the waterfall effect. If you fill the vessel now, it will overflow when you need it to. However, if you sit back and do nothing or cut back on your marketing efforts when sales aren’t happening, your waterfall has no chance of reaching the required level.