Back in 2007, 63% of Americans planned to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Last year, only 52% planned to celebrate. Over the past decade and a half, participation in what was once a widely popular holiday, has been trending downwards. For a holiday based around the celebration of romantic love, you’d be forgiven for thinking perhaps the trend is a product of a growing disillusionment with romance? An uptick in single adults?
But no. In actuality, people are falling out of love with the holiday because they believe Valentine’s Day has become too commercial. In fact, over half of Statista’s respondents who reported they won’t be celebrating cited this as their reason.
Valentine’s Day is often marked with the unfavorable term “Hallmark holiday.” The term references greeting card company Hallmark, and describes a holiday that many believe exists primarily for marketing purposes—one focused on gift-giving rather than genuine celebration.
The truth is, Valentine’s Day is a great opportunity for a marketing campaign—it presents a perfect occasion to reach out and connect with audiences on a human level. However, using the wrong language could lead to distrust. Customers aren’t interested in being bombarded by shameless selling—they’re looking for messaging with more substance.
Here are four ways brands can use humanized copy to create genuine connection:
Focus on love rather than gifts.
Customers are over Valentine’s Day messaging that focuses on gift-giving as an obligation rather than a choice. To combat the holiday’s growing reputation for being “overly-commercial,” bring love to the forefront of your campaign. When love is centered, purchases become a way for your customers to express love or add value to the celebration rather than a strict requirement for staying in the good graces of their partner.
Even small shifts in messaging can have an impact. For instance, rather than encouraging a customer to impress their valentine with an expensive gift, you might offer them opportunities to show appreciation for a loved one through a heartfelt token of their love.
Cater to more than just couples.
While Valentine’s Day has traditionally focused on celebrating romantic love, you can reach broader audiences by celebrating love in all forms. Widening your perspective of love will help you create inclusive messaging that resonates with all your customers, not just those currently in romantic relationships.
Relationships come in many forms, and many people use Valentine’s Day as an occasion to celebrate their love for their family members and friends. You’ve likely heard of Galentine’s Day, a popular holiday created by the sitcom Parks and Rec, which celebrates friendship between women. In many circles, Galentine’s Day is just as important, if not more important, than Valentine’s Day. And with trends like self care still going strong, celebrating self love is another great way to ring in the holiday.
Being mindful of the myriad ways love and relationships take form can help you forge deeper connections with a diverse range of customers.
Poke a little fun at the holiday.
A flying baby shooting arrows of love? Cards with cheesy pickup lines? There’s no denying that Valentine’s Day is, well, a little silly. Consider using humor to draw readers in and build connection between your audience and brand.
B2B brands, this one’s for you too. In fact, some of the best examples of humorous Valentine’s Day content we’ve seen have been from B2B brands. Consider Cisco’s iconic 2009 commercial in which the company offers up its new router as the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. Because what says romance like a $250,000 network connecting device?
Then there’s this 2018 Hubspot Instagram post that turns customer relationship management lingo into bad pickup lines like “Communications Error: What do you say we bounce like a bad email and get out of here?” and “My website ratings mean nothing if I ain’t got a link to you.”
So, as you develop your campaign, remember: it’s okay to poke a little fun. If anything can rally the crowd around Valentine’s Day, it’s shared laughter at some of the more absurd aspects of the holiday.
Show your love for your customers or clients.
Valentine’s Day doesn’t just have to be about your customers showing appreciation for their loved ones. It’s also a great time to show your love for your customers. With love in the air, February 14th provides the perfect opportunity to reach out to your customers with a meaningful message of appreciation.
Whether you’re running a special deal, sharing an informative piece of thought leadership, or simply offering a heartfelt thank you for their patronage, your customers will appreciate you taking the time to send a little love their way. A message that centers giving thanks is a great way to counter the Hallmark holiday narrative.
Ready to say “be mine” to humanized copy?
MarketSmiths writes actionable, humanized copy for companies across a wide range of industries. It also runs Content CatalystTM, a cross-departmental content solution designed to help companies unify their brand voice while maximizing ROI. Contact the MarketSmiths team to get started.
