How to approach the halfway point of the year

We are approaching the halfway point of 2023. As Ferris Bueller famously proclaimed, "life moves pretty fast." Yes, it does, especially in the realm of work and the creative, small-business marketing world.

As we approach this halfway point it is a good time to consider all that you have achieved from a marketing perspective. Take a moment to consider what is working well for you. Are there specific areas of your marketing efforts that are proving valuable? I hope there are, and I hope that you consider enriching those tactics that are serving your business well.

Then look carefully at where there are opportunities for improvement. Think back to the start of the year. Were there tactics you wanted to try but you haven't yet? Now would be a great time to test some approaches to your business marketing.

Traditional, old-school marketing approaches are proving valuable right now. Consider print advertising in hyperlocal publications. Give thought to what brochure or collateral you might mail to customers or prospects.

Can you invite essential sources of referral to lunch or dinner to simply be together and acknowledge their kindness toward your business? Think about fun, in-person, ways you might connect with your stakeholders and plan for them.

Here in the Chicago area we are enjoying late spring and the prospect of a slightly slower-paced languid summer. Yet savvy small business marketers are thinking about the third and fourth quarters. My clients are planning their late-summer marketing and even their year-end, holiday communications. It's slightly challenging to think so far ahead, but it is important to do this right now.

Some businesses are feeling the impact of economic recession and with that feeling, there is a tendency to pull back or reign in their marketing efforts. Although that feeling is real, I would suggest that small business marketers reconsider that urge and maintain or even add resources to their marketing efforts to push through a slower business time. You will need this extra effort to successfully move through lower demand and remain strong.

If you are not sure what to do, here is a shortlist of tactics you might try right now and into the coming months:

1. Create very short, appealing videos that answer commonly asked questions about your service or products.

2. Invite sources of referral to lunch or dinner or to a fun event of your choosing.

3. Mail high-quality marketing collateral to your customers, clients, or prospects.

4. Plot out your marketing strategy for Q3 and Q4. Use this time to prepare for the second half of the year.

5. Get hyperlocal and advertise to your ideal consumer exactly where they live.

There are myriad ways to promote your business right now. The above suggestions are just a few ways you might use to connect meaningfully with your clients or prospective customers. Take a little time to consider ways you might get creative now and into the second half of this year. Loop back to the feeling of possibility that is omnipresent in January and use it to create more business for your enterprise.

• Rebecca Hoffman is the founder and principal of Good Egg Concepts, a strategic communication and brand marketing consulting practice serving clients around Chicagoland and nationally.