After an enormous Thanksgiving feast, you have a bad case of acid reflux as you fixate on the pending Black Friday sales. Even if you’re not in retail, you hope that strong weekend sales will be an indicator of better things to come. Then, to your delight, Thanksgiving weekend delivers beyond anyone’s expectations and Cyber Monday does not disappoint.  A huge sigh of relief. So, you eat the last piece of apple pie in a rare, guilt-free moment when everything seems to be looking up, including the stock market.

Not so fast.

There are only 26 days before Christmas and just a few more days until you need to kick off your 2018 advertising campaign. If you want to hit the ground running the first few weeks in January, you need to start now. The apple pie is not sitting all that well. You don’t have any money for advertising unless it will generate immediate sales. You have no idea what media options will work best for you. You reach for the Maalox and collapse on the sofa.

Take a deep breath and consider some steps you can take now to be ready for 2018.

• Start by establishing a budget that you can stick to. Remember, it is always better to target a smaller demographic multiple times than to reach a larger audience once or twice.
• Carefully analyze last years’ advertising to see what worked and what didn’t. Think about what outside variables may have influenced the promotion, like weather, news events or sudden economic shifts.
• Check out who your competition is and how they have positioned themselves in the marketplace. Assess their strengths and weaknesses. Then, determine how to position yourself in a market segment that best suits your goods and/or services.
• Decide on a marketing strategy for 2018. This requires that you determine what makes you better than your competition. If you need help, ask for it. Choose an advertising firm with a strong marketing background to help you identify your USP (Unique Selling Proposition.)
• Don’t stop advertising because a promotion doesn’t work! Instead, figure out what you did wrong and make the necessary adjustments on your next promotion.
• Plan ahead and anticipate. With several billion dollars being infused into the media for this year’s elections, space and airtime will be short. You have to make sure you lock in early to get the best position and pricing.