Maximize Your Opportunities In OND As A Supplier

WHAT IS OND?

OND is an industry acronym for October, November, and December. OND is important because it represents the busiest consumer buying period of the year. You don’t have to read between the lines here, it’s this simple: this time of year means money. If you prepare for OND properly to take advantage of the sales and marketing opportunities, this can be a wonderful and lucrative time for your business.

HOW CAN SUPPLIERS MAXIMIZE OPPORTUNITIES IN OND?

While there are a variety of ways to make the most of your marketing dollars during OND, we’ve outlined a few of the most effective methods below:

ACTIVATE LIQUOR STORE TASTINGS

Traffic in liquor stores increases during this season, and not only are consumers looking for something special for their party or event, they’re also looking for great gifts. This is an ideal moment to share your story, let the consumer try your product, and create a memorable connection. Doing so means they’ll be more likely to walk out with one of your bottles than another off the shelf. Remember, a large percentage of consumers do not walk in with a set purchase in mind.

CAPITALIZE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

If you’re doing tastings (and you should be), social media is a great place to promote where you’ll be set up and invite consumers to come get a taste. It’s also an effective way to keep your product top-of-mind and to remind your consumer of different ways they can use your product, including showcasing it as a gift or in cocktail and food recipes.

FEATURE SPECIAL PACKAGING

Capture your consumer’s attention with special packaging. “Limited Edition” releases add a special feel and drive purchase by activating the part of the consumer’s mind that doesn’t want to miss out on something that won’t always be available. Going a step above with a little something extra – a Value Added Pack (VAP) such as a nice box or customized glasses to accompany your spirit – gives the consumer more reason to pick your product up and seemingly makes it even more suitable as a gift.

GO FOR THE MARKETING MATERIALS

Take advantage of the increased traffic and put your marketing dollars to good use by promoting your products in a number of ways. Go for the in-store print ads, the bottleneck hangers, the nicely-printed shelf-talkers, and case displays.

If you’re just getting started, you’re too late. Development of special packaging and selling it into your distributor, and ultimately the liquor stores, needs to be done before August. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still try to make it work for you this year. Get out there and schedule some tastings and work on creating volume-based plans with your distributor for November and December of this year. And while you’re at it, start planning now for OND 2020!