For individuals and organizations alike, January is the perfect time to commit to creating real, positive change.

On the personal level, it just makes sense. Let’s admit it: No one ever gets much done in that gray area between Christmas and the first of January. When the new year finally dawns, you’re ready to tackle new challenges and explore new frontiers. The new year feels full of possibility, and there’s no better time to seize the day.

And it’s not just about the symbolism. There are plenty of practical reasons why businesses should start a new chapter in their marketing right on January 1st. By aligning your new marketing to the new year, you’ll actually give yourself some significant advantages. Let’s take a closer look.

When You Start in January, Your Marketing Gains Steam Just as Your Customers Do

No matter their background, most customers do some substantial spending during the holiday season. They may buy special gifts or do a lot of traveling. Once all is said and done, even the most affluent tend toward reduced spending for a while. That makes January the perfect opportunity for service-based businesses.

Even a handcrafted marketing strategy designed by experts just for you takes a while to gain traction. You’ll notice the first signs of change in about 30 days, but it takes around 90 days to gather steam. With a January start, your marketing will take hold just as your customers are ready to spend again.

The longer you wait, the more likely you’ll be behind the spending curve for at least the coming year. Of course, your marketing will catch up eventually if you stay the course into 2025 and beyond. But even though you know patience is a virtue, wouldn’t you rather see your marketing strategy firing on all cylinders sooner?

An Early Start Means You’re In a Position to Spend Less Overall to Get Your Message Out

The sooner you get started with content marketing and other long-term, low-cost approaches, the less you’ll have to spend to get the results you want. Marketing has a moderate up-front investment but continues to help practically for free as years go by because it influences your visibility in search results.

By contrast, waiting too long to start marketing means you’ll have fewer options. You could try to catch up with online advertising, but ad spending without a strong marketing foundation is a risky bet. Instead of getting eyes on your content, you may get caught in a spiral where under-performing ads cost you more and get you less.

That leads to more of your money going to Google or Apple and less of it coming back to you in the long run.

While advertising can be one small part of a well-rounded strategy, we’ve found that more of our customers are displeased with the level of overhead it requires. Unless you’re a retailer, an advertising-heavy strategy is never as predictable or as sustainable as one where marketing gets the bulk of your time and resources.

You’ll Have Comparable Data that Will Help You Do an Even Better Job Marketing Next Year

Marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. The fact that it takes about a quarter to really get started is telling. But it’s not all about waiting around and twiddling your thumbs. The decisions you make now have a long time horizon, so you could be thanking yourself in January 2025 for the things you do right now.

Even the most carefully built marketing is never “perfect.” It can always be refined and improved. Your audience will continue to change, and so will your offerings and your vision. The way to chart a course to those enduring good results is by exploring the data your marketing yields and applying its lessons with each passing month.

When you jump into marketing in January, it means you’ll have year-over-year data you can compare for the whole of 2025. While that might seem far in the future, it’ll be here before you know it. And having that data could mean the difference between a 1% gain in marketing outcomes and a 10% gain.

One of the magical things about marketing is that results compound. Even a 1% positive change is worthwhile if you start soon enough and let it accumulate. Before long, modest jumps consolidate into a real and lasting competitive advantage – one that newcomers can’t take away simply by spending more than you do.

Don’t Wait Until January to Get Ready for Your New Year Marketing Campaign

Although January is a ripe time for positive change, it’s crucial not to fall into the trap of complacency.

Every one of us has had the experience of setting out to achieve a New Year’s resolution that went nowhere. It may have fizzled out as soon as we saw just how expensive it would be to “only eat healthy,” or it might have sputtered along for a few months of sporadic gym sessions until life’s other priorities took over.

The same thing can happen with businesses. It’s the flip side of the coin to the high hopes you have for the new year: Those hopes don’t always pan out. So, how can you make sure your ambitions for better marketing play out effectively? Oddly enough, the answer is the same for people and brands.

You need accountability.

A personal trainer you have to meet every week is a better asset than a new gym membership. A nutritionist who’ll teach you how to cook those healthy meals is a better asset than a whole shopping cart of raw veggies.

And a marketing agency is a better partner than any number of “do-it-yourself” tutorials.

When you hire a marketing agency, the accountability goes both ways:

• Your marketing agency partner helps you articulate goals and develop a step-by-step plan.
• You remain part of the process and see the value the agency generates for you over time.

A marketing agency keeps you on the right path by giving you insightful advice based on real experience. When you know what’s worked for other businesses like yours in the past, you can work together to make sure your budget is invested in the approaches most likely to fuel your growth in 2024.

Working with a marketing agency isn’t just about the skills and creativity they bring to the table, their years of training, or the pricey tools you don’t have to pay for because they’ve got it covered. It’s also about having the human connection and building a strong relationship that makes your company stronger in turn.

If you’ve decided to make 2024 a bold new start in your marketing strategy, you’ve already taken a valuable first step. Now, take the next one: Don’t go it alone. Instead, choose an award-winning marketing agency you can trust to walk the path with you. That way, you can go from strength to strength instead of playing catch-up.

Contact New York Ave to find out more or get started.