Now's a Good Time to Start Thinking About 2025
Three things you can do now to set your marketing up for success in 2025
If you’re anything like me, you’re tired. It’s the end of the year, your brain is foggy, and you’ve been wearing approximately 69 hats since January (hi, small business life). But before you mentally check out for the holidays, I’d suggest carving out just one hour to set yourself up for success in 2025.
Do it for future you!
I’m not asking you to plan an entire year's worth of content right now (but if you get wild hair up your backside, don’t let me spoil your fun!), but I am asking you to give yourself the gift of clarity.
Think of this as a mini-marketing reset: an audit of what worked, a vision for where you’re going, and a rough map of how you’ll get there. And because I practice what I preach, I’ll be setting aside an hour on December 18th to go through this exact exercise for myself. Grab your calendar and put it on there. Right now. (Go ahead, I’ll wait.)
Here’s the breakdown for your hour-long marketing reset:
Audit 2024:
Spend 15 minutes looking back at all of the marketing you put out for your business in 2024, including your social media posts, emails, and any other marketing you did (magazine PR, postcards, phone calls, etc). Identify:
What worked & why? Did a particular campaign, Instagram post, or email bring in traffic or sales? What type of content or offers got the most engagement? (Bonus points if you pull some hard numbers for this.)
What didn't & why? Be honest here. Was it timing? A lack of promotion? Maybe it didn’t resonate with your audience? Sometimes, things flop—it’s okay, but let’s learn from it.
What do you wish you'd done this year but didn't? Was it because of time? Budget? Inadequate planning (she says pointedly)? Or maybe you just didn’t prioritize it? Write it down so you don’t lose it.
👉 Pro Tip: If you have analytics for your social media or email platforms, take a quick peek at your top-performing posts and campaigns. Patterns will start to emerge that will help you in 2025.
Identify your Goals:
Take the next 15 minutes to jot down 1-3 goals you want to hit next year in your business and then identify:
How you will reach those goals. What actions or strategies will you take?
How you will measure success with your goals. Metrics like new followers, email signups, tasting room visits, etc., are all good things to measure
A timeline to HIT those goals. Deadlines help dreams turn into reality.
Example Goal: Increase weekday tasting room traffic by 10%.How: Offer a Monday–Thursday tasting deal, promote it biweekly on Instagram and monthly via email to local subscribers, and collaborate with a wine influencer to showcase the experience.
Measure: Track tasting room appointments to see a 10% lift by March 31, 2025.
Timeline: Implement the plan in January and evaluate performance at the end of Q1.
👉 Pro Tip: Your goals don’t need to be big or flashy. Simple, measurable goals are often the most impactful.
Plan your Year at a Glance:
Here’s where we get practical. You already know the big things—like wine club shipments, major promotions (looking at you, Black Friday), and local events your winery participates in. Brain-dump all of it into a calendar, breaking it down by month and quarter.
What to include:
Wine club shipments and release dates
Seasonal promotions or campaigns (Valentine’s Day, Harvest, Holidays)
Tasting room events, pop-ups, or virtual tastings
Email newsletters, social media content themes, and any planned ads
Deadlines for collaborations or PR pitches
Do you need a place to start? I’ve created a printable marketing calendar just for you. You can download it HERE and fill it out as you go.
Do you need support and the space to focus and bust this S.O.B. out? Book a 1:1 Strategy Session* with me, and we will spend the day together creating a custom marketing plan for you! In this five-hour focused session you will get:
Prompts for your next nine posts (so you don’t feel stuck staring at a blank screen)
Resources & tools for implementing your custom strategy
Personalized advice on how to improve your engagement
Inspiration & ideas for content to help you grow
Notes to refer back to any time
And, importantly, a weight off your chest