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Autumn (and Play-Doh) Teaches Us to Look at Things in a New Way

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Happy fall, y’all, For many of us, it’s our favorite season.

Oddly enough, autumn is an example of open-mindedness. In August, we bemoan the loss of fun and sun. Yet, if we wait it out just a few weeks that NEXT season— autumn—delightfully changes our world. The same can be said about our ever-shifting business world. Maybe even our products.

Play-Doh Wasn’t Invented for Kids  

In the 1930s Kutol Products produced a putty to clean furnace soot off wallpaper. But by the 1950s, natural gas replaced coal as the main heating source and demand for the putty came to an end. No problem. Kutol Products saw an opportunity to reimagine the product as a kid’s toy—Play-Doh!

Dying and rotting leaves create the musky autumn scents we love. Product failures motivate new ideas—innovative ideas that sometimes change the world.

What’s the NEXT season for your small business? Or your product? Maybe it’s the time for creative thinking and new ideas.

What I’m Working On This Month

Autumn is our seasonal celebration of sipping and scenery. My husband and I call it our Octoberfest Brewery Tour and every year I do a poster to commemorate the event. This year we’re heading to Iceland. Yes, Iceland! They have beer, but only since 1989—seriously.

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  • Mammoth Hike Challenge starts October 1! It’s the Ice Age Trail Alliance’s annual celebration of October in Wisconsin—43 miles and three trail communities. Need to track your segments? See below!
  • I made these S’Mores bars for an autumn gathering and, yes, they were the best.
  • We all have opinions about the UAW strike. “The Four Winds,” by Kristin Hannah, opened my eyes to life before unions.
  • Are you a gardener? Here’s an interesting article on seed saving.

Let’s Work Together

Think Adunate might be a good fit for your next project? Give me a holler and we’ll discuss ideas.

CONTACT ME

New and Updated!

It looks sorta the same, but it’s not. It’s better! Hot off the press, Adunate’s new map will keep you trekking on the Ice Age Trail’s up-to-date route. Complete with added segments and trail communities, it’s a great way to showcase your hiking adventures!

Check it out here!

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NOT SUBSCRIBED? LET’s Do This!

Collaborate With Your Competitors? You Bet!

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My husband and I just returned from our annual Octoberfest Brewery Tour. This year we took our sipping and scenery to Charleston, SC, and it was glorious! 

Businesses Working Together

In one of Charleston’s lesser known but rising neighborhoods is the Charleston Brewery District. It’s a community of ten breweries “sharing their love of beer with the Lowcountry,” as they like to boast. It’s also an example of savvy entrepreneurs working together to create a tourist hotspot, benefitting both their businesses and their community.

Used with permission from the Charleston Brewery District

Creative Collaboration

Tarah Gee, president of the Charleston Brewery District, says there are many advantages to working together. Two innovative ideas rocking it for both the breweries and the community: 

  • Free Shuttle
    The ten breweries have chipped in to provide a free shuttle every Saturday. Beer enthusiasts ride from brewery to brewery, sampling and enjoying.
     
  • Keep Charleston Beautiful
    Once a month, the breweries take turns hosting a neighborhood clean-up. The breweries provide the bags and volunteers provide the umph. Afterward, everyone gathers for a beer. 

What about you? How can you and your competitors work together? 

LET’s WORK TOGETHER

What I’m Working On This Month

Join me November 4 as I present an inspiring workshop for the Women Food & Ag Network. Here’s the scoop!

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  1. It takes a team, even in the craft beer industry.
  2. October was National Women’s Small Business Month: Two women forge their way and help others to do the same.
  3. What makes Wisconsin special: One brewery’s pandemic business model.
  4. Are predicted shortages stressing your gift plans? Give an Ice Age Trail poster.

Your Brain on Autumn

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Raise your hand if you like Oktoberfest beer. I do! I do! I’m not sure if it’s the beer itself or its relationship to autumn, but when this malty Märzen shows up on shelves, my tastebuds are aglow (and my pocketbook is open). 

Little did Bavaria’s Crown Prince and his lovely Therese know their wedding would initiate a marketing strategy for generations to come. Beer isn’t the only industry that embraces autumn. Nor is autumn the only season businesses embrace. But since leaves are turning, let’s examine why it is that autumn is the second largest consumer spending season of the year, followed only by winter with Christmas.

The Psychology Behind Autumnal Marketing

Seasonal marketing is about looking at the calendar, identifying appropriate opportunities and capitalizing on them. But just what is it about autumn that captures our soul?

Autumn is about warmth
Even though the days grow shorter and the air is cooler, autumn resonates with a warmth we all cherish. We don our soft flannels. We sit by the campfire. We relish in the reds, golds, browns. It’s no surprise brewers chose a rich, amber-style lager to represent Oktoberfest. 

Autumn is about memories
Hiking crisp trails, jumping in piles of leaves, cheering our football team, swooning over apple pie—autumn is a season of memories, senses and association. Perhaps no product captures this psyche better than Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte. 

Autumn is about preparation and hunkering in
Autumn transitions us into winter. We batten our homes and tidy up our gardens. Farmers markets are a cornucopia of pumpkins, apples, peppers, honey, and all things comforting in cold months ahead. 

Apply Autumn to Your Marketing
Studying autumn helps us more creatively market our business. Whether it’s social media content or your products themselves, don’t miss this seasonal opportunity.

LET’s WORK TOGETHER

What I’m Working On This Month

Our own Octoberfest! Every year my husband and I take two weeks off for a “seasonal celebration of sipping and scenery.” As a creative exercise, I design a promotional poster to mark the event. We’ve been doing this quite a few years, which means I have a wall lined with posters!

What I’m Tuned In To This Month

  1. An Open Letter to AirBnB: We’ve become avid AirBnB-ers. This letter brings valid thoughts and discussion. 
  2. Green Fire: Emmy award-winning film exploring Aldo Leopold’s land ethic, complete with discussion guide.
  3. Sautéed Broccoli With Toasted Garlic, Orange and Sesame: Our garden broccoli is still going strong. This sounds good!
  4. The Very Best Thing To Do With a Good Mood: Good and bad moods—how to use them to achieve your goals.