Ninety two days

June 1st through August 31st is not going to be a typical summer.

The Strait of Hormuz is (at this writing) effectively closed to much of the global oil supply. The International Energy Agency has called this the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market. As a result, Americans are changing their summer travel plans, and not just because gas is expensive. Everything seems to be increasing in price.

The good news? It's looking like a Staycation Summer for many.

And even better: Your community needs you, your staff, and your studio in a big way.

When people stay close to home this summer, they're going to be looking for fun in their area.

For that reason, you need an intentional, focused, repeat-visit oriented plan. Make your studio top of mind for your customers.

Positioning your studio as the summer go-to means targeting your customer base, driving visits with planned events and activities, and always giving your customers a reason to come back and bring friends.

How do you make this summer The Summer Of ________ (fill in your studio's name)?

Give your summer a theme. Give your summer a name. But first, who are you creating this summer for?

Many studios have a similar avatar: She's a mom in her 30s or 40s. She's an organizer - the girls' night, the birthday party, the "we should do something" that gets on the calendar. She's in the neighborhood group chat. She tells people about your studio after she visits.

The nostalgia sweet spot for her is the 90s and early 2000s — Nirvana, Friends, Spice Girls, Dawson's Creek, flip phones, mix CDs.

You don't have to live in the past to reach her. Meet her where she is now — overwhelmed, overscheduled, watching The Bear, doing Wordle, and needing an outlet (your studio) that replenishes her.

The nostalgia gets her attention. The experience you've created keeps her coming back.

Name your summer for her. A few ideas to get you started; adding your studio name makes it yours:

• Summer of '99 (or any year - Fired Up's Summer of '89)

• Group Chat Summer (Art Space's Group Chat)

• The Slow Down Summer (Art Box's Summer Slow Down)

• Summer, Unscheduled

• The Recharge Summer

• Summer Vibes

• Throwback Summer

• Endless Summer (Clay Pot's Endless Summer)

• Summer Mixtape

• Summer Playlist

• Old School Summer

• Summer Blockbuster

• Summer State of Mind

• Creatively Cool Summer

Embrace the theme: your studio

Once you have your name, build everything around it. Your studio is the physical expression of the theme.

 To get started:

• Create a summer brand around the theme

• Plan a window display; create samples to go along with the theme

• Plan classes, workshops, and events that tie into the theme; ideas like ladies nights, team building, wine tasting, coffee morning chats and creativity, bingo and trivia

• Update your Google Business Profile — hours, photos, description

• Update your social platforms — address, hours, new cover photo for your summer theme

• Update your website with your summer plans by mid-May

Before you officially welcome summer on June 1, walk through your studio like a first-time visitor. What do they see in the window? What do they feel when they walk in?

Does the energy match the name you gave your summer? Every touchpoint — from the door to the checkout counter — is a chance to make the theme real.

Other ideas to incorporate into your summer theme:

• A summer punch card rewards repeat visits without discounting your value — fifth visit gets 50% off a piece (up to $20) or a BOGO half off. Keep the threshold achievable and the reward worth coming back for.

• A giveaway is low effort and high impact — everyone who visits between June 1 and August 31 is entered to win a gift card (or one of three gift cards, in incremental amounts, like $100, $75 and $50).

• Don't let August be the end. A simple promotion can turn a summer visit into a September return. Plants the seed for the September slowdown. Bounce back coupons, kids party offers (birthday child paints for free with 8 painters), spin the wheel of prizes every visit in September, have Halloween and Fall out and ready or kick off the holiday season with a Christmas tree light-up party (promoting any of the seasonal light up pieces).

Your staff are your best marketing tool. Don't spend all your time planning the summer and not give the same attention to your staff.

Before June 1, plan a meeting and walk them through the summer plans. Help them script what's important: how to introduce the theme to a walk-in, how to mention upcoming events naturally in conversation, and how to invite a customer back before they leave. That last one is the most important. A genuine "we have a wine and paint night coming up — you'd love it" is worth more than any flyer on the counter.

Take it further

This is the perfect opportunity to collaborate with a complementary local business. Collaborations strengthen the local economy, deepen community roots, and remind people that shopping and spending close to home is the heart of your community.

Plan an unhurried experience that feels intentional — not just an errand.

It can be a one-night event (wine tasting) or for a week (coffee and painting) or a month (pet groomer). Partner with a neighborhood spot and make it a morning, afternoon, or evening out.

Consider organizing or joining a neighborhood crawl — a summer art crawl, a family crawl, a shop local crawl. Partner with two or three neighboring businesses and create a simple passport or map that encourages people to visit each stop. It drives foot traffic to everyone involved, introduces your studio to people who've walked/driven past a hundred times, and positions your block or district as a destination in itself.

Marketing

Be focused and consistent. This doesn't mean everything, everywhere, all the time needs to carry your summer theme — but consistently marketing what you've created establishes it as what it is: a destination worth coming back to. Repeatedly.

Keep your digital platforms updated:

• Website

• Emails, send them at least twice a month; plan a kick-off and wrap email

• Social media posts (images, videos, and event listings)

• Collabs: be sure you're included in your partner's digital marketing

In-Studio:

• Signage: windows, shelf signs, POS, restroom

• Displays (including collabs)

• Printed material/flyers

• Staff: a training tip list for how to talk about the theme

  
  

Bottom line: this is about creating a space, a reprieve, a reason for your customers to visit two, three or four times, over summer's 92 days, and asking them to invite their community.

It's more than a summer promotion. It's a movement.

And it starts with ninety-two days and a name.

Further resources for planning your summer:

1- Summer Collab Breakdown

2 - Your Own Community

3 - Create An Unstoppable Movement

4 - Summer Promotions To Get Them Back In The Fall