Every business has its busy season. For retailers and nonprofits, the holidays and end of year are hectic. Real estate agents get the move on each spring, as people get the itch for new homes. Summer and fall bring a bounty of brides for wedding planners and suppliers.

Busy seasons don’t leave much time for putting together a good marketing plan. That’s why it’s wise to plan your marketing far in advance of those hectic times.

Based on past years’ experience, you can predict when your business will hit its highs.  A marketing plan that’s in place well before that time arrives lets you focus on taking care of business as it pours in. With marketing planned and in progress, your products and services continue to get the attention of your customers so that when the busy season ends, you won’t have to worry about sales taking a deep dive due to inactivity in your marketing efforts.

When it comes to marketing, the upsides of having a strategy in place outweigh the time it takes to create a marketing plan. Here are a few:

Bigger, better ideas. There’s a reason the best ideas come when we’re taking a shower. We’re relaxed, and our brains aren’t overtaxed and trying so hard. When we aren’t pressured or on deadline, we think better and have better ideas too. Plus, with a plan there’s more time to work on essential elements of print and online marketing like sales copy, photography and design.

Say it again. And again. Repetition is marketing’s kryptonite. When you plan your marketing in advance, there will be time to repeat your message. Remember the rule of 7; basically people are more likely to remember your marketing when they see it 7 or more times. A long-term marketing plan that stretches throughout the year has potential for more views than a plan that was created in a hurry, lasts only a few days or weeks and lacks repetition.

More flexibility. A marketing plan that’s in place well in advance can be monitored, evaluated and changed if you need to make adjustments to improve it. When you know there’s time for tweaking, worries about perfection ease. You can live by Gen. George Patton’s winning philosophy, “A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.” The time you would have spent planning at the last minute can be focused on other aspects of your business.

Branch out. Designing and approving a print marketing piece far before you need it not only eliminates the usual last-minute “get it in the mail” scramble but it gives you more time to try new marketing ideas. Multichannel marketing provides more depth and reaches different audiences.  By planning your marketing strategy ahead, you could try something you haven’t done before like social media ads or expand your efforts with landing pages or email campaigns.

A time to relax…or brainstorm. A marketing strategy that’s planned in advance means one less worry during the busy season. So, instead of fretting about too much to do, you can sit down, savor that cup of coffee and get to work on your next brilliant idea without the pressure of that marketing deadline.