It’s hard to believe Thanksgiving is only a week away.
If that realization strikes panic inside of you, take a breath, I have a little something fun to help ease you into the holiday and maybe help take some stress out of planning that perfect meal. Every year I go through the same drill of trying to decide whether or not I actually want to host Thanksgiving at my house or not. I am not sure why I always do this because there really isn’t any need for the anxiety. I cook dinner every night for the most part, so why is this day any different?
I guess for me it is all the planning that goes into it and the thought that everything needs to be perfect. This year is no different. Here I am with seven days to go and I still don’t have a plan. Well, last night as I was playing around and looking for some ideas I came across the “Thanksgiving Menu Generator.” It is created by Savuer (a foodie magazine) and is their answer to making planning Thanksgiving easier. The “Thanksgiving Menu Generator” is a slot machine for meal planning. All you do is click the spin button and you have the answer to your turkey, vegetable, starch, cocktail and dessert dilemmas.
I took a spin and ended up with The Perfect Roasted Bird, Green Beans and Tomatoes, Sweet Potato Casserole, Bourbon Cider and Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream Pie.
While it may not be the most traditional solution to going about Thanksgiving menu planning, I think it is a cute and fun way to take some of the stress out of the holiday. It also is a neat example of how companies are using different strategies to allow their clients to engage in the content of their websites. Websites are based on text, and that is a integral part of a company’s online presence, but it always puts a little smile on my face when I see something fresh that allows one to interact with a site. I think this generates more interest and causes clients to dig deeper and learn more about what a company is all about.
While an online game might not apply to your client base or budget, here are three simple suggestions to keep customers engaged while they are visiting your website:
Give away a special report or white paper. Engage them by inviting them to download your content. This should be an article or summary of research that solves a problem for your target customer.
Invite visitors to subscribe to your blog and newsletter. Give clients the option to sign up to receive your weekly blog updates or your monthly newsletter. Post an archive of previous newsletters so that your customer can see how valuable the information is in each one.
Invite them to connect with you using social media. Ask them to like your fan page, follow you on Twitter, and connect with you on LinkedIn. Make sure the links on your site are live and will take them directly to your specific social media profiles.
I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving and if you are feeling a little stressed about your meal plans why not take a spin on the meal generator!
~ Bethany Howell, art director
