How Local Businesses Can Boost 4th of July Sales With Digital Advertising

Independence Day is right around the corner, which means parades, sparklers, and spending quality time with family and friends. However, it also presents an opportunity for local businesses to take advantage of the holiday and create additional sales.

While grocery stores and fireworks tents will naturally see an increase in sales leading up to the 4th of July, every business can benefit from the celebration in one way or another. You might decorate your storefront, offer holiday-themed products, or design festive social media posts and giveaways.

Whichever way you choose to celebrate and market your business, the goal remains the same: expand your reach and increase revenue. Among the most impactful and cost-effective ways to do so is through a comprehensive digital marketing strategy. 

From social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to geo-targeted Google Ads campaigns, there are many ways to leverage Independence Day in your favor. But before we get into the specifics, just how much does the 4th of July affect consumer behavior? Let’s dive in.

The Impact Of July 4th On Consumer Behavior

Summer can be a slow time of the year for many local businesses, but July 4th provides a break from the monotony of the season and the opportunity to boost sales. Soft Prodigy found that consumers spend nearly $300 each on Independence Day-themed food and supplies at retail stores.

This is due to a rapid rise in spending over the past several years. The National Retail Federation (NRF) reported over a 22% increase in total July 4th-related spending from 2022 to 2024, according to its 2024 Independence Day survey, which received responses from 8,952 consumers.

While several industries benefit from the additional business, food and beverage providers are impacted the most. In 2024, consumers were estimated to have spent $9.4 billion on food and $3.87 billion on alcohol, according to Capital One Shopping. 

This is largely because, according to the NRF, 66% of those who celebrated the holiday in 2024 did so at a cookout, barbecue, or picnic, making it the most common way to enjoy the occasion. Still, the food and beverage industry isn’t the only one that can see a spike in sales during this time of year.

NRF’s survey showed that 31% of those who celebrate planned to purchase additional patriotic-themed items. This includes apparel like shirts and sandals, accessories like hats and sunglasses, and many other items.

However, even if your business doesn’t provide a good or service that directly relates to the holiday, there are plenty of ways to join in the festivities. The most important thing to note is that July 4th is one of the most widely acknowledged holidays in the US, and consumers will certainly spend more at this time of year; it’s just a matter of where they choose to spend it.

To ensure your local business benefits from the circumstance, you should plan your marketing efforts early to stay ahead of the competition.

How To Beat the Competition This 4th of July

Getting ahead doesn’t just mean ordering red, white, and blue streamers and other USA-themed decor a few weeks before the 4th of July. It entails a well-thought-out approach, with several key steps along the way. 

Among the most important is managing your business’s online listing. Most companies change their operating hours around the holidays, and keeping your followers up to date can influence their shopping decisions. Even if you plan to keep your regular hours, clarifying this could be the difference between a customer choosing you or someone else in town.

Another important part of preparing for Independence Day is identifying your target audience. Chances are, you already have a good idea of who they are, but narrowing it down as much as possible can significantly influence the type of marketing campaigns you employ.

This can be as simple as recognizing that your typical customer falls within the senior demographic, meaning you’d likely choose to advertise on Facebook and avoid modern pop culture references that may not resonate with that age group.

The last crucial step before creating your digital advertising campaigns is knowing the best time to distribute your content to maximize engagement. This includes both time of day and day of the week, and when planned, can be utilized for several weeks before the holiday. Examining analytics from past campaigns can provide this information, meaning you don’t have to scroll endlessly back in time.

Now that this information has been collected, it’s time to dive into the fun part, and that’s how you want to use your local business to celebrate the 4th of July. There are endless ways to do so, but here’s a start on some ideas for your digital marketing strategy.

Social Media and Display Ad Content Ideas for July 4th

By now, you’re ready to get creative and produce engaging content that boosts your online presence. Just remember that no matter where you choose to distribute your content, the goal is to build anticipation and set yourself apart from your competition.

You want your business to be at the forefront of your customers’ holiday plans as they prepare their celebrations, and creating a series of unique content can achieve that. So without further ado, here are several ideas that can jumpstart your digital advertising efforts.

• Run a Facebook or Instagram contest: Hosting a contest can be a great way to not only build anticipation and get customers through the door, but it can also be used to improve your online presence. Asking for honest reviews in exchange for entries into your contest is a great way to boost your business listing and attract customers who may not typically visit your store.

• Add patriotic-themed products to your inventory: July 4th is among the easiest holidays to adapt your inventory to. If a product can be transformed into red, white, and blue, it’s eligible to be at the forefront of your marketing efforts. Photos of these products can be used across social media and display ads to show your business is all in.

• Military discounts: Many observers of Independence Day use it as a chance to honor and memorialize those who have served in the United States military. Implementing discounts for past and present military members is not only a great way to show you appreciate their service, but it can also signal to others that your business recognizes their contributions.

• Limited-time offers: If you’re looking to create anticipation, there’s perhaps no better way than by offering a product or discount for a limited time. This encourages interested customers to act before the holiday rather than putting it off indefinitely. Knowing the offer won’t last can motivate both new and returning customers to take advantage of it while they can.

• Utilizing hashtags: However you choose to employ social media, using hashtags on every piece of content is an easy way to increase traffic for your posts. Creating a list of hashtags to insert below every post takes almost no additional time or effort, and can significantly improve your online searchability and reach.

• Clever captions: This is where you get to put your creative cap on. Brainstorming and writing out as many captions as possible and then sharing them with other members of your business can be a perfect way to set yourself apart from other marketing efforts. If you’re not the creative type or are struggling to think of creative captions, ChatGPT and other AI models can help generate ideas that you can then implement into your posts.

• Family and personal photos: Using photos from past celebrations with your family and friends can emphasize that when customers buy from you, they’re supporting their community. It also cultivates a connection that could be the difference between a consumer choosing your local business or a large chain.

• Partner with another local business: If your business is friendly with another in the area that can complement what you offer, this could be a great way to mutually benefit from your digital advertising campaigns and expand your reach.

These are just a few of the many ways to celebrate July 4th with your customers, but there’s still another crucial step to take before you see the results.

Maximize Visibility By Targeting the Right Audience With Digital Ads

Now that you’ve created marketing content, it’s time to use it. Facebook, Instagram, and other social media ads should be planned accordingly with peak engagement times and posted regularly to ensure your ads resonate with the customers as the holiday approaches. 

However, maximizing your reach means that including display ads is a must. These tools can expand your reach beyond social media and increase impressions rapidly. Furthermore, these ads can be geo-targeted to make sure you’re not wasting any of your marketing budget. They’ll be put in front of your ideal audience, across nearly any web page they visit.

Utilizing all of these tools, along with managing your online listing, is essential to a successful 4th of July advertising campaign. It may seem like a lot, but your local business deserves to see the best results, especially during the downtime of the year for many industries.

How Best Version Media Can Help

We understand that your time is valuable and it’s better spent on your products, services, and customers. That’s where Best Version Media can help by boosting your local business’s online presence through listings and reviews management across directories, maps, and search engines, all from one dashboard. 

BVM can bundle your display ad campaigns with social media ads to ensure your business maximizes visibility and ultimately drives in more customers. Get in touch with BVM to find a digital advertising strategy that’s right for you.