13 of the Best Halloween Marketing Ideas for Small Businesses

Halloween might be known as the spookiest night of the year, but it shouldn’t be scary for small business owners.

It’s one of the best opportunities to build brand awareness and generate revenue for your company. Whether you work in a brick-and-mortar store, e-commerce, or service-based industry, there are plenty of ways to market your business during Halloween.

Free Guide: The Holiday Marketing Handbook

Save a Copy

This post will discuss the best Halloween marketing ideas for small business owners. I’ll explain how you can implement each and provide ideas and strategies your business can execute. By the end of this post, you’ll have everything you need to run an effective Halloween marketing campaign.

1. Run a “Spooktacular Countdown” social campaign.

Social media is great for engaging existing customers since they’re already familiar with your brand and choose to follow your content online. Keep them engaged with tips, entertaining videos, promotions, and more.

• In the weeks leading up to Halloween, post daily or every other day mini content — e.g. “5 days until Halloween: How to spookify your entryway,” “3 days: DIY spider webs you can make in 10 minutes.”
• Use interactive content: polls (“Which ghost décor should we feature next?”), quizzes (“Which Halloween creature matches your personality?”), or “this-or-that” visuals.
• Use a branded hashtag like #SpookyWith[YourBusinessName] and encourage followers to tag you when they try your tips.
• Sneak in flash deals (e.g. “Today only: 20% off on spooky decor items if you message us via Instagram DM”).

You can also go the route of entertainment, like our social media team does for this video:

@getthryv

A #hauntedhouse that would terrify any #smallbusinessowner 🎃👻😱 #howyouthryv #halloween #smallbusinesstiktok

♬ Haunted house ghost story horror (for background)(23672) – Neko Dama

Pro Tip: Not sure what to post? Check out this guide for social media marketing ideas for Halloween.

2. Give out branded merchandise.

Candy isn’t the only thing you should give out on Halloween. It’s also a perfect time to distribute branded merchandise for your business, like keychains, stress balls, and pins.

• Create fun “limited edition” swag: e.g. glow-in-the-dark stickers, temporary tattoos, Halloween masks, reusable treat bags with your logo.
• Give them away as freebies with purchase, or as freebies at local events or pop-ups.
• Encourage recipients to post pictures of themselves using the swag and tag your business (and perhaps enter a contest)

3. Send customers a Halloween-themed email.

Email is another effective channel for connecting with customers. If you use marketing software, most email tools will have pre-made templates you can customize for each season. Some even have a Halloween theme, so all you have to do is fill out the email with your company’s information.

• Segment your email list (e.g. longtime customers vs lapsed vs leads), and send tailored spooky-themed messages: “We’ve missed you — here’s a Halloween treat just for you,” etc.
• Use subject lines like “This offer will vanish at midnight” or “Don’t ghost us — 30% off ends soon!”
• In email or SMS, include a mystery discount — e.g. pull a “witch’s hat” graphic, click to reveal whether they get 10 / 20 / 30 % off.
• Add share buttons so recipients can forward to friends to “unlock an extra 5 % off for both you & a friend.”

4. Launch a limited-time offer or deal.

Halloween is a good time to start a promotion or deal because it’s one of the last holidays before winter. People are looking to get things done, and a limited-time offer can be just the right promotion to sway them to your business.

• “Haunted Hour” discounts: for example, one hour each evening from 5–6 pm, offering 25 % off on certain items or services.
• Tiered treat packs: bundle products or services into “Witch’s Brew Bundle,” “Monster Mash Package,” etc.
• “Trick-or-Treat” coupons hidden locally: partner with neighboring shops or cafes to hide little coupon cards (like “trick or treat voucher good for $10 off”) in their shops, and customers bring them to you.
• “Reverse Trick-or-Treat”: hand out small freebies or discount trinkets to passersby (on foot traffic routes), ideally with your branding.

5. Host an online or in-person event.

A lot of people have plans for Halloween. Your community has parties, festivals, and events where you can market your products to potential customers.

You can host your own event, too, like a haunted house or virtual movie. Try to come up with something relevant to your business. For example, if you work in beauty services, provide tips for Halloween costumes or set up a booth where people can get their makeup done. It doesn’t have to be an extravagant event. It just needs to be fun and convenient for your audience.

• Costume contest night: host a themed event (e.g. at your store or a local community center). Offer prizes for categories (best costume, scariest, most creative).
• Haunted open house / trick-or-treat at your store: decorate your location, hand out candy or small freebies, and run mini workshops (e.g. pumpkin carving, face painting).
• Virtual “spooky how-to lesson”: a livestream or Zoom where you teach your audience DIY Halloween crafts or tutorials tied to your business niche (e.g. “How to make DIY spooky candles” or “Spooky makeup tutorial”).
• Community trunk-or-treat: partner with several local businesses to host a “trunk-or-treat” event in a parking lot. Each business decorates a car and hands out treats or small promos.
• Local haunted walking tour: if your town has any ghost stories or older neighborhoods, host a guided ghost walk and tie in your brand (e.g. stops at your shop for refreshment or freebies).

6. Promote Halloween deals with direct mail.

Direct mail isn’t dead. Like a monster in a scary movie, it comes back again and again as one of the most effective ways to market your business. In fact, 90% of Americans engage with local business promotions via direct mail.

Direct mail helps you build brand awareness and connect with customers who are ready to make a purchase. If you use your CRM properly, you can identify people who are a good fit for your business and send them mailers that promote your company or encourage them to book an appointment.

• Send postcards or mini mailers shaped like pumpkins, ghosts, or bats.
• Include a scratch-off element (reveal your discount).
• Mail them a week or two before Halloween to get people excited.
• Use the mailer to tie into your in-store event or trunk-or-treat.

If you want to share a special offer, put the details inside the card and position your discount as a gift instead of a promotion. That will make your card look more like a gesture of gratitude than a pushy sales pitch.

7. Add a Halloween theme to your website.

Your website is like a digital home for your business. Make it festive and decorate it with page elements highlighting the Halloween season. For instance, add orange, black, and white text to your home page and include images of ghosts, spiderwebs, and black cats where possible.

Have fun with your site design, but don’t overdo it. Your changes should direct people to the page elements you want them to focus on. They shouldn’t be distracting or make your site more difficult to navigate.

• Add Halloween-themed skins: ghosts, cobwebs, pumpkins, dark mode toggles.
• Use spooky loading animations (e.g. bats flapping).
• Include a Halloween pop-up: “Enter your email & spin the cauldron for a special discount.”
  
• Highlight “limited-time Halloween offers” prominently on homepage banners.

Holiday Marketing
Handbook

Discover the top strategies to boost your holiday marketing success and how to revamp your messaging to convey the holiday spirit in this free guide.

Get it now

8. Ask for customer reviews and referrals.

Halloween candy is great, but it’s nothing compared to getting a customer review for your business. Customer reviews are incredibly important for small business owners. Good ones build a position reputation and help you get discovered on Google. The more good reviews you have, the easier it is to find your business when people search for things like “best plumbers near me.”

Customer referrals are another way to attract new people to your brand. Referrals work because they’re recommendations from real customers, not advertisements from your company. People are more likely to trust these reviews because they came from customers who had positive experiences with your brand.

• Offer customers who leave a review during October a chance to win a “Halloween Prize Pack.”
• Ask for photos of clients using your product or service in a Halloween theme (e.g. photos of decorated homes or projects you supplied). Feature the best ones in your social feed or website.
• For referrals during October, give a “spooky bonus” — e.g. refer a friend and both get $10 off or a free Halloween swag item.

Pro Tip: You can use this free tool to request Google reviews from customers.

9. Create a Halloween video for your business.

Halloween is the perfect time to create content for your business, and video is one of the most effective ways to draw your audience’s attention. In fact, 90% of marketers say that video has produced a positive return on investment for their companies.

There are several ways you can leverage video for marketing content.

• Short-form content (Reels, TikToks, Shorts): e.g. “Before & after: spooky makeovers,” “fast DIY haunted decor in 30 seconds.”
• Time-lapse of you transforming your store into a haunted lair.
• “Behind-the-scenes” reel of you prepping for Halloween night.
• Use trending audio (eerie tracks, spooky sound bites) to increase discoverability.
• Encourage duets / stitches: e.g. invite followers to show their own spooky setups with a branded challenge.

If you don’t have time to create videos, you can use a free AI tool to help you. 75% of marketers have used AI to create or edit videos for their business.

Pro Tip: Audio is as important as video. Make sure your audio is loud enough and free of static or feedback.

10. Sponsor a local party, festival, or fair.

If hosting an event seems daunting, another idea is to sponsor one, instead. Check your area’s Facebook Groups and community pages for events like parties, fairs, and festivals. These outings typically have sponsors who set up booths and signage around them.

• Find local fall festivals, Halloween fairs, school events, trunk-or-treats, haunted houses, etc. — become a sponsor and get signage or booth space.
• Set up a photo booth with props (pumpkins, witches’ hats) in your booth and encourage people to take pictures and tag your brand.
• Make a small donation or run a fundraising twist: e.g., for every purchase in October, you donate a portion to a local children’s or pets non-profit.

11. Partner with another small business.

Partnerships are great because they give you access to an entirely new customer base. You can advertise on another company’s website, in its stores, or on its social media pages to drum up awareness for your business.

You can also run joint marketing campaigns that promote deals for both companies. For example, one idea is to share punchcards between each business and offer coupons to people who discovered your brand from your partner’s store. This strategy creates a stream of customer referrals from another trusted company.

• Team up with a local bakery, coffee shop, costume store, or florist.
• Create cross-promos: e.g. “buy a costume at [Partner A], get 10 % off at [your business],” or joint Halloween bundle (costume + hair/makeup + accessories).
• Do an “Instagram hop”: you post about their business and they post about yours, maybe through a joint contest.

Initiatives like these generate brand awareness and build goodwill with your customer base. People will see that you care about the same causes that they do and will want to participate in your campaign. Not only does that lead to more sales, but happier customers, too.

12. Run a contest or giveaway.

Contests are a great way to bring some attention to your business. After all, who doesn’t like winning free stuff?

Consider using your social media accounts to launch a contest or giveaway. Apps make it easy to share your messages online and connect you with people who care about your brand.

Ensure your event’s rules are clear and that you’ve set a deadline for entry. You should also have a goal for what you want to gain from hosting this giveaway.

• “Haunted Home Makeover”: giveaway of your services (or products) to transform someone’s house into a Halloween showpiece.
• Photo challenge: ask fans to post their best Halloween décor or costume with your hashtag; winner gets a prize (free service, gift card, swag).
• Caption this spooky image: post a photo and ask your audience to come up with the best caption; the winner gets a discount or gift.
• Scavenger hunt: hide digital or physical clues across your local area or website. People who find all clues enter a grand prize.
• Use a requirement to enter: follow your page, like & share, tag friends, comment why they love Halloween, etc.

Whether your goal is to drive more sales, get more followers, or go viral online, ensuring your business has a goal will make creating contests and giveaways that benefit your brand easier.

13. Share seasonal content.

Maybe this isn’t your company’s busiest holiday, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of it. One of the easiest ways you can generate buzz for your business is with seasonal marketing content. This timely content speaks to an immediate trend or pain point that customers experience during that time of year.

• Share blog posts or short tips: “How to keep your pet safe during Halloween,” “Best autumn decorations for your home,” “Halloween safety tips for kids.”
• Create downloadable content: printable pumpkin stencils, recipe cards for spooky snacks, and wallpapers.
• Guest posts or a roundup: collaborate with a local blogger, influencer, or complementary business to share Halloween tips.
• A “countdown series” blog linking to your offers (e.g. “Top 5 Halloween décor ideas” leading into your bundled décor sales).

Pro Tip: Invoice marketing is a sneaky way to advertise to customers. Use the tips in this video to create top-notch invoices this Halloween.

Halloween Marketing for Small Businesses

Don’t get spooked by the holiday season. Use these Halloween marketing tips to generate brand awareness and drive more sales for your business. Craft a marketing message that resonates with your target audience and take advantage of communication channels like email, social media, and text. Combining these strategies will help you engage more customers and produce successful Halloween marketing campaigns for your company.

Holiday Marketing
Handbook

Discover the top strategies to boost your holiday marketing success and how to revamp your messaging to convey the holiday spirit in this free guide.

Get it now