So here are five things you can do in August that will genuinely make you a better digital marketer…

1) Take a break

All rest and no play is not good. It is all too easy to get swept up into a digital marketing bubble – a place where every tweet, piece of fast content and share is analysed, reviewed and rated; this isn’t how non-marketers operate, think or use online and social media.

Even if you are not going away in August, try and spend some time this month taking a break from over-analysis of these marketing metrics. Try and think like your target demographic and use digital the way they do – for fun and consumer information – not the way we often think they should. Give yourself a break and maybe even….

2) Try something different

Experimentation is what drives digital marketing. So what better time to experiment with something than in August, when all the bigwigs are off on holiday and you can maybe get away with a little bit more freedom and experimentation.

I say this tentatively of course! But if there’s an app, widget or service you have wanted to experiment with for a while already – check it out now. You can report back to your tanned colleagues in September and claw back some smugupmanship points. But it’s also important in August that you…

3) Read and review

Think of the summer as the perfect opportunity to review the content you have on your blog or company website; spruce it up, refresh it and ditch anything that is out of date or no longer relevant to what you do.

We all know that onsite content is now more important than ever. It’s a great time to review your existing content and content strategy too, as well as a good time to line up and source potential future outsourced agencies to work with when everyone is ‘back at school’ in September. Y

ou never know, you may find that you are actually ready to…

4) Share some news

If you are looking to get some coverage for your product, service or brand, but are perhaps a little bit unsure about how newsworthy what you have to say is: release it in August.

Why? It’s a slow news month, that’s why. Any old hack or seasoned PR professional will be able to tell you that August is great for maximising that coverage of a non-news story.

Newsrooms are quiet and are crying out for something interesting to cover – so earn some brownie points while your colleagues are off and try to create some well measured print, website and social media coverage. Of course, one of the best ways to make media contacts is to…

5) Hit the pub

Most digital marketers are pretty familiar with the pub at all times of year, but, and I firmly believe this is important in a communication led industry, marketers should hit the pub more in August.

The weather is better (in London), the workload a little lighter (sometimes) and everyone is in a bit more of a holiday mood (occasionally!).

Over the years I have picked up some great advice, ideas, leads and even new clients from social events.  There is no better time of year to catch up with colleagues, ex-colleagues and contacts to ascertain the wider view of the digital landscape.

So get out to those MeetUp Events, networking soirees and ex-work colleague reunions. It’s far better to do this in August than on a wet Wednesday in November when you have back-to-back client calls and team meetings on the agenda the next day, isn’t it? 

The main thing is to enjoy the summer, think aloud, share your thoughts with other digital marketers, take a break and re-energise in preparation for what is always a busy run up to Christmas and the New Year.