What Does New Year's Eve Do For Businesses?

At the beginning of every new calendar year, millions of people go out and celebrate the fresh start. New Year’s Eve is the celebration where many people gather to engage in different festivities and stay up to see the clock strike midnight. Over the years, many celebrations have been created in order to celebrate the holiday. Many people stay home and watch a broadcast of the countdown on T.V. with themselves, or they may host a small party with close friends to bring in the new year. However, many people decide that they would rather go out and celebrate. Over the years, some people have decided that they would rather celebrate at restaurants, probably so they could just order drinks and food instead of prepping it at their own place. However, this is a big strain on restaurants. It will get busy, fast, especially as it gets closer to midnight and having multiple people in a restaurant or bar at once can be a huge stress for owners. So how can businesses benefit from the celebration? How can businesses outweigh the negatives that come with crowded, small spaces and constant demands for food? How can businesses even bring people in to celebrate as more people choose to stay home? 

For starters, one way that businesses can enjoy the celebrations is to overall enjoy the spirit! One way you can do this is by creating an inviting atmosphere. According to the Peterman Firm, the atmosphere of a business can play “a huge role in the success or failure of a business.” An atmosphere can make people feel invited, or unfortunately uncomfortable, depending on the elements that an owner instills. Music, colors, images, smells, and sounds can influence the way a consumer feels in a business. So, to enjoy the celebration in your business make your space feel more welcoming to the festivities. A second way is to open up a space to have fun. This probably only applies to restaurants and bars, but people want a place to go out and party on New Year's Eve. Although only 5% of people go out to parties and bars, says Civic Science, many young adults are “the most likely to find themselves at party spots.” Even if the margin is small for how many people go out and celebrate, the numbers are still there. Hence, restaurants and bars, specifically, should still participate in the festivities because some people still go out and celebrate. A third way is by decorating! Just by putting up a couple cheery decorations, like a banner or a couple table decorations, can lighten the atmosphere a lot. As I had mentioned before, colors and images can influence the way your business is perceived. Many consumers may feel more welcomed into your business if you decorate because you would be showing off a positive brand image and that you are engaged with the holidays. So, by decorating many people would feel invited to engage with your business, which would lead to more profit for you. 

A second way to enjoy the busy holiday is to have multiple deals. It is known among many business owners that specials and deals are a way to bring consumers in. According to Chron, when businesses “offer discounts on purchases” in your store, it would be a “quick way to draw people into your store”. These discounts give consumers the illusion that they can save money now with deals, which will likely grab attention of shoppers. They create a sense of urgency to get products now, make people feel good about their purchases, and make people believe they are getting more for their money. There are many ways businesses can make these deals. For Food Businesses, having specials on appetizers and drinks may draw individuals or groups to come in and celebrate since their meal will be cheaper than it would be normally. For Retail Businesses, sales on clothes or products could cause individuals to purchase something that they didn’t during the Christmas sales. It also allows those who got gift cards or money over the holidays to still get products on sale, which will most likely make them want to buy it more and get things now. Especially if you’re marketing towards New Year’s Eve, people may buy specific things for parties, like food trays at food stores, or a new outfit for the evening. For Fitness Businesses, you could focus on New Year’s resolutions and discounted rates for people looking to join a membership. Additionally, New Year’s deals can attract new customers to your business. Due to busy Christmas shopping, many people may not be open to shopping at new places till later. However, if a business continues to have sales past that season, some consumers may give your business a try. Overall, sales and deals can boost a business near New Year’s Eve. 

A third way is to create benefits for your employees as well! Not only should your consumers feel welcome on New Year’s Eve, your employees should feel it too. The first benefit could be employee engagement. According to Connecteam, A 2022 Gallup report determined that “21% of employees are engaged at work” and opening up opportunities to celebrate could allow employees to “feel more included in the workplace”. This report shows that many employees don’t engage outside of their normal work day, so by creating a party, especially a New Year’s Eve party to celebrate the new year, can promote more opportunities to engage with the company. The second benefit would be fueling teamships. Holding parties or work events allows employees to have a place with colleagues, outside of demanding work, to interact with one another and build friendships. Having fun activities or holiday themed games can build interactions among employees, and can create lasting relationships and increase communication. According to The Guardian Jobs, team building brings the benefit of better communication among the work space. By having a party at the end of the year, employees can strengthen their teams by being able to interact without all the stress. The third benefit could be an increase in company culture. For those who don’t know, Company Culture is the shared values, beliefs, and behaviors that shape a company’s “personality”. These can be fueled in places where employees of a company interact with one another, like a party! Parties could be a space to “unify and reinforce company culture and values”, according to Spice HR. When companies hold parties, they can evaluate whether or not they have a healthy workspace and the employees are motivated, which would improve the company culture. The fourth benefit of parties is the ability to destress. Many can understand that going to a party and hanging out with people you know can help you destress from your day-to-day life. The same can happen at a work party. Accomplishments can be highlighted at a New Year’s Party which can “uplifts spirits, boosts morale, and fuel motivation”, says Baudv!lle, and can “start the year on a high note”. Since the end of the year parties can highlight the best moments from the year, employees can destress hearing all the accomplishments since they will feel accomplishment for all they did. This benefits the company since employees will feel less stress and be more motivated coming into the new year. 

I think New Year’s Eve parties could benefit businesses everywhere, no matter the size of the company or how wealthy. Businesses can bring people in through New Year’s sales and specials. People are just naturally attracted to a bargain and the ability to save money, so they will be more likely to buy your food or products. New consumers may also try out your businesses since they wouldn’t be “wasting” money on something they end up not liking because they tried it when there was a special going on. Businesses can bring consumers in by enjoying the spirit of a New Year! Decorations, lights, and multiple visuals draw consumers in by making an inviting space. This could cause you to have a greater profit since people will enjoy the space you create. As well, you can outweigh many of the stresses and negatives when you create a New Year’s company party. Company parties facilitate destressing places, teamships, growing company culture, and more employee engagement. These values in turn could result in a greater profit for companies because employees can feel more welcome in their job and be more motivated to start the new year. Especially when achievements are recognized at parties, employees can feel accomplished and be more likely to be more active starting the New Year. Overall, I think every company, if they can, should engage in the New Year spirit. There are countless benefits that can reap larger profits later on. Employees can feel happier and consumers can feel happier, which can make owners even more happier. New Years is a time for reflection and to make goals for the next year, so businesses should try and enjoy it!

Happy New Year Everyone!!! - Megan