It’s hard to believe it’s April already, especially since so much of the U.S. is still stuck in winter-like conditions.

But spring is officially here, which means that longer days and warmer temperatures can’t be far behind. Yet unfortunately for anyone with seasonal allergies, spring usually brings something bad, too: pollen.

For many of us, spring pollen is an inevitability, something we just have to suffer through each year. Yet now, many companies may be able to use pollen levels as a way to create extremely personalized, highly engaging email experiences. In turn, this may help them generate sales that simply weren’t possible before.

At this point, you may be thinking, “You lost me. How could my company possibly use pollen levels to improve our email marketing?” If so, we understand – pollen and marketing may not seem to go hand in hand – so let us explain further.

In the past, many Liveclicker clients were interested in incorporating weather forecasts into their emails. I’m sure we’re all familiar with the examples where a ski resort advertises an upcoming snowstorm and its potential to bring fresh powder or even a golf course promoting a late-season spike in temperatures to get more golfers to play than usual.

This was exactly the thinking that led us to develop our LiveForecast element, which has helped create many similar – and successful – campaigns. But we’ve now expanded the functionality in LiveForecast to include pollen levels in addition to traditional weather forecasts.

Communicating pollen levels can be a powerful tool for companies in a wide variety of industries. Just consider some possible examples:

• Hospitality companies such as bed and breakfasts, inns, and hotels could build pollen forecasts into email campaigns to encourage booking when the weather seems especially good.
• Or, if pollen levels will be high, some companies may want to promote indoor activities and entertainment, including indoor water parks, rock climbing, trampoline centers, video games, bowling, and more.
• Retailers that sell pharmaceuticals could create and target special offers on seasonal allergy medicine, or if the weather seems promising, promote sunscreen, bug repellant, or other products their customers need to get outside.
• Any organization with an outdoor presence – wineries, professional sports franchises, zip line tours, golf courses, amusement parks, and more – could create special promotions to get people out when pollen levels seem low.
• Museums, restaurants, concert halls, cinemas, and theaters can let their customers know when the weather doesn’t seem ideal in certain regions and encourage them to come inside.

As you can see, there are many different ways you can use weather and pollen information in email marketing. Plus, if you’re creative, you can use forecasting to drive the desired results in both scenarios (when pollen is high and low).

Offering real-time weather information is another proven way to personalize email campaigns, create more engaging experiences, stand apart from the competition, and generate new sales.

Now, please pass a tissue. I feel a sneeze coming on.