‘Tis the season - for emails! Tired of Christmas gift guides from every brand under the sun? Gift guides are fine and all, but they’re not exactly novel. If you’re looking for ways to bring a bit of magic to your Christmas email marketing, then check out our inspiration and get your customers firmly on the nice list.

1. 12 Days of Christmas

We know this one’s a lot to get your teeth into. But if you’re feeling generous (and have an email marketing team that can turn this around in record time), then the 12 Days of Christmas (or rather, 12 Deals of Christmas) is an excellent email series for spreading a bit of festive cheer. 

Consider how you can twist this traditional song into something your brand can champion. 12 Bouquets of Christmas? Florists, rejoice. 12 Stays of Christmas? AirBnb, you can have that one for free. The 12 Days of Christmas traditionally begins after Christmas Day and runs until the 6th January, but you can launch your version of this campaign on a day in December that suits you. We’ve seen similar campaigns from the likes of Pitcher & Piano who used the 12 Drinks of Christmas for their daily emails, demonstrating how this campaign can be perfectly adapted to suit your brand.

Top tip: If you're just starting out with email marketing, we recommend you sit this one out for this year. Bombarding your contact list so early on could lead to some emails going to spam and harm your overall deliverability score. Ho, ho, no.

2. Shortest Sale of the Year

Every year, we’re somehow surprised when the nights draw in and the days get shorter. But why let the dark winter nights get you down? Celebrate the Shortest Day of the Year on the 21st December by offering your customers a flash sale. On the shortest day, the sun is only up between 8:15am and 15:55pm (depending on your location). With less than eight hours of daylight, you can offer customers a final day of discounts in time for Christmas. Be mindful of deliveries with this one, though. If you have no way of shipping products in time, then make this clear that any deliveries will be made after Christmas Day. 

3. Snow Day Campaign

British weather is known for being unpredictable, and snow days are a prime example. Whether we end up having a white Christmas or not, prepare an email campaign with a special snow-inspired discount code that you can send out as soon as flakes start to fall. Having this kind of campaign in your back pocket ensures that you’re always on the pulse - particularly when many of us work from home during snowy weather and have extra time to shop.

4. Christmas Delivery Cut-Off

If you’re a digital brand, then sending out a Christmas delivery cut-off reminder is very important. It gives your customers plenty of time to finalise their Christmas shopping - and gives yourself time to get all those parcels out. 

Double check the cut-off dates for your delivery providers too. Whether you use Royal Mail, DPD, Evri or indeed any other courier service, they're unlikely to be able to match the speed of Santa and his reindeer at this time of year. Plan ahead and factor in seasonal delays. Who needs elves, anyway? 

5. Gift Cards for the Late Shoppers

Got a large product range, or sell items that are a bit niche? Give your customers an easy way to buy from you this Christmas and send out an email promoting gift cards. Perfect for those who like to give the gift of choice - and those who have left their shopping until the last minute.

Remind customers of your gift cards right before Christmas and label your email: “Left it a bit late? Don’t panic - we’ve got gift cards.” 

Helpful, a little bit cheeky, and no additional picking and packing on your part. Win, win.

6. Your Year in Review

Email subscribers are some of your most loyal customers, so they’re more likely to be nosey about what you’ve been up to in 2023. Make like Spotify and do your own Wrapped. Talk about your best-selling products, your newest launches, and maybe even shine a spotlight on the customer who’s bought the most with you this year (with their blessing, of course, or else keep it suitably anonymous). Fun company pictures and updates are a lovely way to embrace the season of goodwill. Your customers will find it a nice change in their inbox to the hard sell.

7. Festive Treasure Hunt

Time for a game? Spread the magic of Christmas onto your product pages by creating a Christmas treasure hunt dotted around your website and email your customers with how to play. Whether it’s a festive discount code split between product images that they have to unscramble, or a particular clue they have to find on just one product, this is great for more playful brands and is a great opportunity to show off your stock.

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8. Spread the Payments this Christmas

Christmas isn’t just tough on your waistband - it’s tough on your wallet too. So how can you make things easier for your customers if they’re strapped for cash? If you sell a more expensive product and offer Buy Now, Pay Later options (BNPL), a gentle reminder to your customers that they don’t need to part with their hard-earned cash straight away might lead to some quick sales. Knowing they can spread payments until January and beyond might just be the incentive they need to get those last gifts in their basket.

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Which of these will you be sending to your customers this Christmas? Get designing, get writing and embrace your festive side. Time to email, drink and be merry…

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