Christmas email marketing ideas

It's about that time of the year again. We suggest you start gathering some ideas for your Christmas season email campaigns so you can finish the year great! This year, instead of sending the same old Christmas email to your subscribers, why not spark your imagination with the help of these fantastic Christmas email ideas?

Below, you'll find some awesome Christmas email examples that will help you target the holiday season more successfully! Here are the top ideas for your brand, from pre-Christmas emails to Christmas Day and post-Christmas marketing!

Not so fast, though!

Before you start getting those creative juices flowing, you might want to know the best times to send your holiday emails so you don't miss the mark.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s jump into the business of the day.

What’s the secret sauce for Christmas emails?

It's not that difficult to put together excellent Christmas emails. The secret to success in Christmas email marketing is straightforward: don't try to sell your products; instead, focus on making your customers happy and spreading the holiday spirit. Be real this season when expressing your feelings and wishing your subscribers a happy holiday. Since recipients are more likely to support businesses that convey seasonal excitement, this will increase the effectiveness of your campaigns.

It's important to keep in mind that effective Christmas email marketing campaigns take a full year to prepare for. Your ability to maintain a good relationship with your subscribers is the basis for email marketing success. The more trust you can establish with them before Christmas, the more effective your campaign will be.

Organising your Christmas email campaign into three phases can help you make the most of the festive season:

1. Pre-Christmas: A few weeks before the Christmas season.

2. Christmas: The days leading up to Christmas.

3. Post-Christmas: A few weeks following the Christmas holiday.

Pre-Christmas email ideas

The ideal way to engage customers faster than your competitors is through early-Christmas shopping discounts, fantastic gift recommendations and season's greetings.

1. Gifts/discounts to your valued customers

This is a great place to start! Since it’s the Christmas season, it’s good practice to give away special discounts to customers who gave continued support to your brand throughout the year.

You can get quite clever here and go as far as creating promotions that encourage customers to buy even more than they usually would by promoting complementary products, discounted bundles or free shipping for products over a certain amount.

2. Gift guides

If you have a thorough awareness of who your customers are, you can provide relevant product recommendations that are in line with their interests.

This works well when you have a well segmented list. If you don’t know how to go about that, you can read through our guide.

3. Promote gift cards

Gift cards make a great last-minute gift, so it’s a good idea to promote them to your customers.

For eCommerce stores, this is a great way to avoid getting returned gifts post-Christmas season.

Christmas email ideas

If you sent a pre-Christmas email, your subscribers would be waiting for you to send one once the season actually arrives so they can see what you have to offer.

You can provide exclusive promotions, discounts, Christmas specials or holiday-specific packages.

Here’s an example:

1. From us to you email

On Christmas, warm up your customers’ inboxes with hearty greetings from you and your team. Sending a heartfelt message can potentially move some of your customers to make last-minute purchases.

At the forefront, this will be a friendly Christmas message that also shows the people behind your brand — giving it a human touch.

Then, you can subtly incorporate sales elements like clickable images and perhaps a gift card CTA right at the end of this “message from the team” email.

2. Christmas email discount codes

Giving your customers Christmas email discounts on items they've already expressed interest in is a simple way to get them to make a purchase. Give them the opportunity to share these deals with their friends and family as well.

You can also include a Christmas Eve email with a link to an in-store discount for the last-minute shoppers.

Post-Christmas emails

You'd be mistaken to believe that your campaign has come to an end because of the passing of Christmas.

It's time to focus on the post-Christmas or, if you prefer, the pre-New Year period now that Christmas has passed.

Start your post-Christmas emails with:

1. Appreciation email

Keep in mind that developing relationships is the main goal of email marketing. Thank your customers for their business and let them know what the company has in store for the upcoming year. You could even give them something as a token of your gratitude.

2. Boxing Day sale

Right after Christmas is Boxing Day., In recent years this day has started to be seen as a shopping holiday, so you can use the theme of the day to drive more sales.

Instead of just stating, "here's another deal," planning a Boxing Day promotion makes the post-Christmas sale more memorable.

3. Resource sharing email

Share relevant resources that your customers can use for the rest of the holiday season. Keep your subscribers informed of company news, share articles and even videos that can improve their lives in the new year.

Key takeaways

Christmas is one of the busiest seasons of the year for businesses, and it is simple to feel pressured into making enormous profits.

It's important to keep in mind that your Christmas email marketing strategy needs to be customised to meet your unique aims and objectives, whether they are higher profits, improved brand recognition or more lead generation.

Don’t feel pressured this season. Determine your own goals and work to achieve them. There is always a holiday email strategy that you can use to your benefit, regardless of the objective.