The waiting is over, fall is here. And with it comes the comforting reminders like beautiful leave cover that crunches beneath the feet and the delicious smell of pumpkin pie and its sweet smelling spices. This leads to the realization of one thing and that is that it’s holiday season. I’ve got to say that it’s by far the best time of year in my opinion. Now is when I start the countdown until Thanksgiving and following days afterwards leading into Christmas which seem to just blast by at an amazing speed.

It’s also the time of year when marketers everywhere are planning their holiday emails with catchy but often silly headlines.

Do they actually work?
The answer is hard to determine and depends on several factors, so the answer is sometimes yes and sometimes no. Below we will go into detail about some do’s and don’ts when it comes to holiday related emailing. The following tips will help to get the best results you want.
The Dos and Don’ts of Holiday Emailing

DO’S
Goal Setting – A golden rule of thumb is to set goals for everything. There is power in intention and goal setting. Regardless of whether it’s clicks, downloads, or purchases, you need to be aware of each of the strategies and goals that go into every email. Treat holiday letters just like any other and this will help ensure you’re not sending a useless email to just send one.

Be Creative – It’s important that you stand out from the competition as there is literally a bazillion emails send every day that are themed for the holidays. You have to use your imagination and creativity to stand above the rest. Use fun and attractive subject lines and give unique offers that no one is giving or that are time sensitive. You can do this by making your product an asset for the holidays.

Incorporate Social Media – Your audience might not be checking their emails everyday so make sure and use the various social media networks as well to get the most engagement you can. This can also include blogs and other site listings as well.

DON’T’s –
Forget Holidays – Everyone knows about the big holidays, but did you know that there are literally endless other holidays that can be used to create higher open rates and get more engagement. Think of using holidays like “National Speak Like a Pirate Day” or “National Women’s Day.” Using the less known but fun or important holidays is a great way to come up with content for your blog or website and get more engagement with your emails.

Forget Follow Ups – One of the most important aspects of holiday emailing is to make sure you send out follow ups to the most engaged openers. Using follow ups is a great way to send out more info to those who are most engaged to further the process of selling or to use different strategies and tactics to get fresh openers from people aren’t taking any action. This will help you to take your business to the next level and get the results you want. There are endless well-planned and thoughtful follow ups that will help you get the sale or the opportunity to personally speak with a prospect of lead.

Overdo It – Avoid spamming your audience with lame or cheesy headlines and content. It’s important to be creative but not in a way that is full of puns which tend to only irritate your followers and undermine their intelligence. Don’t forget your standard practices when emailing throughout the holiday seasons. If you go too far off the wall you’ll see a spike in your unsubscribe rate and that’s no fun.

Long Story Short –
Make sure you’ve put your thought and time into your emails and this holiday you can see tremendous results. Treat your holiday emails just like you would any others and have fun with them for the best results.
Do you have any personal marketing tips for the holidays? Is there anything you’ve noticed anywhere that you’ve incorporated? We would love to hear about them. Please comment below!