The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and your inbox … explodes with newsletters. This summer, do not let your emails burden your subscribers; let them be fun instead!
What can you do instead of just sending out seasonal marketing emails?
You can do a lot to improve your summer sales, like providing ideas for relief in the hot summer months, introducing summer sales, boosting click-through rates through special discounts in your summer email subject lines, and tailoring your marketing campaign according to the vibes.
There’s a lot more to do! In this blog post, we’ll show you eight summer newsletter ideas, as well as tips and tricks to make the most of your email newsletters.
Let’s get started!
Table of Contents
Why Summer Newsletters Matter
During the summer, vacationing and soaking up the sun are all examples of consumer behavior shifts. Perhaps that’s why traditional all-season marketing strategies may not resonate well with them.
This is where your engaging summer newsletters come in.
Studies have shown that seasonal email marketing can lead to a whopping increase in sales, especially for accessories and clothing, gift cards and other items, and food and beverages. At this time, people are more receptive to content that aligns with their interests and activities.
You may notice that casual readers can become loyal customers if your newsletter is crafted using just the right words.
Always offer beach-worthy discounts to highlight outdoor adventures, or in fact, you can even provide tips for staying cool.
You can do all this while showcasing your brand and its summer-friendly offerings.
What can you do differently to engage your audience? Start by ditching the generic emails and truly embrace the season’s unique vibe and trend.
Understanding Your Audience for the Summer Season
To create engaging newsletters, you should ask:
- What does your audience do in the summer?
- Do they hit the beach?
- Are they exploring the mountains?
- Or are people just relaxing in their backyards?
Let’s talk about how to find the answers to these questions. Surveys are a great way to ensure the effectiveness of summer newsletter ideas.
So, you can send out a quick summer survey to understand your audience’s vacation plans, entertainment preferences, or outdoor activities. Of course, not everyone is going to be receptive to these surveys. So, don’t just ask – offer fun quizzes or interactive polls to keep your audience engaged in those seasonal marketing emails.
Examine your website’s statistics to see which summer-themed material gets visitors to click through. Do they linger on barbeque recipes, trip guides, or DIY projects in the backyard?
Additionally, you can also pay attention to the talks on social media. What are your audience’s plans for the summer? What are they posting? Which hashtags are they using?
Once you understand the audience’s desires and have done some customer segmentation, customize your seasonal marketing emails and turn them into engaging newsletters.
For example, if your audience has beach bums, forward suggestions for beach reads, cool drink recipes, and gorgeous travel books! For adventure-seeking audiences, provide information about nearby hiking routes, heart-pounding activities, and strategies for overcoming nature’s challenges.
Read also: 10 Engaging Newsletter Ideas for Freelancers and Solopreneurs
8 Summer-Themed Content Ideas to Boost Summer Sales
Our goal is to create engaging summer newsletters. With that in mind, let’s look at some great summer newsletter ideas.
Let’s think about how to engage the audience with engaging newsletters.
1. Offer a ‘summer checklist’ for the adrenaline-enthusiasts
Each summer adventure trip needs specific equipment and planning. Helping your audience do that will not only be appreciated but will also lead to traffic to your brand – especially if you sell summer-specific things!
Look at REI’s “Summer Checklist” Newsletter for outdoor equipment, highlighting the must-have items for outdoor enthusiasts in the summer season. REI made sure its items were at the front of customers’ minds when getting ready for summer activities by offering a checklist!
If you choose to use this idea, some CTAs could be as follows:
- “Download a free packing checklist”
- “Let’s plan your trip!”
2. Help your audience plan their summer getaways
Offering summer getaway ideas is a great way to create engaging summer newsletters. Quench your readers’ thirst with advice on secret waterfalls, suggested local hikes, or even access to unique travel offers.
This Airbnb newsletter stole many’s hearts, offering the most desirable summer vacation rentals. The whole reason why this works is that not only are you helping your audience, but also offering your services to make their summer a memorable one.
Some CTAs for this type of email newsletter can be:
- “Let’s make your summer memorable”
- “Grab the SPF”
3. Make summers special for fitness enthusiasts
Summer needs some sugary and icy drinks and snacks. But they can lead to fitness enthusiasts not liking the season altogether.
But this email campaign marries a dietitian’s services and the summer passion for coolers perfectly. The idea is to help your customers as much as possible – wherever you can – through your emailer, and your services.
However, these emails do not only have to be for fitness brands. They are also an available option for BBQ companies and cafes. restaurants and a lot more! If your audience has indoor people, share your homemade air conditioner tricks, popsicle recipes, and poolside drink recipes. Make them choose their best summer smoothie to win an ice cream luau.
Looking at this newsletter by emeals, you will see a perfect concoction of summery colors, sales mastery, and visual appeal. By offering free cocktails and many easy cocktail recipes, this newsletter is the perfect example of getting the readers to subscribe!
The best CTA for such campaigns could be as follows:
- “This summer, maintain your beech bod!”
- “Give me healthy snack/drink recipes”
- ”Host a potluck featuring everyone’s summer dish!”
4. Entice readers with some summer discounts!
Who doesn’t like discounts? Especially when planning for a relaxing summer trip? Some sale newsletters are a great way to get your audience’s attention.
Sure, everyone planning a getaway would love to save money on some of the best products they can buy.
For all those fashionistas, display airy sundresses, chic sunglasses, or funky poolside necessities. Offer special discounts on beach items, outdoor furniture, and grilling gear to capitalize on those summer bargains. ShopBop does it right.
Displaying the right summer accessories with a huge sale text will surely have subscribers hit the ‘shop now’ button — making it a great newsletter idea as part of your summer email marketing campaigns.
The best time to send this newsletter, however, is during the spring season, before all the shopping is done!
Some CTAs for these campaigns could be:
- “Upload your beach pics here for the contest”
- “Make your summer memorable”
- “Shop now”
5. Celebrate World Chocolate Day with a countdown
The world celebrates Chocolate Day on July 7, so why not use that for your next newsletter?
If you have a bakery, restaurant, or confectionary business, this is the best opportunity for you. However, you can also get the most out of this sweet holiday even if your business is not directly related to food – as long as you offer exclusive discounts to your newsletter readers!
Check out this example to find a way to generate sales through the newsletter. Thorntons gave away discounts on their gourmet chocolates to make sure everyone who already likes their pieces will be tempted to get some now!
Some CTAs for these campaigns could be:
- “Get free delivery”
- “Get chocolates at 10% discount”
- “Shop now”
6. Leverage National Ice Cream Day for the summer vibes
When the entire United States celebrates Ice Cream on the third Sunday of July, why not get some summer sale out of it?
If you are a small business owner, you can offer discounts or summer deals on this day. Make sure your newsletter matches the summer vibes for the best effect.
A great idea for this newsletter is to add your entire catalog to these promotional emails to get more attention and add intrigue – this way, someone is bound to get excited and order right away!
Have a look at this newsletter by card.com! It’s simple, yet the visuals will make anyone in the summer heat want ice cream. Why not get it from card.com if they’re offering discounts?
Some CTAs for these campaigns could be:
- “Get ice cream today”
- “Add to your cart”
- “Beat the heat”
7. Offer travel tips to engage with subscribers
Continuing on the adventure-seeking audience trajectory, why not offer travel, booking, and photo photography tips?
You can start this email marketing campaign to subscribers engaged throughout the year or have a special summer mood series.
A perfect example of this is this newsletter by Travel Ventures. They offered tips on travel destinations, stay options, activities, etc. To have your business going, you can have tie-ups with these service providers and get a commission for each sale you make. What a great way to generate income with your audience!
Call-to-action for these campaigns could be:
- “Get exciting deals on your next travel plan”
- “Find your summer plans here”
- “Book hotels now”
8. Start an Independence Day campaign
Celebrate the 4th of July past nationalism and the flags! Make the most of this day to raise awareness for your business, or by generating new sales!
Dorne your email with red, white, and royal blue, and keep the messaging correct. You don’t necessarily have to target these emails to generate sales — you can also just use them to put your business out there.
What better way to get some customers to shop than the newsletter displayed below? Sure, nobody can say no to a 50% discount! The colors are just right to keep up with the Independence Day vibe, too!
Some CTAs for these campaigns could be:
- “Contribute today”
- “Shop now”
- “Buy now”
Design and Aesthetics for Summer Email Campaigns
You do not want your seasonal marketing emails to get lost in your audience’s spam folder. With eye-catching summer newsletter designs, you can turn up the heat on the attention your brand gets!
Let’s walk through some design elements you need to pay attention to.
Colour schemes for your summer newsletter ideas
Use palettes like vivid oranges, turquoise blues, and yellows instead of subdued tones. These colors bring a carefree summer vibe and give your newsletter a tropical twist. Experiment with gradients and neon accents to create a vibrant atmosphere.
Fonts to enhance your seasonal marketing
Instead of using boring, corporate fonts, go for those fun sans-serifs or breezy script fonts. In fact, for a fun, laid-back vibe, consider handwritten postcards or posters along the shore. Always remember that readability is important.
Read also: 5 Spring Newsletter Ideas to Light Up Your Marketing Campaigns
Visuals that will make your audience stay
High-quality visuals are crucial. Display breathtaking views of the ocean, cool drinks, or backyard family hangouts. To connect with your audience emotionally, use real people and situations. The human elements are a sure-shot way of getting closer to your audience.
You can use online design tools or user-friendly summer newsletter templates to help you get started. Many tools provide you with pre-made layouts, color schemes, and even stock photos. To make personalized, engaging summer newsletters, focus on including your content and brand voice.
Read also: Sunny Strategies: July Marketing Ideas for Bright Results
Timing and Frequency
To increase engagement and capture attention, you must become an expert at choosing the right timing and frequency for your summer newsletter ideas.
According to research, Mondays and Tuesdays are the best days for open rates. You should send emails once a week or every two weeks to keep them interested in new stuff from you.
Being prepared is the key to successfully using seasonal email marketing. Plan for your summer newsletters for smooth-sailing campaigns. Prepare for seasonal email marketing trends. The primary purpose is not to miss any engagement opportunities, and not have to write and design end-moment newsletters.
Your newsletters can become the talk of their sunny days if you can perfect the time and frequency. Thus, set your time, capitalize on seasonality, and watch as your audience embraces the cool!
Read also: 21 Innovative June Newsletter Ideas to Boost Your Business
A/B Testing and Optimization
Your best chance for creating summer email ideas that hit home is A/B testing. Test the content, design, email subject line, audiences, timing – everything!
Try these alternatives:
- Subject lines (“Beach Bonanza!” vs “Cool Summer Tips?”)
- Content types (“video vs infographic”)
- Calls-to-action (“Shop Now” vs “Enter to Win”)
Doing so will show you what works and what doesn’t. These little adjustments can result in significant increases in engagement.
Read also: Stepping Into Summer: A Handy June Marketing Ideas Guide
Compliance and Legal Considerations
Avoid being the buzzkill!
Engage readers with captivating summer newsletters, but always avoid email legal pitfalls like CAN-SPAM and GDPR.
Decide to unsubscribe a breeze rather than a scary dive. Provide simple, one-click unsubscribe links in each communication. Email only those who have taken the time to join up. Acquired lists can lead to issues (including spam penalties!).
Do keep these regulatory relaxations in mind:
Compliance acts as a beach umbrella to protect you from legal sunburn. If you adhere to these guidelines, your newsletters will become your audience’s favorite; otherwise, you might get into trouble with your marketing efforts.
Read also: 19 August Newsletter Ideas with a Splash of Inspiration
Conclusion
Summer is almost here! Since seasonal email marketing increases open rates significantly, try using the ideas in this blog rather than sending generic emails to save your marketing efforts!
While promoting your company, give beach-worthy discounts, emphasize outdoor activities, or provide helpful advice.
Engaging summer newsletters can win over new readers into ardent supporters. So, take advantage of the summertime vibe, eliminate spam, and watch as your audience devours your cool content!
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