September is jam-packed with holidays and opportunities to send unique email marketing campaigns. From holidays like Labor Day and National Coffee Day to the beginning of football season here in the US, there really is something for everyone. So, if you’re not sending out newsletters in September, you’re guaranteed to miss out on sales. We’ve taken out some september newsletter ideas that will leave your readers craving more. Also read:
- 10 tips for creating an engaging September newsletter.
- The most popular holidays in September 2024.
- September newsletter subject line ideas.
10 Tips for Creating an Engaging September Newsletter
Follow these valuable tips to make your email campaign or newsletter as engaging and successful as possible.
1. Keep Your Branding Consistent
Frankly, this is true for all of your email newsletter designs. Use the same fonts, colors, and logo(s) that you use for the content on your website and other marketing channels. Carrying that brand recognition and trust across all marketing channels is crucial.
2. Craft Valuable Content
Bring relevance and value in every email you send. The content of your newsletters should be well-written, logically structured, valuable, and relevant to your audience’s interests. This helps to make your content engaging and establishes you as a voice of authority.
3. Make it Highly Readable
You’d be surprised how many newsletters have poor readability. To avoid this, make sure you break up the “walls of text” with bullet points and headings. Readers should be able to scan your newsletter to find the sections they’re most interested in.
4. Use Personalized Subject Lines:
Newsletters with subject lines that address the reader directly are more likely to be opened than those without. By personalizing your subject lines, you can improve the open rates of your September newsletters.
5. Use Compelling CTAs
Your newsletters should include clear calls to action that encourage readers to take a desired action. Your CTA could be making a purchase, exploring your website, or completing a survey. Use simple language and stick to concise CTAs that clearly tell readers what action you want them to take.
6. Include Enticing Visuals
Visuals are an excellent way to improve user engagement with your newsletters. You should use high-quality product photos, test moving images like GIFs and cinemagraphs, and include colorful infographics to convey complex information in a way that’s easy to understand.
7. Address The Interests and Pain Points
Conduct thorough research of your target audience to identify their interests and common pain points. Then, address these pain points within the content of your newsletters. For example, you can include real-world examples of how your product/service has helped previous customers to solve a specific issue.
8. Offer Unique Incentives
In the US, Labor Day is considered a major “shopping holiday.” Your exclusive offers can follow suit. This could be things like major discounts and free demos. The nature of the holiday allows you to present offers that are time-limited to create a sense of urgency among your audience, making them more likely to engage with what you’re offering.
9. Test Your Newsletters
Before you send your newsletters, run tests to check their mobile responsiveness and ensure all of the links are working properly. If you send out newsletters with formatting issues and broken links, it will hurt user trust and damage your credibility.
10. Conduct Keyword Research
If you need broader help to determine the topics of your newsletters, conduct keyword research to identify the subjects your audience is most interested in. This allows you to create content that provides value and means readers will look forward to receiving your emails.
Of course, following all these steps can be tricky and time-consuming – so why not let InboxArmy do it all for you? Our Email Campaign Management team will plan and execute an effective September newsletter strategy that’ll keep your customers engaged and get them converting.
The Most Popular Holidays In September 2024
During September, there are holidays and observances on every day. Some are very niche (like National Chocolate Milk Day) and users are less likely to be aware of them. On the other hand, some are very well-known and are celebrated by most people (like Labor Day). I’ve also known brands to invent their own “holidays” for the purpose of marketing.
The key is to leverage holidays that have a fit with your brand’s products and services. It shouldn’t be too far of a stretch from your brand or the types of content you regularly deliver. You should also be careful about what holidays you promote in you’re doing sales. (Some holidays are NOT meant to be sales holidays.)
Let’s take a look at some of the most popular holidays in September 2024 that you can use to inspire your September newsletter campaigns. I’ll even bold the holidays I’ve had experience promoting. (This is not an exhaustive list.)
- Sept. 1: Ginger Cat Appreciation Day, National Cherry Popover Day, and Emma M. Nutt Day.
- Sept 2: Labor Day (for 2024), World Coconut Day, and Victory Over Japan Day.
- Sept. 3: National Bowling League Day and Skyscraper Day.
- Sept. 4: National Macadamia Nut Day and National Wildlife Day.
- Sept. 5: National Cheese Pizza Day.
- Sept. 6: National Read a Book Day and Fight Procrastination Day.
- Sept. 7: National Cinema Day, National Buy a Book Day, and National Beer Lover’s Day.
- Sept. 8: National Pet Memorial Day, International Literacy Day, and National Grandparents’ Day.
- Sept. 9: National Boss/Employee Exchange Day and National Teddy Bear Day.
- Sept. 10: National TV Dinner Day and National Swap Ideas Day.
- Sept. 11: Patriot Day (9/11 Remembrance).
- Sept. 12: National Day of Encouragement and National Video Games Day.
- Sept. 13: Uncle Sam Day, Roald Dahl Day, and National Celiac Disease Awareness Day.
- Sept. 14: National Live Creative Day and National Cream-Filled Donut Day.
- Sept. 15: National Online Learning Day, Greenpeace Day, and Wife Appreciation Day.
- Sept. 16: The American Legion Day and National Working Parents Day.
- Sept. 17: Citizenship Day, Constitution Day, and National IT Professionals Day.
- Sept. 18: National Cheeseburger Day and The US Air Force Birthday.
- Sept. 19: National Butterscotch Pudding Day and International Talk Like a Pirate Day.
- Sept. 20: National POW/MIA Recognition Day and National Pepperoni Pizza Day.
- Sept. 21: National Dance Day, International Day of Peace, and National Gymnastics Day.
- Sept. 22: Elephant Appreciation Day, International Daughters Day, and American Business Women’s Day.
- Sept. 23: National Family Day, National Checkers Day, and Autumnal Equinox Day.
- Sept. 24: National Voter Registration Day and National Punctuation Day.
- Sept. 25: National Comic Book Day.
- Sept. 26: National Dumpling Day, National Pancake Day, and Johnny Appleseed Day.
- Sept. 27: National Chocolate Milk Day.
- Sept. 28: National Public Lands Day, National Good Neighbor Day, and International Rabbit Day.
- Sept. 29: National Coffee Day and National Veterans of Foreign Wars Day.
- Sept. 30: National Love People Day.
7 September Newsletter Ideas
Here are some ideas for creating September email campaigns that can increase user engagement, establish your authoritativeness, and boost your conversions. We’ll also give you some examples from other campaigns and newsletters that should inspire you when crafting your own.
1. Fall Sales Campaign
If you run an eCommerce or brick-and-mortar store, you can create a campaign to promote your end-of-summer sale. This type of campaign is used to showcase all the offers and discounts that are included in the sale. Plus, it highlights the products on promotion and tells readers all about their benefits.
Use colors often associated with Fall, like oranges, browns, and greens. This will give your newsletter a nice, seasonal feel that reflects the specific time of year.
I like the autumnal colors and graphics used here, for example:
In terms of content, it can be good idea to include checklists and guides for your products/services. You should give concise descriptions and information on the benefits of your offerings and how they help readers solve specific pain points.
Use clear, high-resolution photos of your products and include compelling CTAs that encourage readers to take advantage of the sale’s offers and discounts. This should lead to increased conversions and revenue.
2. Labor Day Email Campaigns
In the US, most stores offer sales and discounts during Labor Day weekend. Your customers expect it, and sometimes wait for Labor Day Sales to make purchases. If you have an offer to promote, Labor Day is one of the big times to do it.
Labor Day is the first Monday in September every year. (This year, it’s September 2nd.) Odds are your Labor Day Sale won’t just be on Labor Day Weekend. Many retailers being their Labor Day Sales by mid-to-late August. A series of email campaigns will be needed to properly support this timeframe.
In that series, you can begin with teasers for the upcoming sale. Provide early discounts for VIP customers. And promote the various products and “reasons to believe” that drive purchases.
Take a look at this example from Pauli & Sisters:
If you want to mix up the content and send more of a newsletter and less of a promotion, you could focus on various topics related to Labor Day. For example, you could write a newsletter about the origins of Labor Day and the first Labor Day parade, which took place in 1882.
Just remember to keep your content engaging, ensure it provides value to the reader, and make sure the content always comes back to promoting your Labor Day Sale.
3. National Buy a Book Day Newsletter
If you run a bookstore, National Buy a Book Day is the perfect occasion to create a newsletter promoting your products.
One idea is to choose an author and write a newsletter that focuses on this particular writer. You could tell your reader all about their life story and what inspired them to write their books. Throughout, you can spotlight individual books by the author that you have in stock.
As always, make sure you present your products in the best possible light. I like the way the books are presented in this Counterprint newsletter:
The purple background makes the orange colors of the book pop and stand out. It draws the reader’s eye to the product and makes them more likely to click through to the product page. Displaying your products in this way could be a good way to boost your click-through rates (CTR).
4. International Day of Charity Newsletter
If you run a non-profit organization, you should definitely consider creating a newsletter for the International Day of Charity.
Within the newsletter, you can highlight stories of how previous donations received around this date have been used. This encourages readers to donate to your cause by showing them the real-world effects of contributing to your organization.
Here’s an example from a Charity: Water newsletter that does just that:
The International Day of Charity doesn’t just provide an opportunity for non-profits. It’s also a good opportunity for eCommerce stores to raise awareness of their own charitable efforts.
For instance, you could send an email newsletter talking about the importance of businesses supporting and collaborating with charities. Then, you can include some information about how your business does this.
5. National IT Professionals Day newsletter
For SaaS companies in particular, National IT Professionals Day is the perfect time to generate interest in your offerings. Since the spotlight will already be on the professionals who use your software, you might as well share it, right?
I’d recommend creating a newsletter with excerpts from case studies that demonstrate how IT professionals have used your software to achieve their goals. Then, you can include CTAs encouraging users to upgrade to paid plans, download free trials, or make first-time purchases. For example, here’s a CTA from Stark’s National IT Professionals Day newsletter:
6. National Public Lands Day Newsletter
National Public Lands Day has occurred every year since 1994. It celebrates public lands in the US and encourages their conservation.
To mark the event, create newsletter content related to public lands in the US. For instance, you could send out a newsletter about the creation of the first national park, Yellowstone, in 1872.
In your newsletter, include CTAs and links to products that help readers enjoy the great outdoors. Plus, you can link to other content like checklists that help users plan a trip, like this:
This is a great way to provide actionable advice to your readers, leading to improved trust and credibility. It also helps to increase traffic to the pages of your website.
7. National Coffee Day Newsletter
National Coffee Day celebrates the world’s most popular bean and your business can join in on the fun. You could write a newsletter that tells readers how to make different types of coffees like lattes, flat whites, and cappuccinos.
Then, promote any discounts and offers you have in place for National Coffee Day. You could also announce a competition that enables readers to win coffee-related products. For example, take a look at this social media competition from Counter Culture Coffee’s newsletter:
By creating a similar competition, you can increase engagement with your social media channels and boost brand awareness.
September Newsletter Subject Lines
For any type of newsletter, the subject line is very important. It’s the first thing recipients read when they get your emails, so it needs to make a good first impression and grab their attention.
To create effective subject lines, you should:
- Use actionable language that creates curiosity and encourages users to take action.
- Ensure the full subject line is visible on most devices by keeping it between 40 and 50 characters. (But test this from time to time.)
- Use time-sensitive language to create a sense of urgency (if applicable).
- Personalize your subject lines by using the recipient’s name (should you have it in your data).
- Clearly indicate the main topic of your newsletter and why it’s valuable to readers.
With this in mind, here are some ideas for your September newsletter subject lines.
- National Coffee Day: “Brew-tiful deals for National Coffee Day”
- Labor Day: “[name], celebrate Labor Day by learning about its inspiring origins”
- International Day of Charity: “Join the giving movement on the International Day of Charity”
- Fall Sale Newsletter: “Fall in love with our September sale (while stocks last)”
- National Public Lands Day: “Discover hidden gems in your own backyard”
- National IT Professionals Day: “How IT professionals keep the world running”
- National Buy a Book Day: “Book recommendations for every type of reader”
- National Family Day: “10 activities to keep you entertained on National Family Day”
- National Chocolate Milk Day: “Learn how to make the perfect glass of chocolate milk!”
- National Dance Day: “Dance your way to fitness on National Dance Day!”
- National Comic Book Day: “Learn all about the impact of comic books on pop culture”
- Constitution Day: “How well do you know the constitution, [name]?”
Wrapping Up
There’s a holiday or observance every day during September (and really every day of the year if you look hard enough). There are many opportunities to create engaging, valuable newsletters based on these September newsletter ideas mentioned above. From niche observances like National Comic Book Day to much-loved holidays like Labor Day, you’re bound to find plenty of topics relevant to your business and your audience.
FAQs
How do I make sure my September newsletters are mobile-friendly?
The best ways to ensure your newsletters are mobile-friendly include:
- Use a responsive single-column layout that can be adapted for mobile screens.
- Use the responsive email templates included with your email marketing platform.
- Place CTAs and the most important content above the fold.
- Keep your content concise and make sure it’s scannable.
- Compress image files to reduce mobile load times.
- Use large font sizes that can be easily read on small screens.
- Use large CTA buttons that are easy to tap.
- Test your newsletter on mobile devices before sending it out to your subscriber list.
What tools can I use to track the performance of my September newsletters?
The easiest way to track the performance of your newsletter is to use the in-built analytics tool that comes with your email marketing platform. This will allow you to track crucial performance metrics such as:
- Conversions and conversion rate from clicks.
- Click-through rate (CTR)
- Open rates
- Unsubscribe rates
- Bounce rates
Should I use segmentation for my September newsletter campaign?
Yes, you should segment your audience before launching any type of newsletter campaign. By segmenting your audience, you can create September newsletters about different topics depending on the characteristics and interests of the specific segment.
This allows for highly targeted newsletters that are relevant and valuable to your audience. It also means you can promote products/services to users based on behaviors like purchase history and cart abandonment.
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