At the time of writing, it’s early December. We’re coming off of the largest marketing season in eccomerce world Black Friday Cyber Monday (affectionately known as BFCM), and just shy of a month away from January, a month that is increasingly becoming one of the most impactful campaign months in the health and wellness sector. Seasonal markets are currently in full swing, capitalizing on the last minute gifting spirit. Tis the season for marketing campaigns!
Today we’re talking about how to work with seasonal flow to create marketing campaigns that not only drive sales, but also support your ability to sustainably exert your energy across the business year.. We’ll talk about some of the most popular seasonal campaign periods, discuss how to run seasonal campaigns without discounting your offerings, and explore how you can create your own annual marketing calendar based on what campaign seasons are most impactful for your business.
Campaigns and Industry Seasons
What is a Marketing Campaign?
A marketing campaign is a planned, coordinated push to promote a product, service, or idea over a specific time period. It bundles together messaging, offers, creative direction, and outreach channels to guide consumer behavior toward a goal — boosting awareness, generating interest, or driving sales.
Unlike evergreen campaigns (which run continuously and maintain steady communication), seasonal campaigns tap into heightened emotions, urgency, or cultural moments that naturally occur throughout the year. Evergreen campaigns whisper consistently; seasonal campaigns shout at the exact moment people are listening.
Examples of Seasonally-Driven Marketing Campaigns
ECommerce
In the world of eCommerce, the most powerful and infamous seasonal campaign period is Black Friday / Cyber Monday (BFCM). BFCM has become a major sales driver — in 2024, combined online sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday accounted for a significant chunk of holiday e-commerce revenue. Red Stag Fulfillment+2WooCommerce+2 Many merchants report that this season, typically encompassing November through the BFCM weekend, accounts for 20–30% (or more) of their annual revenue. Ohh Rex Dino Design+2WooCommerce+2 The appeal is straightforward: stores offer steep discounts, consumers expect deals, and the fear of missing out (scarcity + urgency) pushes many to buy now rather than delay. BFCM campaigns capitalize on consumer desire to prepare for holiday gifting, encouraging people to purchase over the BFCM weekend when sales are at their peak.
Health & Wellness
On the health and wellness side, two major “hot seasons” dominate:
- New Year’s Resolutions (January) — when fresh-start energy sends people searching for transformation and self-improvement
- Get Ready for Summer (late spring / early summer) — when warmer weather and upcoming vacations inspire renewed focus on fitness, appearance, and well-being
In both cases, the psychology hinges on renewal (fresh start), aspiration (improve appearance/health), and time-sensitive motivation (summer’s coming; start now).
Across industries, the biggest lesson is this: the most effective campaigns meet customer needs at the exact moment those needs (and emotions) naturally peak.
Sales Period Does Not Necessarily Mean Sales
How to Campaign without Discounts
If you’re turned off by the idea of price-slashing your offerings or afraid to get stuck in an on-going sales loop, fear not: marketing campaigns don't have to include discounts at all. In wellness especially, your value isn’t tied to a discount — it’s tied to the transformation, expertise, and support you provide. Seasonal campaigns are about showing up at the right moment with the right message. It’s reminding people, “Hey, this offering will help you feel better, stronger, calmer, or feeling more like your best self right now — at a time when you’re already thinking about investing in your well being.” It is essentially meeting people where they’re at: keeping your pulse on the vibe of the season, and tying your offerings to what people are looking for at the current time.
Creative Repackaging
One of the easiest ways to stay seasonal without undercutting your value is to repackage your existing offerings. For example:
- Your regular coaching package → “Summer Energy Reset”
- Your standard massage series → “Back to Routine De-Stress Plan”
Same offering, new context. Suddenly it feels timely, relevant, and irresistible.
People are often far more motivated by timing and personal readiness than by discounts, especially when it comes to their health and well-being. Your seasonal campaign simply helps them connect the dots between what they want in this moment and the opportunity for support you already provide.
Planning your Marketing Wheel of the Year
Choose Your Major Campaign Seasons
Let’s talk about how to implement seasonal campaign strategy across your marketing year. Start by identifying the major sales periods in your industry. Choose at least two to participate in — ideally spaced across opposite sides of the year. You don’t need to do them all; you just need to choose strategically. I recommend choosing at least two in which to participate, ideally spaced at roughly opposite sides of the year.
You may end up doing some micro campaigns outside of these, but starting with the two largest sales periods will help you envision what times of year will be occupied by your most labor-intensive campaigns. For example, a yoga teacher offering private sessions may choose New Years Resolutions (January) and Get Ready for Summer (June) as their two largest campaign periods. Any additional micro campaigns she does will fall outside of these two main campaign periods.
Block Off Your Planning and Review Periods
Once you’ve chosen your anchor campaigns:
- Reserve at least one full month before for planning, prepping assets, and building your strategy
- Reserve the month after for review and rest
This buffer time is essential. Major campaigns require significant creative, strategic, and operational energy. As the saying goes: Proper Planning Prevents Piss-Poor Performance.
Evaluate for Overlap and Sustainability
Check your calendar for any overlap — review from one campaign bumping into planning for the next. Be honest about your bandwidth! Rest is not optional; it’s part of the work cycle. Think of it as the winter season your business needs to regenerate before producing again.
Not only is it imperative that you make time to analyze your campaign’s performance after the fact, but you really do deserve that break to just let business run at its natural pulse. Enjoy the cooldown - the refraction period - the outbreath. Your body and mind need that space in order to renew and replenish before the work of future seasons begins.
Identify Your “Gap Months”
Once your campaigns, planning time, and recovery time are mapped, you’ll see your gap months — the months where you're not preparing for or recovering from campaigns. These are the months in which you can turn away from seasonal marketing and turn towards other aspects of running your business. These are perfect for:
- Website or branding updates
- Streamlining operations
- Continuing education
- Taking an actual vacation
- Running your business at a gentle, steady evergreen pace
The only rule is to NOT run a seasonal campaign here, instead keeping your marketing to low-maintence evergreen content. This is your time to rest and invest in anything else your business needs to support its evolution.
The Magic of Microcampaigns
Note that you might run other micro sales or promotions between your major sales periods. Micro-campaigns are your mini seasonal pushes — short, focused bursts designed to move one audience toward one action. They might tie into:
- community-specific dates
- solstices or seasonal markers
- small promotions
- re-engagement challenges
- one highlighted service
These campaigns may or may not be known industry-wide, and they don’t have to be! You can create a campaign around anything you have enough material to talk about.They’re perfect for highlighting one service, responding to a timely moment (like the summer solstice), running a short engagement challenge, or nudging past clients back into your world.
Remember: the bigger or longer the campaign, the more planning and review time you need. As a rule of thumb:
If your campaign runs for X days, reserve X days before for planning and X days after for review.
Microcampaigns can absolutely fit into your marketing wheel — just be mindful of where they land so that they don’t conflict with other big projects and cause an excess energy drain.
To wrap it all up...
Seasonal marketing isn’t just about timing promotions — it’s about honoring the natural ebb and flow of your energy, your audience’s mindset, and the cultural rhythms that shape buying behavior. When you align your campaigns with these cycles, marketing stops feeling chaotic and starts feeling intentional, strategic, and even nourishing. You give yourself the breathing room to create your best work while showing up for your audience at exactly the moment they’re most ready to engage.
By choosing your major campaign seasons, planning well in advance, blocking time for rest, and getting playful with microcampaigns, you’re building a marketing ecosystem that’s sustainable, intuitive, and effective. Think of it as your business operating by its own internal seasons — with creativity, clarity, and revenue blooming right on cue.
