- December splits in two: softer gifting and heads-up emails early, then deadline and event emails late.
- Your shipping cutoff is the most honest urgency you'll get all year. Build a three-email sequence around it.
- After the cutoff, stop selling shipping. Sell gift cards and anything that still arrives in time.
- Gift buyers aren't regular customers. Tag them in December so you can treat them differently in January.
- Plan the January follow-up for December's first-time buyers now. That's where December's real payoff shows up.
How should you plan December emails?
I run November and December pretty similarly, but I send about 25% more email in November than December. December carries its own urgency, so you don't need to push as hard to get attention.
Each month has two halves. Early on, the messaging is softer: gifting, heads-ups about cutoffs, often a pre-Christmas campaign with a special offer. Then the event emails: Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's in December. Gifting messaging runs heavy the whole way through, especially in the days near Christmas.
If you haven't mapped the full season, start with the ecommerce holiday email calendar. The ideas below fill in December.
12 December email marketing ideas, in sending order
1. Gift guide (first week of December)
Group your products by who they're for or what they cost: "for the person who has everything," "under $50," "stocking stuffers." A gift guide gives non-customers an easy way in and gives customers a reason to buy for someone else. Keep it to a handful of picks per section, each with one link.
2. "Gift it, or keep it" for food and drink brands
For food and beverage brands, gifting is less direct. People often buy for themselves to share with guests. So write for the host: "stock up before everyone's over," "the snack table, sorted." Same products, a reason that fits how people actually buy them.
3. Shipping deadline heads-up (5 to 7 days before your cutoff)
Your cutoff is the carrier's date minus your handling time. Talk to your 3PL about the real last pick, pack and ship time in December, then check the USPS, FedEx and UPS holiday timelines for the services you actually use. UPS, for example, warns that from November 16, 2026 to January 8, 2027, a limited number of UPS Ground and UPS Standard packages will need extra time in transit, and its Air services have extended delivery times from November 27 to January 2. Build in buffer.
I walk through picking the date and the full sequence in the shipping deadline email post.
4. Cutoff day email (and text)
"Last day to order for Christmas delivery." Date in the subject line, one button. Send at least one SMS on the cutoff day or the day before too. If you have spare credits, send one a week or two ahead, then increase the cadence as the date gets close. Turn Smart Sending off for deadline sends so the people who need the reminder actually get it.
5. Cutoff lines in your abandonment emails
If you're far enough ahead and the brand is on board, add a temporary line to abandoned cart and checkout emails: "Order by Dec 15 and it arrives in time." Many brands aren't prepared enough to do this. If you are, it's a cheap way to give abandoners a real reason to finish. Same goes for gifting lines in the customer branches of your abandonment and welcome flows.
6. Gift cards after the cutoff
Once shipping is too late, the pitch changes. Gift cards arrive by email, instantly. Lead with that. If you offer local pickup, this is its moment too. Be honest about what won't arrive in time. A missed delivery turns into a support ticket. More on this in holiday gift buyer emails.
7. Christmas Eve
Short and useful. Gift cards for anyone still shopping. Hours and pickup info if you have a store. UPS lists no Ground pickup on December 24, 2026, so anything about physical shipping on Christmas Eve should be about after the holiday, not before it.
8. Christmas Day
Either skip it or keep it to a thank-you. Some brands send a simple "Merry Christmas from all of us" with no offer. If you have a gift card offer still running, a soft mention is fine. This is not the day for five sends.
9. Boxing Day / after-Christmas sale (December 26)
Boxing Day is one of the event promos I plan for in December. Target people who got gift cards, people who browsed but didn't buy, and customers who might want to treat themselves now that the gift shopping is done. Say what's on sale and when it ends.
10. Restock email
December sell-outs happen. When a bestseller comes back, give it its own send. One snack brand doing about $650K a month sent a restock email with the subject line "We're back baby!" and it made $48,771 from 30,498 people, its top campaign ever. Don't bury a restock in a sale roundup.
11. New Year's Eve and New Year's Day
"Last sale of the year" on December 31, then something forward-looking on January 1: a new-year routine, a refill, what's coming. For replenishable products, a "start the year stocked" angle works without a heavy discount.
12. A thank-you to your customers
One email that doesn't sell. Thank your customers for the year. If you have something real to share, like a product that launched, a milestone or what's coming next, share it. Keep it short. It sets up January.
Who should get December emails?
Not everyone, every time. For most December sends, I'd use an engaged window of people who clicked or bought in the last 60 to 90 days. It also pulls back lapsed customers who are likely to shop for the holidays.
For replenishable products, I also email customers who haven't ordered in the past 60 days, to bring them back into an educational cycle while they have a reason to buy.
The cutoff day is the exception. It's one of the few December moments where a wider send makes sense, because the deadline is real for everyone.
How do you set up January in December?
This is the part most brands skip. Your December buyers include a lot of first-time customers and gift buyers, and they don't behave like your regulars.
Three things to do in December:
- Tag likely gift buyers. Use order value, quantity or a different shipping address as signals. More data is better. You'll want to treat them differently in January.
- Help the gift recipient learn about you. Add extra packaging or a note to gift orders so the person who opens it knows what the product is and where it came from. That recipient could be next year's customer.
- Plan a January series for Nov/Dec first-time buyers. I like a 3-email series for this group. It's not the only thing they get in January, but it's the one that turns a holiday buyer into a second order. The rest of the month is in January email marketing ideas.
FAQ
How many emails should I send in December?
Fewer than November. I send about 25% more email in November than December. Plan around the moments that matter: gift guide, cutoff sequence, gift cards, Christmas Eve, Boxing Day and New Year's.
What should I send after the shipping deadline?
Gift cards first, since they arrive by email. Local pickup if you have it. Be clear that physical products won't arrive by Christmas.
Should I email on Christmas Day?
You don't have to. If you do, keep it to a thank-you or a soft gift card reminder.
When is the last day to ship for Christmas in 2026?
It depends on your carrier, your service and your warehouse. UPS says your last day to ship for delivery by December 24 depends on the service and route, and points to its time-and-cost calculator. Check your carrier's 2026 holiday page, then subtract your handling time.
What December email ideas work for food and beverage brands?
Write for hosts and sharing, not only gifting. People often buy food and drink for themselves to share with guests.
Founder of Bardown Digital, a Chicago-based Klaviyo email and retention agency for Shopify brands. He's worked with brands doing $500K to $100M a year, with $100M+ in email-attributed revenue across them.