Blazing sun, high temperatures, shimmering air above the tarmac – but fortunately the beach is not far away. Colourful parasols, the sound of the sea, crashing waves and the smell of sun cream and seawater in the air.

For many people, this is the first thing that comes to mind when they think of “summer”, but for many email marketers the first thing that comes to mind is … the much-feared “summer slump”.

The summer slump is a sinister monster that threatens to eat up all previous marketing successes with its big, pointy teeth. Nobody wants to lose contact with their subscribers or stop email marketing to acquire new customers over the summer! So how do you get through a summer slump as big as the leak in the Titanic without sinking?

The summer slump and its origins

When can you find the summer slump? From the beginning of July to the end of August

Where can you find the summer slump? In most sectors, with the exception of tourism and catering.

It is a period in which interests are shifted towards leisure and family, away from work and professional commitments.

The main motive is, of course, the holiday period. Complete disconnection from work commitments, pure relaxation … at best even without access to incoming emails to maximise the relaxation effect.

But the pleasant temperatures also generally invite us to enjoy life, ideally outdoors, with family or friends. The “joys of life” push many serious topics to the back of our minds and there’s one thing we probably don’t think about … work.

Countermeasures in Email Marketing

The summer slump is spreading its horror, but there are countermeasures against every danger. Used skilfully, these measures can reduce the negative effects or even eliminate them altogether.

If you know how, you can also overcome the summer slump in email marketing. Let’s take a detailed look at some of the measures below.

1. “Summer Sales” – Always welcome!

A discount campaign in the summer months is a popular topic and is usually gladly accepted. Some consumers also speculate on these special discounts, as sales of many products are known to fall in the summer months.

For example, discounts could be granted on individual products in order to arouse interest. If the advertised product groups then change on a weekly basis, the excitement is maintained over a longer period of time. In this way, the remaining product groups also remain in the dialogue and contact with customers and interested parties is not lost.

2. Attractive content and topics – No chance of boredom

As described at the beginning of this article, the summer months are a time when a special mood prevails. This must be taken into account. Summer-related content is basically a must, as long as the products or services offered are compatible with this in some way, garnished with an appealing design.

Summer recipes and travel tips are just a few examples, each target group naturally has its own ideas and needs, which can certainly be identified by analysing the marketing persona.

3. Personalised recommendations – Boost engagement

The best possible personalisation of the email content and, of course, the subject line is always an important recommendation in email marketing. There is no doubt that product recommendations tailored to the recipient increase the chance of a positive response.

In times of noticeably lower sales, this measure naturally becomes even more important, for example during the dreaded “summer slump”.

4. Interactive elements – Goodbye boredom!

It is particularly important to lighten up your e-mail content during the summer months. A period in which the serious side of life takes a timeout and this should be taken into account.

The attention span generally decreases and playful elements, elements that convey fun, are better received than deadly serious and dry content. Think, for example, of small games, quizzes or countdown timers. There are countless possibilities, the main thing is not to be boring!

5. Mobile optimisation – Always on the move!

Life is all about movement and summer in particular invites us to be outdoors. In winter, on the other hand, we prefer the cosy, heated office. Whether a curse or a blessing, in these modern times almost everyone can be reached on the move. This means that emails are also increasingly being accessed and read on smartphones and tablets.

Email designs must therefore be responsive to ensure that they are always easy to read on mobile devices.

Simple and clear texts as well as clearly visible and clickable CTA buttons should be standard.

6. Outlook and review – Endless choice of topics

Of course, the clocks in your own company also run a little slower in the summer, with the holiday season contributing significantly to this. This also has consequences, for example in terms of product innovations or new services. Does this mean you run out of topics?

No problem, because marketing never sleeps. An outlook for the near (or even distant) future can be created at practically any time, but especially in “quiet times” and at least two positive effects are certain. On the one hand, excitement and anticipation are built up in the target group, and on the other, email marketing can also convey interesting content during the summer months.

There are currently no interesting future prospects! – That’s a shame, but it’s not a problem either. Just take a look at the past! How about a review, ideally on a fascinating topic, possibly a success story about your company or a certain product?

7. User-generated content – Maximum engagement

The aim of all marketing activities is to convince potential customers as well as existing customers of products, services or the brand. Building trust is the first step, while complete identification with a brand is ultimately the goal, which many trend brands have achieved on a large scale.

If there is sufficient customer loyalty, this goes hand in hand with increased commitment. People are willing to invest time and resources in “their brand”!

This fact can also be utilised during the summer slump. Promotions with user-generated content promote engagement, customer loyalty and are also fun!

A “summer fun photo contest” could be an ideal theme for the holiday season, to name just one example. The results can also be used as “Social Proof “ afterwards.

8. Thematic Email Series – Excitement for Weeks

The summer slump lasts for many weeks and even months, so why not cover this long period with an email series on a specific topic?

The announcement and launch of this series should definitely take place before the actual start of the summer slump, as this is the only way to build up the necessary interest and excitement so that readers don’t give up and continue to follow the series even during the “summer slump”.

There are many possible topics, and planning should be done well in advance and comprehensively to ensure that there is ultimately enough material available for full realisation.

9. Re-Engagement Campaigns – Utilising Free Resources

The aim will always be to make sensible use of the summer lull, and as already mentioned in this article, there are many opportunities to do so. If this period offers free resources in the marketing department, these can be used for a very special type of measure – “re-engagement campaigns”. Why go the extra mile to acquire new subscribers when you can reactivate passive members?

Analyses reveal which subscribers and users are hardly or not at all active. As a result, targeted measures or campaigns can be created to re-engage these subscribers or, at best, to win them back completely.

In the majority of cases, however, it will make sense to wait until after the summer slump to implement the actual mailing in order to avoid the holiday period and “summer fatigue”.

Conclusion

Even if the summer slump is generally frightening and there is a risk of losing active subscribers, it is possible to avoid or at least alleviate the negative effects with intelligent strategies. Interesting offers can promote interest and activity, so the weeks in the summer are by no means lost. It’s also the time to look to the future or reminisce about the past, interesting topics for email marketing can always be found.

Whatever you do in the summer, there is one thing you should not forget alongside all your marketing endeavours – your relaxation! In any case, Bancomail wishes you a relaxing yet successful summer.