As we turn the calendar into a new year, January can offer up a slower pace for food content creators. But, there’s still a lot of great email newsletter content ideas for food bloggers!
January is a month where it’s really important to have a good handle on who your newsletter subscribers are. There are a lot of ways to approach January content so think carefully about how you want to proceed.
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
January is often viewed as a “fresh start” in terms of health and wellness. If you’re not a health professional proceed with caution here. Avoid reference to weight loss or restrictive eating – unless that is your audience! (Ie if you’re a keto content creator, then obviously you will focus on Keto content because that isyour audience). Remember that the words you choose, and how you use them, matters.
You can try focusing on:
whole foods
lighter, simpler meals
mood boosting foods
moderation over restriction
inclusion of foods over exclusion of foods
nutritious snacks that fuel us through the cold and outdoor activities
foods that promote a sustainable environment
implementing small changes that make us feel more alive and vibrant
OTHER ‘FRESH STARTS’ TO FOCUS ON
There are lots of other fresh starts to explore in January that don’t focus on restrictive eating or diet culture.
pantry/kitchen clean-up and organization strategies
focusing on kitchen sustainability
evaluating kitchen tools/containers/dishes/appliances – what needs repair, what can be sold or given away, what needs to be disposed of (don’t forget you can recommend items and use your affiliate programs**)
minimizing instead of maximizing
BUDGET BOOSTERS AND KITCHEN WASTE
There’s always a bit of a spending hangover after the holiday season and 2024 looks like it might have an even bigger hangoer than usual. How can you address this in your emails?
budget boosting foods
budget friendly recipes
food swaps that reduce grocery bills
how to avoid kitchen waste (which also helps with budgeting!)
meal planning and prep (less like to waste food if you plan and prep)
SEASONAL FOOD
root veg, squash, winter greens
kiwi, persimmons and pomegranates
citrus season is still in full swing
soups and stews
comfort foods
salads with bulk
bulky grains like barley, buckwheat, bulgar, farro
smoothies and bright, vibrant breakfast ideas
VALENTINE’S DAY
Start dripping out Valentine’s day content in your emails in the last week of January – earlier if this is a good fit for your audience. A few quick ideas…
TAILOR YOUR JANUARY NEWSLETTER CONTENT FOR YOUR EMAIL AUDIENCE
As always, these are ideas to help you brainstorm. Adapt them to fit your audience and your niche, which you know better than anyone else.
Remember that your email audience may be different from the audience that finds you through search.
Focus on what your newsletter subscribers respond to. If you have the data available in your newsletter marketing platform, look at which content they responded to this time last year. Then create newsletter content that’s a good fit.!
Now’s the time to get started. Plan out your January newsletter calendar and batch write your emails. Schedule them and you’re good to go!
** remember that you cannot use your direct Amazon affiliate product links in your emails but you can link to blog posts that contain Amazon affiliate links and you can link to your Amazon influencer shop. Check the rules of any other affiliate programs you use before including your links.
Want More Tips?
Want more email tips? Subscribe to my monthly newsletter! Each month I write an exclusive newsletter full of tips, tricks and ideas for food content creators and their email lists!
December is a busy month for food content creators and the last big push in Q4. There’s no shortage of email newsletter ideas for food bloggers and food content creators. People are looking for entertaining ideas, last minute tips and recipes, homemade gifts, ideas to keep kids busy and more!
There’s more than enough ideas to keep you busy with food inspired newsletter content for December. I think we could easily send out an email a day in December and still have lots of ideas left over.
But, if you’re struggling with ideas for your food newsletter or you’ve just got too many things on your mind to brainstorm content for your newsletter audience, I’ve got a wealth of suggestions for you.
IMPORTANT DATES FOR 2023
Hanukkah: evening of December 7 to the evening of December 15
Christmas Eve: December 24th
Christmas Day: December 25th
Boxing Day and/or St. Stephens Day: December 26th is a statutory holiday in many countries outside of the US. It’s a popular day for shopping, televised sports and hosting open houses and drop-in gatherings.
Kwanzaa: December 26-January 1st
New Year’s Eve: December 31st
New Year’s Day: January 1st
ENTERTAINING
open houses, cocktail parties, dessert tables and buffets, brunches (another great buffet opportunity), Christmas dinner, skating parties, holiday light viewing walks and rides, New Year’s eve…
think about appetizers, desserts, drinks, items that can be made ahead of time (breakfast bakes and casseroles are very popular this year!)
entertaining on a budget
entertaining for different sized groups – from 3-4 people to big groups
recipes for festive drinks that can be made in large batches for a crowd (alcoholic and non-alcoholic options)
GIFTS FROM YOUR KITCHEN
recipes for spice mixes, hot cocoa mixes, soup mixes, cookie or pancake dry mixes (you can layer all of these in pretty glass jars)
cookie and bar swap or platter recipes
recipes for candied nuts, jams and jellies, chocolates and candies
tutorials on how to put together an attractive cookie or bar platter
templates to make your own gift tags or tutorials on how to decorate and wrap the jars of spice mix, hot cocoa etc.
KID FRIENDLY CONTENT
Lots of parents will have littles at home over the holidays and will be looking for things to keep them busy…
recipes kids can help with
cookie and bar decorating
homemade gifts from the kitchen kids can help with (assembling spice mixes, dry ingredients for soups or baking mixes, etc)
LEFTOVERS
recipes that use up leftover turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, vegetables
create a “leftovers” charcuterie board or turn leftover appies into a fun dinner night.
CONFIDENCE BOOSTER EMAIL
Ok this one is a bit different but hear me out. You could send an email to your list that has nothing to do with food. Everyone is stressed this time of year for a wide range of reasons.
Send an email reminding them they’ve got this! Offer up…
some relaxation or meditation techniques (going for a walk, some easy stretching, a relaxing activity that uses their hands like knitting or colouring, using a meditation app)
ways to cut corners while still having a fabulous holiday
sure fire, easy recipes that are impossible to screw up
how to combat loneliness – not everyone has family around at Christmas
ideas for giving back
something that reminds them it’s ok… it doesn’t have to be perfect!
some funny memes can also go a long way!
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDES
While you can’t post Amazon affiliate links in your emails, you can share a link to your Amazon affiliate shop (if you have one) or to blog posts that contain amazon affiliate links.
Other affiliate programs usually let you share their links in your emails so don’t just focus on Amazon.
Last minute gift ideas and stocking stuffers are great gift guides to share in December.
NEW YEAR’S EVE
Plan to start dripping out your New Year’s even content just after Christmas. I strongly recommend having this content prepped and scheduled in advance. The week between Christmas and New Year’s seems to exist in an alternate reality where we lose track of dates and time. If you’re anything like me, you probably spend a lot of it in your PJs!
You don’t want to feel pressure to do some work but there is a limited time to get New Year’s content out so prepping and scheduling is the way to go!
SEASONAL FOODS
The next few months are a bit rough when it comes to seasonal foods but here’s what to look for:
TAILOR YOUR DECEMBER NEWSLETTER CONTENT FOR YOUR EMAIL AUDIENCE
As always, these are ideas to help you brainstorm. Adapt them to fit your audience and your niche, which you know better than anyone else.
Remember that your email audience may be different from the audience that finds you through search.
Focus on what your newsletter subscribers respond to. If you have the data available in your newsletter marketing platform, look at which content they responded to this time last year. Then create newsletter content that’s a good fit. If your audience is mainly young singles, skip the kid content!
Now’s the time to get started. Plan out your December newsletter calendar and batch write your emails. Schedule them and you’re good to go!
Want More Tips?
Want more email tips? Subscribe to my monthly newsletter! Each month I write an exclusive newsletter full of tips, tricks and ideas for food content creators and their email lists!
November brings us into the heart of Q4 and there is an wealth of email newsletter possibilities for food bloggers and food content creators as people are not only looking for Thanksgiving ideas but they’re also starting to prep for Christmas and other December holidays.
As I’ve mentioned in previous newsletter idea posts, a lot of food content creators up their email send frequency as we get into Q4 – especially if their audience is focused on baking or entertaining. It’s a great way to give your traffic an additional boost through the season where RPMs tend to be at their highest.
This month, don’t forget Black Friday/Cyber Monday!
If you have products – digital or physical – plan your promotions and the emails and social media content to go with them now! Get it done and scheduled to make your life easier.
SEASONAL HOLIDAYS & IMPORTANT DATES:
Diwali: November 12 (this is actually a 5 day festival) American Thanksgiving: November 23 Black Friday: November 24 Cyber Monday: November 27
AMERICAN THANKSGIVING:
Turkey: all things turkey – how to cook one, how to brine it, smoke it, air fry it, slow cook it, defrost it, stuff it, or cook it in the instant pot. Don’t forget leftovers for the week after Thanksgiving
Side Dishes: turkey’s great, but for many, it’s all about the side dishes. If you’re a niche blogger, dive in here with dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, keto-friendly etc
Dessert: all things pumpkin and a lot of pie!
Turkey Alternatives: turkey isn’t for everyone. Vegans, vegetarians and small families are looking for other options
Friendsgiving: If you’ve got Chandler Bings in your life, you know what I’m talking about!
Leftovers: anything that helps use up leftovers and avoid food waste
Entertaining & Decor Ideas: y’all… pumpkin centerpieces are so flipping popular this year! Centrepieces, tableware and decor, cocktail presentation, appetizers, DIY tutorials etc
If you’re not American, you can start moving into Christmas and/or Hanukkah content. A lot content this time of year can double for Thanksgiving and the holidays: appetizers, sides, cocktails, baking etc.
SPORTS:
Thanksgiving is a big football holiday. Pull out your game day recipes: snacks, dips, wings, finger foods, chili – all the favourites!
**Don’t forget to add in vegetarian and vegan options as well as some alcohol-free beverages – all of these are continuing to grow in popularity and it’s rare to host a gathering these days that doesn’t include meat and alcohol-free guests!
COOKIES, BARS, CANDY AND FOOD GIFTS
There are things that everyone starts planning for early and they include:
their annual cookie platters
cookie swaps (bars are often included in these)
homemade gifts from the kitchen: candy, jarred baking and beverage mixes, jams, jellies and more
holiday baking: fruit cakes, bars, pies and other seasonal items that can be baked ahead of time
Start dripping out recipe content for these in November. I’d start the first week!
You can also do related email content:
how to host or plan a cookie swap
how to create a cookie platter to gift
how to create your own labels for jams and jellies or boxed candies
how to package food for gifting (or shipping!)
baking pantry checklists
HOLIDAY ENTERTAINING
People start planning early! They are pinning content so make sure to include some easy “pin now” button in your emails for recipes they might like to save for later.
party prep
party ideas
decor
appetizers
cocktails
open houses and buffets
Think of ways you can put a spin on these for your audience:
TAILOR YOUR NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER CONTENT FOR YOUR EMAIL AUDIENCE
As always, these are ideas to help you brainstorm. Adapt them to fit your audience and your niche, which you know better than anyone else.
Remember that your email audience may be different from the audience that finds you through search.
Focus on what your newsletter subscribers respond to. If you have the data available in your newsletter marketing platform, look at which content they responded to this time last year. Then create newsletter content that’s a good fit. If your audience doesn’t care about sports, skip the sports content!
Now’s the time to get started. Plan out your November newsletter calendar and batch write your emails. Schedule them and you’re good to go!
Want more email tips? Subscribe to my monthly newsletter! Each month I write an exclusive newsletter full of tips, tricks and ideas for food content creators and their email lists!
This quick tip works equally well for email newsletters and product pages or product marketing launch pages. We’re talking about buttons – with a strong call to action.
I’m always looking for quick, easy ways to improve click throughs in emails or on product pages. Because sometimes, the simplest tweaks can result in the biggest rewards. And it’s always fascinating to me how the smallest change can completely alter a person’s behaviour!
So today, let’s talk about buttons. Particularly buttons with a strong call to action!
WHY YOU NEED TO USE BUTTONS IN YOUR EMAIL MARKETING
Most people who read your emails or scroll your product listings are probably doing so on their phones . ***
Clicking on text links on our phone is always a little more challenging than clicking while on a desktop or laptop – or even a tablet.
Big thumbs, small screens.
This is especially true when the links are short, one or two word text links.
If you’re not already, start using buttons in your emails and on web pages where you have an important call to action you want the reader to take.
They’re big, they’re bold, they stand out and, they’re easy to click when you’re holding a phone.
And unlike 5 or 10 years ago where including a button meant doing some coding, now they’re as simple as drag and drop so there’s no reason not to.
BONUS TIP: USE STRONG CALL TO ACTION LANGUAGE.
When you use a button, it’s important to use strong call to action (CTA) language that makes it clear what clicking the button will do.
Strong CTAs you might want to use include:
BUY IT NOW
GET YOUR EBOOK NOW
READ THE BLOG POST
GET THE RECIPE
SUBSCRIBE NOW
You can also use an arrow icon on the button to make it even clearer that something is going to happen when they click that rectangle.
Not that long ago I started transitioning clients from using the name of the recipe on a button to using a strong CTA.
So this…
Changed to this:
Every single one of them saw an uptick on click throughs by changing the CTA on the buttons. It was amazing what such a small change could do.
If you’re not already, try using buttons in your emails and on your website when you need the reader to take action.
If you are using buttons, make sure you’re using simple, strong language that directs the reader to take action.
Track your results and see the difference!
*** Not all email lists are the same. Don’t assume your readers are mostly mobile users even if that is the industry norm. Always check your data to see what your list is doing and tailor your emails accordingly!
Want more quick tips to help you with your email and digital product marketing? Subscribe to my monthly newsletter! Each month I write an exclusive newsletter full of tips, tricks and ideas for food content creators and their email lists!
It’s easy to get stuck trying to figure out what kind of content to put in your email newsletters but if you’re a food blogger or YouTuber, you already have loads of content ready and waiting to be used. Just look into your content archives!
One of the biggest challenges most food bloggers and food content creators have when it comes to consistently emailing their newsletter list is figuring out what to put in their emails.
But in reality, you probably already have more email content than you know what to do with!
REPURPOSE OLD BLOG CONTENT VIA EMAIL
If you’re stuck for something to send to your list, it’s time to… go back in time!
Your email marketing is the perfect platform to resurrect old content.
Your new subscribers? They haven’t read that old content.
Your old subscribers? They haven’t seen it in eons, possibly years and potentially not at all! (did you even email them regularly 3 years ago? 5 years ago? 10 years ago?)
While it’s important to update old content on your website regularly for SEO purposes, those rules don’t apply to your emails. If a post is old and doesn’t have the best photos or has a story about your Aunt Betty that the search engines aren’t interested in, it doesn’t matter. You can include it in an email.
Posts that are less popular in search can still get great click throughs in your newsletter (earning you some ad revenue) because it’s a different type of reader.
Think of it this way:
Most of us will never be able to rank on page one for a chocolate chip cookie recipe – the competition is waaaaay too fierce. But that doesn’t mean your recipe isn’t a great recipe!
In fact, your newsletter readers want to know what your chocolate chip recipe is because they trust you and like your content. That’s why they open your emails every week!!!
So share that 6 year old chocolate chip recipe in an email. They want to see it.
HOW CAN YOU REPURPOSE OLDER BLOG CONTENT INTO EMAILS?
Here are some easy ways you can repurpose your old content into emails:
⭐️ THEMED EMAILS: example: a Taco Tuesday theme. Make the email a digest of all your taco recipes. You can make themes as broad (cookies) or as specific (peanut butter cookies) as you like depending on the type of content you create.
⭐️ MENU EMAILS: create a complete menu for a meal. You can theme these as well.
Here are just a few ideas:
mother’s day brunch menu
takeout night at home menu
book club meeting menu
easy kids birthday party
the “soccer practice is at 7pm” menu
Expand this to a meal prep menu for the whole week if that’s your niche.
Expand this to a meal prep menu for the whole week if that’s your niche.
⭐️ SEASONAL EMAILS: Package up seasonal content on your site into individual emails. There are so many opportunities to do this.
For example, Halloween is in October. Package up old Halloween content into a series of October emails:
5 Ghoulish Halloween Treats
5 Fun Halloween Treats to Make with Kids
5 Spooky Halloween party cocktails
⭐️ LEFTOVER EMAILS: what happens after every holiday? We have leftovers. Using Halloween as an example again, send an email out right after Halloween with 5 Recipes That Use up Leftover Halloween Candy or 5 Recipes that Use upPumpkin Carving Leftovers. The recipes themselves don’t have to be Halloween related – they just have to be pumpkin or candy related – search your archives for pumpkin recipes. People always forget about leftovers!
These emails are also a great way to highlight minimizing food waste.
⭐️ TUTORIAL EMAILS: If you specialize in something, package up tutorials on your site into emails. Let’s say you make a lot of pies. Send out an email “Everything you need to know about making pie crust” and simply include 5 links to different pie crust recipes and tutorials on your site (how to make pie crust, how to make a two crust pie, savory pie crusts, how to do a lattice top, etc). You don’t have to write an essay on pie crust – just include the links with a short paragraph tying them all together.
⭐️ GREATEST HITS/POPULAR POSTS: Do recap emails highlighting the most popular recipes or posts on your site. Break it down further and do the most popular soups, desserts, weeknight dinners… you get the idea. Share your personal favourites. Readers like to know.
TIPS TO MAKE REPURPOSING CONTENT INTO NEWSLETTERS EASIER
Here are some simple tips to make repurposing blog or video content into newsletters easier for you or an assistant
✅ PRO TIP:keep a spreadsheet that contains a list of all the emails you send out each year.
Include the date of the email, the topic and the recipe or article names and links that were included. Use a new tab in the sheet for each year. Also make notes of any products or special offers you promote: either your own (recipe ebooks, printables etc) or non-Amazon affiliate links.
This helps ensure you don’t repeat links too frequently. I’ve noticed many of my clients tend to gravitate to the same 20-30 links over and over because they like the recipes or they perform well in search. But by having a record, it’s easy for me to show them we used that link two months ago and it’s too soon to repeat it.
✅ PRO TIP:a spreadsheet is easily searchable making it easy for you, or anyone helping you, to check and see the last time you included a taco recipe.
✅ PRO TIP:Try to wait at least 6 months to repeat a link. I prefer to wait longer but it really depends on your send frequency or the content you want to reuse. Sometimes sooner is better!
✅ PRO TIP:Repurposing content makes it very easy to write and schedule your seasonal emails well in advance. By repurposing your older Halloween or Christmas content you can probably have 10 seasonal emails written and scheduled by late September.
Leave space in your schedule to write an email for new holiday content or leave space in each email where you can add a new recipe that fits with the theme. But seriously… how nice would it be to have all those emails written before the busy holiday season even starts?
These are all really simple ways you can repurpose old content and make it earn its keep, while never running out of emails to send!
WANT MORE TIPS?
Want more email tips? Subscribe to my monthly newsletter! Each month I write an exclusive newsletter full of tips, tricks and ideas for food content creators and their email lists!
