A holiday sale plan with every date and email in one calendar
Black Friday, Cyber Monday and the gift rush all hit at once, and late planning means rushed offers and missed shipping cut-offs. This prompt has your agent build a week-by-week holiday sale plan for your store, from early-access emails to the last day for delivery before the holidays.
The prompt
- Make a holiday sale plan for my online store selling [WHAT YOU SELL]. Our sales usually come from [MAIN CHANNELS]. Plan from [START DATE] to early January and cover: the offer for each phase (early access, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, gift weeks, last-minute digital gift cards, after-holiday clearance), which products to feature, a calendar of emails and social posts with dates and subject lines, stock to reorder by when, the last order dates for standard and express shipping with [CARRIER], and what to change on the homepage each week. Keep offers within a [MAX DISCOUNT] discount. Deliver it as an Excel calendar plus a one-page summary, and send me a reminder on WhatsApp the day before each key date.
What to change
- [WHAT YOU SELL]: Your products, e.g. "handmade leather goods" or "kids' educational toys".
- [MAIN CHANNELS]: Where sales come from, e.g. "email and Instagram" or "Google Shopping and Etsy".
- [START DATE]: When the plan starts, e.g. "November 1". Six weeks before Black Friday is a good start for prep.
- [CARRIER]: Your shipping company, e.g. "USPS and UPS" or "Royal Mail". The agent checks their published holiday dates.
- [MAX DISCOUNT]: Your limit, e.g. "25%" or "no discounts, gifts with purchase only".
Example result
- Phase 1: prep (Nov 1-14)
- • Reorder best sellers now; slow suppliers need 3-4 weeks
- • Grow the email list with a "get early access" sign-up bar
- • Prepare banners and gift guide pages; test discount codes
- Phase 2: early access (Nov 20-26)
- • Offer: 20% off sitewide for subscribers only
- • Email Nov 20: "Your early access starts now"
- • Email Nov 24: "48 hours left before everyone else"
- Phase 3: Black Friday to Cyber Monday
- • Offer: 25% off sitewide, free gift wrap
- • Homepage: countdown banner and best-seller grid
- • Emails on Friday morning, Saturday, Sunday evening reminder, Monday "last day"
- • Social: one post or story per day showing a product in use
- Phase 4: gift weeks (early-mid December)
- • No sitewide discount; gift guides by recipient and price ("under $50")
- • Bundle a gift box with a free card
- • Email weekly: "Gifts for him", "Gifts for her", "Stocking stuffers"
- Phase 5: shipping cut-offs
- • Show a banner with the last order date for standard shipping and for express, using your carrier's published holiday dates (check their site; they change every year)
- • After the cut-off, push digital gift cards by email and on the homepage
- Phase 6: after the holidays (Dec 26-Jan 6)
- • Clearance on seasonal stock only
- • Thank-you email to new customers with a small next-order offer
- • Review: revenue by phase, best emails, what sold out too early
- Weekly checks
- • Stock of the top 10 products every Monday
- • Customer service replies within one day; add holiday FAQs to your help page
How to do it with todo.is
- Replace the brackets with your products, channels, start date, carrier and discount limit.
- Paste it into todo.is or send it to your agent on WhatsApp or Telegram.
- Your agent checks the calendar and carrier dates, then sends the Excel plan and sets your reminders.
- Ask it to write each email when its date comes up, or to shift the plan if a supplier is late.
Tips for a better result
- Reward your email list first. Early access makes subscribers feel valued and spreads orders across more days.
- Put shipping cut-off dates on your site and in every December email. It reduces "where is my order" messages.
- Don't run the deepest discount for six weeks. Keep it to the Black Friday weekend and switch to gift guides after.
- Let your agent remind you to reorder stock: "every Monday in November, ask me for best-seller stock levels".
holiday sale plan: FAQ
- When should I start planning a holiday sale? Six to eight weeks before Black Friday is a good time to start. That leaves time for stock orders, designs and growing your email list.
- How much discount should I give on Black Friday? Many small stores offer 15-30% or a gift with purchase. Pick a level your margins can handle, and consider rewarding subscribers first.
- Where do the shipping cut-off dates come from? Your agent looks up your carrier's published holiday shipping dates and links them. Carriers update them every year, so check the link before you announce them.
- Can todo.is send my holiday emails? Your agent writes the emails and can save them as Gmail drafts or remind you to send them. It asks for your OK before sending anything.
JavaScript is required to use the todo.is app.