Guide · Small business · Christmas
How to write a Christmas email to your customers: a simple template
A good business Christmas email is short, thanks people properly and tells them the dates they need. Here is a six-part structure, a template you can copy and the UK email rules to check before you send.
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The 6 parts
- Pick one job for the email. Decide whether it is a thank-you, a last-order-date reminder, a Christmas offer or an opening-hours notice. One clear purpose beats a card that tries to do everything.
- Write a subject line that says what is inside. Plain and specific works: "Our Christmas opening hours", "Last order date for Christmas delivery: 16 December", "Thank you for 2026, and a small gift". Avoid ALL CAPS and lots of exclamation marks, which look like spam.
- Open with a real thank-you. Two sentences about your year with them: a job you did together, a new product they liked, or simply that they kept coming back. Specific beats generic.
- Give the practical details. Last order or booking dates, closing and reopening days, and how to reach you in an emergency. Put dates in bold or a short list so people can find them at a glance.
- Add one offer or call to action. One button or link: book a January slot, use a code before a date, or buy a gift voucher. Say when it ends.
- Sign off as a person. Use a name, not "The Management". Include your business name, address town, a reply address and an unsubscribe line.
Template you can copy
Swap the brackets for your own details.
Subject: [Business name]: our Christmas dates and a thank-you Hi [first name or "there"], Thank you for choosing [business] this year. [One specific sentence about the year.] Our Christmas dates: - Last orders / bookings: [date] - Closed: [date] to [date] - Back open: [date] [Offer or call to action, with an end date.] [Button: Book / Shop / Reply] Merry Christmas from all of us, [Name], [Business name], [Town] You are getting this because you are a customer of [business]. Reply STOP or click here to unsubscribe.
Subject line ideas
- Our Christmas opening hours
- Last order date for Christmas: [date]
- Thank you for 2026
- Book your January slot before we close
- A small Christmas thank-you from [business]
Common mistakes
- Burying the closing dates under a long message.
- Sending the whole email as one image.
- Emailing people who never bought from you or agreed to hear from you.
- No unsubscribe line or reply address.
- Sending it on 23 December, when it is too late to act on.
Frequently asked questions
- When should I send a Christmas email to customers?
- Send practical dates (last orders, closing days) in late November or early December so customers can plan. A shorter thank-you can follow in the week before Christmas.
- Can I send a Christmas email to all my customers?
- You can email existing customers about similar products or services you sold them, as long as you gave them a chance to opt out when you collected their address and in every email (the soft opt-in under PECR). For anyone else who is an individual, you need their consent. Always include an unsubscribe option and honour it.
- Should I send an e-card or a plain email?
- A short plain or lightly designed email usually reads better on phones and is less likely to land in spam than an email that is one big image. If you use an image, add the key dates as text too.
- How long should it be?
- Under 150 words for the main message. People read Christmas emails on their phones between other things.
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