How to use the Marketing Calendar
The Marketing Calendar asks about your goals, market, industry and capacity, then builds an editable 12-month campaign plan mapped to the holidays and shopping moments in your region. It's free, needs no account, and runs in your browser. Just make sure to export your plan before you close the tab, since we don't keep a copy.
What it does and who it's for
A year-round plan beats a scramble the week before every holiday. The Marketing Calendar builds one: always-on lead capture first, then seasonal campaigns layered month by month against the moments that matter in your market.
It's a starting point to edit, not a schedule to follow exactly.
Before you start
- No account needed. It runs in your browser with JavaScript enabled.
- Know your goals, your primary market, your industry, and how many campaigns your team can realistically run.
- Optional, for a projected-results estimate: average monthly website visitors and current email list size.
- Progress saves in that browser as you go.
Step by step
1. Pick your goals
Choose everything that applies — list growth, sales, engagement, user-generated content, event signups, awareness. Most teams pick two or three, and the plan is balanced across them.
2. Choose your market and industry
Your primary market sets which holidays, shopping events and seasons drive the calendar. Southern-hemisphere markets get reversed seasons, so an Australian plan treats December as summer.
3. Set your capacity and starting month
Be honest about how much your team can run. A plan you'll actually execute beats an ambitious one you won't. Pick the month the plan starts from.
4. Add optional details
Your brand name gets worked into a few campaign names. Adding average monthly visitors and current list size produces an estimate of how many leads your always-on setup could capture in a year.
5. Build your plan
The plan opens with always-on lead capture — pop-ups and website forms — then lays out a seasonal campaign for each month.
6. Edit before you export
In editing mode, you can rewrite any title or description, remove ideas you won't run, reorder them, and add your own campaigns. Changes are saved on that device.
7. Export it
Three options: Add to calendar for an .ics file, Download CSV for a spreadsheet, and Print / Save PDF. The first export asks for an email address; every export after that in the same browser is immediate.
8. Get the .ics into your calendar app
Google Calendar: open Google Calendar on the web, go to Settings, then Import & export, choose the downloaded .ics file, pick the calendar to add it to, and import.
Outlook: open Outlook, go to File, then Open & Export, then Import/Export, choose to import an iCalendar (.ics) file, select the file, and choose whether to import it into your existing calendar or open it as a new one.
Limits and what it can't do
- 13 markets: the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden.
- Nothing is stored on our side. To get a plan back, re-answer the questions — so export it before you leave.
- Edits are saved to that device only.
- The projection is an estimate, based on typical pop-up and form conversion of 2–5% of visitors. Real results vary with your offer and traffic quality.
- It plans campaigns; it doesn't build or schedule them.
Troubleshooting
My country isn't in the list
Pick the nearest market — the one whose holidays and seasons most resemble yours — and edit the plan. Southern-hemisphere businesses should choose Australia so the seasons come out the right way round.
Where did my plan go?
Nothing is stored on our side. Progress saves in the browser you used, so reopening the tool there may restore it, but a different device, a private window or cleared site data loses it. Export before you leave.
My .ics file downloaded but nothing appeared in my calendar
An .ics download doesn't import itself. Follow step 8 for Google Calendar or Outlook.
The tool won't load
It needs JavaScript enabled. Turn it on and refresh.
Privacy and what happens to your data
Everything runs in your browser. Your goals, market, visitor numbers, and list size aren't sent to a ShortStack server, and no copy of your plan is kept. Your answers and edits are saved on your own device. The email address you give before your first export goes to ShortStack so we can send the plan and follow up.
Related resources
How to use the Campaign Checker (Help Doc)
FAQs
Is the Marketing Calendar really free?
Yes — no signup, no account, no credit card. Everything runs in your browser.
Does it work outside the United States?
Yes. Thirteen markets are covered: the US, Canada, Mexico, the UK, Ireland, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. Holidays, shopping events and seasons follow the market you choose, including reversed seasons for the southern hemisphere.
How does it decide what to suggest?
It maps your goals, region and industry against a year of holidays and key marketing moments, anchoring a seasonal campaign each month and filling in always-on plays around it.
Do I need a ShortStack account to use my plan?
No. The plan is yours to run however you like. You only need an account when you want to build the campaigns.
Can I edit the plan?
Yes. Use editing mode before you export: rewrite any title or description, drop what you won't run, reorder months, and add your own campaigns. Treat it as a starting point, swap in your own promotions, and adjust the cadence to suit your team's capacity.
What kinds of campaigns are in it?
A mix of always-on conversion tools — landing pages, pop-ups, signup forms, quizzes, refer-a-friend — and seasonal campaigns like giveaways, sweepstakes, photo and video contests and instant wins.
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