The holidays are nigh, but you still have time to put together a catchy email marketing campaign that drives your flock right to their online carts and into shops. If you haven’t utilized all email marketing can offer to your brand and followers, the holidays are the time to join the promo party; according to Custora, email marketing was the number one driver of sales on Black Friday in 2015 resulting in 27.3 perfect of online sales. How’s that for effective? Below outlines your play-by-play for hitting the holiday bullseye, on the fly. Don’t let your deals get lost in the holiday shuffle!

Create an (Automated) Story

Your first plan of action: come up with an offer too good to refuse. Whether that entails a set monetary discount across all of your products, or a particular deal for each service, offer something extraordinary that is completely separate from your campaigns during the rest of the year.

With that idea in mind, curate a series of emails that are both thematically sound and build up anticipation in stages. Implement each email as a reminder that delivers the campaign logically and speaks to your audience. Take a cue from the pros. Toys R Us is illuminating the secret lives of toys to make heartfelt and funny emotional connections this year, while Target has embarked on a Holiday Odyssey narrated by Neil Patrick Harris for ultimate excitement, compounding holiday hopes and good tidings.

Now set it on an automated scheme so it doesn’t slip by forgotten. Drive the effect even further by tailoring your emails to pertain to the time of day; a morning hello, an afternoon drop in, or an evening nightcap, tying effortlessly with your offer.

Narrowly Hit Your Targets in the Sweet Spots

Instead of sending out a general email to your whole list, personalize. Try to be the (benevolent) needle in the haystack; your subscribers are receiving a flood of punches from every retailer this time of year. Working in sync with your story above, offer exclusive offers to new subscribers, targeted discounts based on click-through activity, or event invites for your loyals, for starters. The story, theme, and offer can pair with each group of your audience to address their holiday wishes and allow to take full advantage of the cheer you’re serving up.

Focus on a Call to Action

Like all email marketing and marketing in general, end with a call to action; whether it’s a direct click to a product they’ve looked at before, or a straightforward message that ignites a sense of urgency to get your shop, a call to action riles up your follower to grab what’s on offer. Working well with the holidays, this can be amplified by only having a limited offering; that might come in the form of a 12-hour window to snag the deal or only 100 complimentary gifts with a certain purchase. Overall, the most effective holiday emails will include your branding for recognition and loyalty retention, 1-3 images, less than 20 lines of text, and one strong action to engage your subscribers with that captivating, curated story.

Don’t Shy Away From the Classic Coupon

Not the kind your aunt cuts out of the Sunday ads. Everyone loves using something that feels like a golden ticket to get hold of some goods, especially around the holidays. Offer a coupon with a promo code, or a redeemable barcode available via your subscriber’s phone.

Don’t Skimp on the Subject Line

This is your hook, line and sinker, your nano-second chance to catch the eye of your followers amidst they’re ever-growing feed of frenzied holiday promos. Make it punchy, make it count.

Marry with Social Media

No news to you, emails should contain links your social media platforms, but also align your email marketing with your posting schedule. Adapt your email marketing to what each platform calls for, both in form and content. And as always, encourage social media interaction with hashtags, video content, and your usual engagement tactics.

Optimize for Mobile

Before you get busy on your moneymaking campaign full of holiday cheer, make sure you use an email template that will work for your customers’ smartphone or tablet – they’re likely opening your emails there. Here’s where that well-placed and easily redeemable coupon comes in; digesting and unlocking offers should be a cinch.

Mark your calendars and get going: Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday are around the bend. These tips can be applied to a full fledged operation, or a quickie campaign. TL;DR: curate a story and make an impactful punch, with easy accessibility.