Foodies + Frankenstein: 28 SMS Campaign Ideas for October

For any of us in ecommerce, October is when things start to get real—as in “countdown to BFCM” real. But there’s still plenty of time to go before we get all holly jolly, and October is filled with lots of great reasons to send a text.

This month feels like a foodie’s paradise—from coffee and cookies to (of course) Halloween candy, we expect food and beverage brands to go particularly hard this month.

There are also tons of opportunities to get personal with your subscribers in October, with holidays like National Coming Out Day and World Teachers Day in front of us.

And if you haven’t sent a text in awhile, now’s your chance to dust off those cobwebs and get that list warmed up for the countdown to November.

It’s the best part of waking up, so take the time to celebrate that beloved cup of joe. While this is an obvious win for coffee brands (we’ll show you some cute texts below), it’s also an opportunity for you to get creative—even if you aren’t in the gourmet bean space. 

Here’s how Death Wish Coffee celebrated.

And here’s how Super Coffee kicked off the holiday.

We love how Fat Snax got us coffee connoisseurs in the dunking state of mind. 

Or maybe you can simply share your favorite way to drink it in the morning, like Inspire Me! Home Decor did with their subscribers. 

Are you a tried-and-true tea drinker who doesn’t think this holiday is relevant? Let your subscribers be the judge of that. Send out a conversational campaign and get into it over the best way to enjoy a cup of something steamy.

According to a study from the Good Food Institute, nearly a third of the population considers themselves “mostly vegetarian.” Don’t miss out on your chance to market to such a huge segment of your list by celebrating this meatless day.

There are lots of personal ways to take part. You could share your own veg story, send out a keyword reply campaign to find out who on your list considers themselves vegetarian, or simply share a favorite veggie dish for anyone to enjoy.

And for those in the health or wellness space, this is an opportunity to promote a healthy lifestyle, like SteelFit did with this sale.

“I have nothing to say about International Music Day!” Someone bring us a violin. Everyone has the ability to celebrate music—whether it’s by sharing your favorite concert experience, your middle school band photo, or perhaps a playlist.

Or crowdsource one, similar to what Super Coffee did in a recent campaign.

One of our favorite parts of the above example is how engaged Super Coffee is with their subscribers. It’s important to remember that when you do send out a conversational campaign, your subscribers expect a human to be on the other side of it. This is important to keep in mind before you launch something that entices people to respond. 

Stop trying to make fetch happen. 

This cult classic film has its own holiday now, and if it’s something you think would resonate with your audience, have some fun with it.

Create a survey that lets subscribers choose their favorite character, and set up automatic responses about their personality based on who they love the most.

Or, share your favorite quote from the movie (there are so many to choose from) and ask subscribers how they’re celebrating.

Find out if anyone on your list has dressed up as a Mean Girl for Halloween, and give subscribers who text back a pic a promo code to use on their next order!

Whether you’re on team al pastor or team beans and cheese, tacos are the food that softens even the hardest of hearts. 

And guess what? This year’s National Taco Day falls on a Tuesday—so there’s really no reason for you to do anything but celebrate the ultimate Taco Tuesday event.

The pros at Simply Tortillas know this is a day that’s not to be missed.

It has been a particularly rough couple of years for educators the world over, and this is a great opportunity to recognize those in your subscriber pool who are teachers.

Don’t make this about a sale or promotion—make it about appreciation. Share a story about the best teacher you ever had. Ask subscribers to call out their most beloved educator with a story. 

Or, ask any subscriber on your list to share a photo of themselves in their classroom—and respond with a discount code they can use to treat themselves. If you can’t gift them an apple, a discount code is surely the next best thing.

This is traditionally the last big sale weekend before BFCM, but if you’re not rolling out promotions, consider celebrating the holiday for what it’s actually about: honoring and remembering Native American traditions and history.

If you’re an indigenous-owned brand, use it as an opportunity to tell your story to your full subscriber list!

We liked this on-brand take on the holiday from Kaleidoscope. 

You don’t need to be an LGBTQ+-owned brand to celebrate this important holiday—but you can certainly shout out some of your favorites!

Make it personal if you have your own coming out story to share.

Or, consider making a donation to an important LGBTQ+ non-profit organization to have a direct and positive impact today and beyond.

Want some inspiration? Sign up for texts from Only Human and thank us later.

Let’s start an SMS movement. Text your subscribers and ask them to do something today that will make a positive impact—whether that means feeding the meter for someone, dropping off a lasagna for a neighbor, or making a charitable donation to a cause they believe in.

Make it a conversation over text. Ask your subscribers to text you back with what they plan on doing. Compile it into an inspired blog post and share it again in a few months—for Random Acts of Kindness Day on February 17!

This festival of lights is as important to Hindus as the Christmas holiday is to Christians. It’s a celebration that focuses on the three f’s: food, family, and fireworks.

Olive oil brand Brightland celebrated with a free gift offer.

If running a promotion doesn’t make sense for your brand, consider sending an educational campaign about Diwali or simply sharing a holiday greeting to all who celebrate!

We’re as excited as anyone else about getting dressed up and buying bulk bags of candy at the grocery store “in case we get trick-or-treaters.” 

While this is a great holiday to engage with customers, it’s also a profitable one. Halloween consistently ranks as one of the most popular and lucrative holidays of the year, generating billions of dollars in revenue in the US alone.

If you plan on celebrating the Halloween season all month long, it’s an opportune time to use Flow Builder (especially if you haven’t already tried it). Schedule those sends over a  period of several days, and any customer who buys will automatically be removed from the flow. 

We’ve got a bunch of great Halloween SMS campaign examples you can adapt for your brand this month, but here’s a roundup of what brands did last year to celebrate. They’re so good—we’ve got chills. 

Turns out October is the foodiest month of the year. We couldn’t list them all since we were getting too hungry, but here’s a few more you might want to recognize.

October 9 - International Beer and Pizza Day
October 12 - National Gumbo Day
October 13 - National M&M Day
October 14 - National Dessert Day
October 15 - National Mushroom Day
October 16 - World Food Day
October 17 - National Pasta Day
October 18 - National Chocolate Cupcake Day
October 19 - National Seafood Bisque Day
October 21 - National Apple Day
October 22 - National Nut Day
October 23 - National Boston Cream Pie Day
October 25 - National Greasy Foods Day
October 26 - National Pumpkin Day
October 28 - National Breadstick Day
October 29 - National Oatmeal Day
October 30 - National Candy Corn Day

While we sit back and gorge ourselves on all things pumpkin-flavored, we hope you’ll keep those texts coming throughout the month. We’re officially kicking off BFCM, and if you haven’t downloaded our handy BFCM planner yet, don’t sleep on it. Get your copy right here.