Coming up

What to post for back to school

September is the quiet reset, routines restart and rivals go quiet. Turning up now, when nobody else bothers, is the cheapest attention of the year.

Mon 6 Sep 2027the date 344 days to gofrom today 14 daysthe run-up
Pick your days and we write your own guide. Your first plan is free.
The run-up

Every day between now and then that is worth a post

Not one a day. These are the ones that do a job. What each is for is underneath it.

Mon 23 Aug 14 days before Claim the reset Post that you're open, local and ready for the new term, plainly, before the rush. September is a fresh start for your customers too, and you want to be in frame as their routine reforms. Write this one →
Fri 27 Aug 10 days before Solve one September problem Name the small thing this month throws up that you can fix, the back-to-school trim, the packed-lunch staple, the after-drop-off coffee. Be the answer to a question people are already asking. Write this one →
Mon 30 Aug 7 days before Show the routine, not a sale A photo of the ordinary thing you do, at the time of day people now pass your door. Routine is the whole point of September, so slot yourself into theirs. Write this one →
Thu 2 Sep 4 days before Be useful, not loud Post something genuinely handy for the season, a tip, a reminder, a time you're open. Useful travels further than pushy in a month when everyone's just trying to get organised. Write this one →
Sat 4 Sep 2 days before Invite the new rhythm in Say why now is a good moment to start with you, a standing appointment, a weekly order, a regular slot. New routines are being set this fortnight; offer to be one of them. Write this one →
Mon 6 Sep The day First week back Post from the first proper week, the morning trade, a fresh face, the ordinary hum. Being visibly open and busy is the message; you don't need a gimmick. Write this one →
The idea most businesses miss

Don't go dark when others do

Les Binet and Peter Field's analysis of hundreds of campaigns found that businesses which keep a steady presence, rather than going quiet between big pushes, grow more over time. September is exactly when many rivals fall silent. Simply staying visible in a quiet month is cheap, easy ground to take.

Les Binet and Peter Field, advertising-effectiveness researchers · Les Binet & Peter Field, The Long and the Short of It, IPA

Questions

The questions people ask

There's no fixed date. When do I post?
Term dates differ across the country, so work to your own area's return week and start a fortnight before it. Check your council's dates rather than a national list.
Isn't September too quiet to bother?
That quiet is the opportunity. Fewer businesses are posting, so it costs you less to be noticed and remembered.
I'm not aimed at families. Does this apply?
Often yes. September resets everyone's routine, not only parents'. Frame it as a fresh start for the season and it fits most trades.

The other dates worth the effort

Sat 31 Oct 2026 Halloween 34 days to go It lands on a Saturday, so it is a trading weekend, not one night. 7 posts to make → Fri 25 Dec 2026 Christmas 89 days to go Your Christmas deadline isn't the 25th, it's your last order or appointment before it. Count down to that, and the whole month gets simpler. 7 posts to make → Everything else The whole calendar The rest of this year and all of next, with the British ones in the right place. Open the calendar →