5 Content Marketing Ideas for December 2023

Content marketers seeking December article and video topics could consider Santa’s List Day, AI-generated suggestions, looking back and ahead, and self-gifting guides.

Content marketing is one of the most potent ways to boost search traffic, engage shoppers, and keep customers coming back.

Thus, content marketing — creating, publishing, and promoting articles, podcasts, or videos — fuels everything from search engine optimization and lifecycle (email) marketing to social media campaigns. But coming up with new topics can feel a little like running on a hamster wheel. So, what follows are five content marketing ideas you can use in December 2023.

1. Santa’s List Day

Santa’s List Day on December 4, 2023, is an opportunity to create articles, videos, or similar content.

December 4, 2023, is International Santa’s List Day. Allegedly, this is the day when the mythical Claus sits down with a warm cup of spiked hot chocolate and composes his two lists — one for all the nice children and a second for the naughty ones.

Your company’s content marketing could celebrate Santa’s List Day in a few ways.

There could be a historical approach. Create several entertaining articles about the origin of the Santa Claus stories. Here are a few example titles.

• “Ho Ho How It All Began: The Humorous Origins of Santa Claus”
• “Red Nose, Red Suit, Revolutionary”
• “Coal, Candy, and Chronicles: The History Behind Santa Claus”

If you need more ideas for these sorts of articles, try prompting a generative AI platform with something like “Make a list of article titles about the origin of the Santa Claus stories. The articles should be entertaining and funny.”

A second approach could be to develop your own lists. One idea is “Santa’s List of Last Minute Gift Ideas” featuring your store’s final holiday offers.

2. ‘AI Made This’

Websites that specialize in attracting readers — think BuzzFeed, for example — have started to publish what might be called “AI Made This” articles, perhaps meant to take advantage of the present interest in generative AI.

AI-generated content is still new and interesting enough that you can publish articles about it. Source: BuzzFeed.

Here are a few examples around a common theme.

• “I Asked AI What The Typical Person From Each State Looks Like, And Here’s What It Came Up With” — BuzzFeed.
• “This Is What AI Thinks People From Each of the 50 U.S. States Look Like” — My Modern Met.
• “AI Imagines Ahat Americans in All 50 States Look Like Using Stereotypical European Views” — Daily Mail.

Your company could take other AI approaches. For example, an online store that introduced a new product could ask an AI to help design an alternative version and then compare it with the actual item.

The article might be something like, “We Asked AI to Design the Perfect Fishing Rod for Dads. Here Is What We Built.”

3. Product Retrospectives

December is a fitting time to produce retrospective content. Consider a product or category retrospective to build a case for your current inventory.

A retrospective fashion article could start in the decade of the 1950s and work up to promoting your store’s current lines. (AI made this image.)

Here is an example. Say a women’s clothing shop published an article titled “The Most Influential Women’s Fashion Trends: 1950 to Now.”

In each decades-long section, the article could address how materials, printing, and assembly have improved. By the time she gets to the modern items in the “now” section of the article, the reader is excited about purchasing an item.

4. Look Ahead

Gaze out on the 2024 horizon and produce content about the coming trends.

The opposite of a retrospective article could be a “look ahead” feature.

In this case, think of December not just as the end of the year but rather as a vantage point to look at 2024.

• A kettlebell store could publish “The Fitness Regimens Shaping 2024: What the Experts Are Doing.”
• A consumer electronics shop might create “The Tech Innovations You’ll Want in 2024: A Peek into the Future of Gadgets.”
• A kitchen supply company could release “The Food Revolution: What Will Be on Your Plate in 2024?”

In each case, focus on the trends that impact the products your company sells.

5. ‘Treat Yourself’ Guides

Self-gifting is a significant part of holiday sales.

Some retail industry surveys have suggested that about 25% of all American shoppers and as much as 60% of women buy themselves a gift during the Christmas holiday season or soon after.

These folks will be searching for the right item to treat themselves in much the same way as gifts for family and friends.

Content marketers can produce articles or videos that recommend products and assuage fears of self-indulgence.

Here are a few “treat yourself” article titles for examples.

• “Treat Yo’ Elf. The Ultimate after-Christmas Self-gifting Guide.”
• “Santa Didn’t Deliver? The Ultimate Guide to Self-gifting after the Holidays.”
• “Be Your Own Santa: 21 Christmas Gifts to Give Yourself.”