Beware marketers: These Halloween SMS and email marketing ideas may lead to an increase in revenue and engagement.

While many marketers already have their sights set on Black Friday/Cyber Monday, another big holiday is creeping around the corner: Halloween. 

This retail holiday isn’t limited to selling costumes or candy. Any brand can get in on the beloved traditions and fun celebrations.

Carve out room in your calendar for these Halloween marketing campaigns and strategies.

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1. Slashing prices with a flash sale

Slip UK, a pillowcase and sleep accessories retailer, got subscribers’ hearts racing by announcing a flash sale. Subscribers could enjoy 30% off select products, but they had to hurry as the deal was only valid for 24 hours. They made it even easier to shop the sale as the discount would automatically be applied. No magic words or promo codes needed.

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2. Boo-sting conversions with free perks

Snack brand Bobo's offered customers a treat with a free bite included on all orders for a limited time. A free gift with purchase is a fun incentive strategy that builds loyalty, and 52% of shoppers name free gifts as a perk that brings them back.

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3. Matching products to spooky vibes

Whether it’s going back to school with university color-inspired wallets and bags or showing their favorite horror film baddie some love, wallet and accessories brand Thread Wallets has a look for every shopper's taste. They asked subscribers “Which horror movie character are you?” and tied every answer to a specific pattern. The quiz made the email interactive and pointed each result at a product they already stock.

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4. Bringing back a fan favorite for a limited run

Personal care brand Function of Beauty brought back a fan favorite for spooky season: their limited-edition black shampoo. The formula carries a haunting twist, and the collection ran for a limited window, which gave subscribers a clear reason to order while it was on the shelf.

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5. Going trick or treating via texting

Skincare brand The INKEY List UK asked subscribers whether they wanted a trick or a treat.

Pro tip: Engaging customers in two-way conversations makes it easy to collect zero-party data and personalize what you send next. 75% of shoppers will answer a few quick questions at sign-up when it makes their messages more relevant. Other use cases worth testing: onboarding quizzes, preference collection, educational content, cross-selling, and gamified experiences.

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6. Bewitching subscribers with engaging content, not just ghost stories

Baking mix brand Kodiak Cakes shared a recipe for candy corn cookies. It works whether a subscriber is baking for a Halloween party or for a night on the couch with a horror movie.

Pro tip: Recipes give food brands a reason to text that has nothing to do with a discount. Send one early enough that subscribers can add your ingredients to their shopping list, or point them to a pre-packaged version they can order from you directly.

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7. Cutting time for errands with a BOPIS reminder

Short of actual hocus pocus, BOPIS (Buy Online Pick-up In Store) is the fastest way to get a costume accessory in hand. Accessories retailer Claire's sent subscribers a last-chance text reminding them they could order online and pick up in store.

8. Unmasking shipping deadlines

ONEHOPE Winery gave subscribers two days' notice on the shipping cutoff for on-time delivery, plus a discount on bundles. The wine brand paired a date customers needed anyway with a reason to order now, which is what makes a deadline text worth sending.

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9. Sharing iconic sightings

Prebiotic soda brand poppi spotted something better than a ghost. A celebrity was sipping their drink in a Halloween-themed video, so they texted subscribers to share the moment, with 20% off the next order to go with it.

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Run spooky season again in July

Thinking of kicking off next year’s Halloween campaigns and sales early? Then you’ll want to add a Summerween campaign to your marketing calendar. 

Summerween lands when shoppers are tired of the summer heat and ready for spooky season early. Think jack-o-melons instead of jack-o'-lanterns, hot dog mummies, and ghost stories around the campfire. Summerween comes from the show Gravity Falls, where the town loves Halloween enough to celebrate it twice: once in October and again on June 22, or the second-to-last Friday of the month.

Outside of the show, there’s no official Summerween date, but many brands send Summerween-themed marketing messages in July and August. It can be a fun and easy way to get more out of your Halloween campaigns without waiting until fall.

You can use some of the marketing campaign ideas listed in this blog to help plan your Summerween campaign, with a few minor tweaks:

• Helping customers save on food, drinks, decor, or clothing for a Summerween BBQ
• Recommending products for a Summerween celebration, or sharing recipes and party planning tips
• Promoting a Summerween limited-edition product
• Offering a free gift with purchase that works for the fall season ahead
• Running a Summerween flash sale

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Read The Edit before you lock your Cyber Week plan

October is the first test of your Cyber Week setup, with the same channels and audience at lower stakes. When you're ready for the main event, read The Edit, Attentive's BFCM 2026 guide. All the BFCM facts that are fit to print.

Inside you'll find:

• The Consumer Pulse: what 2026 shoppers expect, including the 67% who have used an AI chatbot to shop in the past three months
• The Marketer Pulse: what worked last Cyber Week, straight from the marketers who ran it
• The BFCM Lookbook: seven tactics behind the highest-performing campaigns we saw
• The Briefing: an on-demand webinar on what's actually working this BFCM
• The Cyber Week Checklist: the benchmarks and steps to get your program ready

For the messages themselves, browse Texts We Love, our gallery of real SMS campaigns, filterable by vertical, category, and message type. Start with the spooky season entries, then see what brands sent last Cyber Week.