A healthy mix of evergreen and seasonal content is a great way to connect with your audience. Time-relevant topics (like seasonal recipes) tend to show up in searches and on social media before a holiday or event occurs.
This can be great for your business because it drives engagement with your website and shows search engines that you have relevant, engaging content.
Winter
Today is the winter solstice – the first day of winter. It’s the coldest and darkest time of year. People in the far north embrace this season by fostering an atmosphere of coziness and comfort. It’s called hygge in Danish and koselig in Norwegian, meaning “cozy”. Some of the activities associated with this season include snuggling under a thick blanket with a good book, drinking hot chocolate or sipping a warm (spiked) cocktail by the fireplace, and making hearty meals like soup or stew. It’s also the season when some animals change color to blend in with their surroundings. (Arctic foxes, weasels, and snowshoe hares are just a few examples). Winter is often a wet season as well.
Spring
A season full of love, joy and rebirth, spring is one of the most colorful and symbolic seasons. It marks a farewell to winter, heralds the arrival of summer and is when all flowers, both wild and cultivated, come out of their dormancy. Likewise, animals emerge from hibernation and migrate northward. It’s the season when hope triumphs over darkness, light over obscurity and life over death.
It’s also a time when many plants sprout, both annual ones that must be planted and perennial ones that grow back each year on their own. Bare tree branches suddenly sprout green buds that seem to appear overnight. And hibernating animals, such as bears, emerge from their slumber. The season begins on March 20, the vernal equinox, when day and night are of equal length in both hemispheres. It usually lasts until the end of June in the Northern Hemisphere and 22 December in the Southern Hemisphere. However, because of daylight savings, the official start of spring can move up to two days earlier each decade. This phenomenon is known as ‘season creep’. It can affect everything from phenological signs of the season to when Easter eggs and bunnies are sold. Nonetheless, it’s still a beautiful and exciting season!
Summer
While evergreen content helps drive long-term results, seasonal blog posts can boost engagement and bring in traffic. These seasonal pieces are typically more timely and provide value to your target audience, helping you establish your brand as a thought leader and bolstering search engine optimization.
Summer is characterized by hot temperatures, plentiful sunshine and extended daylight hours, making it one of the most popular seasons for outdoor activities such as hiking and camping. It is also the season when vacations and travel reach their highest peak, students take their summer break from school, and business activity in the recreation, tourism and restaurant industries are at their most active.
Because of the popularity of these types of content, it’s important to create your seasonal posts just before the interest peaks. For example, if you want to publish a post about Halloween or Black Friday shopping, make sure that the content is published in early September or October so that it can ride the wave of interest when people are actively searching for those topics.
It is also a good idea to refresh your seasonal content each year so that it can continue to drive traffic and provide value for your customers. This can be done easily through the use of automated scheduling tools such as Edgar, where you can add your seasonal posts into a separate category and simply re-publish them in the future.
Fall
Fall is the season that Keats called “the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.” It’s a time of harvesting before the winter freeze, when crops are pulled in from the fields and stored. With shortening days and changing colors, fall is a beautiful time to be outside. The changing leaves are a great time to play with the family and jump into leaf piles. (Just remember to rake them up later!)
The season starts on the autumnal equinox, usually falling on 22 or 23 September. However, the Gregorian calendar is not in perfect symmetry with the Earth’s orbit around the sun, so it can sometimes occur on the 23rd or 24th. In the Northern Hemisphere, astronomical fall begins on this date, while Australia and New Zealand use meteorological fall to record climate data.
As temperatures drop and the light fades, our food cravings shift towards hearty and comforting dishes. Casseroles, roasted veggies, soups and stews, chilis, tray bakes, and braises take center stage. The tomatoes and corn of summer give way to apples, cranberries, and Brussels sprouts. These dishes are also a healthy alternative to some of the sugar-laden treats you may be used to eating during the warmer months. Here are some of our favorite seasonal recipes to try this year.
