As the summer rolls on, August content trends are consumed by back-to-school, last-minute trips, and outdoor activities. One step closer to Fall, August gives us the last few weeks before vacations end, and out in the not-so-far distance, we can see Q4 around the corner.
Depending on what part of the world you’re in, August still falls squarely in the Summer, resulting in summer food, fashion, sales, activities, and outdoor decor.
Let’s jump in!
CPM Trends
We’ve been transparent with our publishers that what’s currently happening industry-wide — both CPM and traffic-related — haven’t followed past trends. Traffic loss is one of the most significant challenges publishers are now facing. Drastic changes to the way Facebook, Twitter, and Google operate have left publishers and creators uncertain about where to put content efforts. Cookie deprecation in Safari and Firefox matched an even greater shift of desktop users to mobile, and unfortunate economic factors have led to lower numbers than expected.
In any other year, August is historically slightly better than July, and the start of a consistent rise into the peak of November and December, each week a little higher than the previous.
Consider your target audience when writing trending content and align the headlines with their interests and needs. Because regardless of what is trending, if it doesn’t make sense for your audience, it won’t perform. Google Trends and Pinterest Trends are helpful tools for this type of insight.
Hot August Topics
Consider your target audience when writing trending content and align the headlines with their interests and needs. Because regardless of what is trending, if it doesn’t make sense for your audience, it won’t perform. Google Trends and Pinterest Trends are helpful tools for this type of insight.
While no major U.S. holidays are celebrated in the month of August, there are other observances like Summer Safety Month, Homemade Pie Day (Aug 1), and National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day (Aug 4). Several other seasonal content trends to work story angles for are —
- back to school shopping
- school organization tips
- tips to stay cool
- back to school lunch ideas
- dorm room decor
- summer wine cocktails
- summer to fall transition wardrobes
- end of summer self-care
- back to school clothes and hairstyle trends
- fall decor
- fall clothes
- outdoor activities for kids
- homework tips
- outdoor entertainment
- bbq and grilling
- music festivals
- last minute road trips
Use keyword research tools like keysearch.co, topically and answer the public to understand how to make seasonal content topics relevant to your niche.
Content Considerations
Updating August’s past performers from last year is a great place to start. In GA, narrow the dates down to August 2022 and grab the URLs you don’t see performing as well the rest of the year. This indicates that seasonality is a factor, and it’s time to go in and improve the page quality in whatever way possible. Don’t update the URL, but add new helpful content, improve images, add video, and edit the date at the end.
At Freestar, we put a lot of effort into Q4 preparation. Getting seasonal content updated, creating new shoppable moments on the website, and capitalizing on the revenue potential of those months can make or break a publisher’s year.
That’s why our next traffic session is all about prepping now to maximize revenue for Q4. Registration is free (sign up here!), and we’d love to meet you!
