The Ultimate Social Media Calendar 2023 India
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The Ultimate Social Media Calendar 2023 India
- Keep their content organized and timely
- Post personalized posts on the fly and improve brand visibility
- Curate an effective content mix
- Spend more time on tweaking and proofreading posts and reach out to a larger, more targeted audience
- Expend more effort into strategizing personalized content for the posts
- Keep their workday less stressful
Social Media Calendar by Month Break Up
1. January 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. New Year’s Eve, January 1 | Posts around “The first day of the year” Fun challenges such as the #365days challenge Use hashtag – #NewYearsDay |
2. Science Fiction Day, January 2 | Posts honoring famed science fiction writer, Isaac Asimov Engaging posts with your target audience talking about their favorite science innovations with the #ScienceFictionDay |
3. Makar Sakranti, January 14 | Posts around marking the end of winter and welcoming spring Driving competition and giveaways Pro tip: Make sure to use the right name for this festival based on your geographic location, as this festival is celebrated under different names around the country, such as Pedda Panduga (Andhra Pradesh), Pongal (Tamil Nadu), etc. |
4. International Hug Day, January 21 | Empathetic posts that spread love and affection among your target audience |
5. Republic Day, January 26 | Posts around reigniting feelings of patriotism within your TG with India’s Republic Day |
Real-Life Example of a Brand Celebrating the Month of January:
The following Republic Day post by Zomato combines the power of offering subtle giveaways and celebrating the event in style:
The learning? This post is an excellent example of posting the right content (in alignment with the holiday), visual (in keeping with the brand’s aesthetics), and promotional deal (to entice customers without letting go of the Republics Day theme at hand).
2. February 2023
| Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
| 1. World Cancer Day, February 4 | Awareness posts that encourage the prevention, detection, and treatment of cancer |
| 2. National Pizza Day, February 9 | Interactive posts with a fun, creative element for all pizza lovers out there Pro tip: Opt for this event only if it resonates with your brand’s product/service in any way |
| 3. Valentine’s Day, February 14 | Mushy, romantic posts that can cater to your TG’s heartstrings |
| 4. Singles Awareness Day, February 15 | Go a different route and celebrate #antivalentiner’s day to address all the ‘single’ people within your user base |
| 5. Random Acts of Kindness Day, February 17 | One of the most engaging events, you can leverage this event and showcase your brand’s compassionate and kind side with the right kind of social media post |
Real-Life Examples of Brands Celebrating the Month of February:
1. Dabur Vatika celebrates female cancer survivors with the #BraveandBeautiful:
This is an amazing example of how to deliver a strong emotional message and create awareness about World Cancer Day without being insensitive or too in-the-face.
2. Here’s a humorous example of Dineout celebrating Singles Day on Facebook:
3. March 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. International Women’s Day, March 8 | Create posts around celebrating women within your brand–you could highlight the powerful women that are driving the brand forward with the popular hashtag #sheboss |
2. World Sleep Day, March 13 | Use this event as an opportunity to showcase your brand’s fun side with memes and GIFs around ‘sleep’ |
3. World Consumer Rights Day, March 15 | Build awareness about consumer rights around the world with personalized content–you can take inspiration from current affairs and curate posts accordingly |
4. Holi, March 18 | Create posts celebrating the ‘festival of colors’ and a sense of togetherness |
5. International Day of Happiness, March 20 | Use trending hashtags such as #behappy, #choosehappiness, #createhappiness, #makeithappy, etc., and build content that promotes happiness among your user base |
Real-Life Example of a Brand Celebrating the Month of March:
Whisper India leveraged its in-house campaign and launched the #KeepGirlsInSchool initiative on International Women’s Day, highlighting the brand’s role in promoting the same:
4. April 2023
| Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
| 1. April Fool’s Day, April 1 | Needs no introduction, but you can bring out the prankster in your brand with this holiday and create campaigns focused on silly, practical jokes Pro tip: Be sensitive to your audience and do not go overboard with your content, or else you risk getting your brand a bad name |
| 2. World Health Day, April 7 | Promote posts around health awareness and educate your TG with data-backed facts and figures |
| 3. National Sibling Day, April 10 | Create posts celebrating the love-hate relationship between siblings and resonate better with your TG |
| 4. Good Friday, April 15 | Use Good Friday posts to spread positivity within your user base |
| 5. Earth Day, April 22 | Promote environmental sustainability with interesting facts, figures, and environment-friendly programs taking place across the world |
Real-Life Example of a Brand Celebrating the Month of April:
1. Wendy’s India posted a hilarious post on Instagram for April Fool’s Day. The post was cheeky but not offensive–an important lesson to be learned:
5. May 2023
| Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
| 1. International Workers Day, May 1 | Also known as May Day, use this holiday to commemorate the labor movement |
| 2. Eid-Al-Fitr, May 3 | One of the biggest festivals for Muslims in India, Eid should be on your campaign list–create heartfelt posts about sharing a meal together, spending time with family, etc., and celebrate Eid right |
| 3. Star Wars Day, May 4 | An important day for pop-culture fans, create posts celebrating the sci-fi franchise Star Wars–if you want to reach out to a more global audience, go with this event Use hashtags such as #StarWarsCelebration, #ForceFriday, #StarWarsJediFallenOrder, #StarWars, #MayThe4thBeWithYou, etc., to trend on Twitter |
| 4. International Day of Families, May 15 | Create posts raising awareness of the importance of families and how familial values are shaping the world today |
Real-Life Example a of Brand Celebrating the Month of May:
1. Twix made a clever post celebrating the global phenomenon that is Star Wars with ingenious product placement:
6. June 2023
| Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
| 1. World Milk Day, June 1 | Spearheaded by the Food and Agriculture Organization, create posts that demonstrate the importance of milk in our everyday diet Pro tip: For ideas, look at campaigns by Amul, Mother Dairy, and Country Delight to get your creative juices flowing. |
| 2. World Environment Day, June 5 | If your brand wants to engage in an initiative/program that champions the cause of the environment, launch the program on this day to create maximum impact |
| 3. World Oceans Day, June 8 | Leverage this event to highlight the critical role oceans play to ensure the sustainability of life on this planet–a brand that cares for the environment is well-liked by customers today |
| 4. Father’s Day, June 19 | Another major hit among users, make sure to celebrate Father’s Day and pay homage to all fathers and father figures out there–you could celebrate stay-at-home dads, single dads, and more |
| 5. World Music Day, June 21 | Create posts engaging ‘melophiles,’ ‘bathroom singers,’ and real artists with fun posts Curate content on music trivia |
| 6. Social Media Day, June 30 |
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Real-Life Examples of a Brand Celebrating the Month of June:
1. McDonald’s India follows the adage ‘less is more’ with the following on-point and strategically conceptualized creative. The post caption is warm and emotional, while the visual is clever and brand-centric:
7. July 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. International Joke Day, July 1 | As the name suggests, create funny posts–the joke can be on your brand itself, which demonstrates sportsmanship and has a ‘virality’ factor to it |
2. World Chocolate Day, July 7 | Create posts celebrating Chocoholics and encourage users to share the post to boost visibility |
3. Give Something Away Day, July 15 | Build posts on the theme: ‘Give Something Away’; add giveaways from your brand, and don’t be afraid to mix it up in terms of the design and content |
4. World Emoji Day, July 17 | Celebrate the power of emojis with only-emojis posts; this theme has immense potential to be creative |
Real-Life Example a of Brand Celebrating the Month of July:
1. Dunzo celebrates World Emojis Day by encouraging users to respond with their favorite emoji and win goodies. Plus, the post is creatively conceptualized and executed:
8. August 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. Friendship Day, August 2 | Create posts that celebrate the ‘study buddies,’ ‘gossip buddies,’ ‘chai/coffee buddies,’ etc., and focus on this special bond |
2. Book Lovers Day, August 9 | Highlight the importance of books and celebrate #booklovers in all their glory; you can even talk about book-exchange ideas and encourage people to read more–a lost art |
3. Raksha Bandhan, August 12 | Another super-important holiday, ‘Raksha Bandhan’ is all about celebrating the special bond between siblings–create emotional customized video posts featuring your real sibling customers and give your brand an edge |
4. Independence Day, August 15 | Another must-have holiday you must feature in your social media campaign is India’s Independence Day; create posts instilling a sense of patriotism among your TG (even if it feels like everyone’s doing it, do it) |
5. Janmashtami, August 19 | Create innovative posts on celebrating Lord Krishna’s birth |
Real-Life Example of a Brand Celebrating the Month of August:
1. Glucon D’s Janmasthami post is equal parts fun, creative, and amazing at spreading product awareness:
In this case, a clever tagline and relevant imagery have gone a long way in creating a memorable social media post. Agree?
9. September 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. Teachers Day, September 5 | Another fun holiday, you can create ‘throwback school posts,’ teacher appreciation’ posts, and more |
2. Video Games Day, September 12 | Don’t underestimate the fandom of video game lovers; use this event to give your brand a fun, gaming spin |
3. Engineers’ Day, September 15 | Celebrate the distinguished engineer, Mokshgundam Vishveshsaraya, with humorous posts on engineers and their equally amusing habits |
4. International Day of Peace, September 21 | Also referred to as World Peace Day, celebrate this day with calming, peaceful educative posts |
5. World Tourism Day, September 27 | · Showcase various tourist spots around the globe on World Tourism Day and give your customers a world tour, virtually |
Real-Life Example a of Brand Celebrating the Month of September:
1. Here’s an inspirational Facebook post by Vadilal Icecreams that encapsulates the essence of Teacher’s Day with clever product positioning. In other words, it is social media advertising at its best:
10. October 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. International Coffee Day, October 1 | A must-have event on your social media calendar, celebrate #coffeelovers with interesting and entertaining content |
2. Gandhi Jayanti, October 2 | Celebrate the father of our nation with creative hashtags such as #rebel–you can go all out creative and think of ways to tie October 2 to your brand |
3. Dusshera, October 5 | Dusshera is the festival of celebrating the victory of good over evil; you can create symbolic posts around the same and engage your audience |
4. World Mental Health Day, October 10 | An extremely important event, focus on removing the stigma associated with mental health; focus on building awareness, and actively speak on the importance of maintaining mental health as well as wellbeing |
5. Diwali, October 24 | Celebrate one of the grandest festivals in India and make sure to go all out with your discounts, deals, and campaigns |
Real-Life Example of a Brand Celebrating the Month of October:
1. Dominos celebrates ‘Durga Puja’ in style with a contest idea. This idea generates plenty of user-generated content and can help the brand boost its followers:
The visual is simple and direct. The content is direct and short. And most importantly, the post highlights the benefit for the customer–a win-win for all!
11. November 2023
| Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
|---|---|
| 1. World Vegan Day, November 1 | Another trend that’s caught global attention is the #veganmovement; create posts on the benefits of a plant-based diet, honor vegans, curate posts for vegan-friendly food options, and more |
| 2. Children’s Day, November 14 | Curate throwback posts that center around remembering childhood days and capitalize on feelings of nostalgia in full power |
| 3. Black Friday, November 25 | This holiday comes right after Thanksgiving, and brands are often seen showcasing jaw-dropping deals to get more customers through the metaphorical door |
Real-Life Examples of Brands Celebrating the Month of November:
1. Here’s a linear and simple Facebook ad by Mother Dairy that creates instant brand recall with simplified messaging:
12. December 2023
Holiday/Event Dates | Content Buckets/Themes |
1. World AIDS Day, December 1 | Focus on driving awareness about this disease and build creative posts on how to prevent (and detect) AIDS |
2. International Day of the Disabled, December 3 | Another global event that must feature on your social media calendar. Focus on promoting the inclusion of disabled people in all spheres of life–including that of your brand; if you have special deals and/or on-ground or online programs geared towards the disabled, make sure to highlight the same |
3. Indian Navy Day, December 4 | Build honorary posts on the esteemed members of the Indian Navy and make sure to applaud their achievements |
4. Christmas, December 25 | Another globally-celebrated holiday, make sure to feature Christmas Day; ideally, you must start sharing Christmas content a couple of weeks prior to the main holiday to build momentum and excitement |
5. New Year’s Eve, December 31 |
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Real-Life Examples of Brands Celebrating the Month of December:
1. If you think a brand like Porsche might find it challenging to integrate their product within a Christmas Day template, the following creative will make you think again:
The learning? Get creative with your brand’s graphics and visual storytelling and create highly-engaging posts.
2. Subway India shared this engaging social media post on Instagram celebrating the New Year and cleverly placing the brand’s product within the post:
Top 4 Tips to Keep in Mind When Creating a Social Media Calendar
Let’s now look at important tips to keep in mind when creating a social media calendar from a content, marketing, and graphics perspective:
- Do your homework to understand the kind of hashtags that are trending on platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook
- Bring creative diversity to your posts–experiment with different layouts, and formats (think: image, video, text, etc.) to keep the interest high
- Ask your users about the kind of content they would like to see via short polls, surveys, etc., that are rolled out on Facebook, etc.
- Make sure to choose the right social media scheduler that allows you to stay on top of your campaigns by automating some of the most routine and mundane tasks
Wrapping Up
There you go. As you can see, going viral on social media is no longer a tall order, provided you have the right tools at hand. Armed with a list of relevant global events and holidays, use this social media calendar 2023 India as your go-to guide for creating stellar campaigns. Remember that you don’t need to go ahead with the ideas outlined here as-is. Instead, add your brand’s own unique flavor and delight your target audience with personalized and targeted content. Good luck!
