Most French brands order content once the campaign has already started. It is the most expensive planning mistake of the year, and one afternoon of work solves it.

The six week rule

A creator needs five to ten working days to film and deliver. Then comes review, editing and internal approval.

Added up, that is four to six weeks between the order and the ad running. If the peak is the January sales, the brief goes out in early December.

The French commercial year

January

Winter sales and resolutions. Fashion, fitness, home, organisation. Brief in early December.

February

Valentines Day and the February holidays. Jewellery, restaurants, mountain travel. Brief in December.

March and April

Spring and Easter. Food, garden, home. Brief in February.

May

Mothers day and the bank holiday weekends. Beauty, jewellery, food service, travel. Brief in late March.

June and July

Summer sales and holiday departures. Brief in April and May.

September

The rentrée, the French calendar's second January. Stationery, fashion, sport, subscriptions, technology. Brief in July.

November

Black Friday, the ecommerce peak of the year. Brief in late September.

December

Christmas and the end of year. The highest consumption month. Brief in October.

The August gap

This is the French particularity foreign brands underestimate. In August, teams are away, approvals do not come through and creators are on holiday too.

Do not schedule an order or an approval in that month. July, on the other hand, should be used to close off all the September material, which is the most profitable peak of the year after Christmas.

And for brands selling to holidaymakers, August remains a distribution month: produce in June.

How to plan a year in one afternoon

Mark the four peaks that matter to your category. For each one, subtract six weeks: that is your brief date.

Then define six creatives with three hooks per peak. You have the production plan and the approximate budget for the year.

The content that does not expire

Between peaks, order material with no dates or promotions: product in use, detail shots, testimonials. And always ask for two versions of every campaign piece, one with the promotion and one clean.

Where to go next

Planning six weeks ahead is the difference between buying well and buying in a rush. Our complete UGC guide for brands explains the rest of the process.