We run 7 standing email programs on fixed cadences — from weekly (Budget Car Buyer Digest, Community Story) to monthly (Wrap-Up, Community Verdict) — planned on a rolling 6-week lookahead calendar so no two lists collide on the same send day for the same subscriber segment. Each program has a named owner, a locked send day/time, and a content deadline 48 hours before send for editorial review. The calendar is reviewed monthly to retire underperforming slots and test new send times.
At a glance
| Program | Cadence | Send day |
|---|---|---|
| Budget Car Buyer Digest | Weekly | Thursday |
| Community Story Email | Biweekly | Tuesday |
| EV Owners Update | Biweekly | Tuesday (alternating week) |
| Insurance and Finance Tip Email | Biweekly | Wednesday |
| Maintenance Reminder Email | Triggered/weekly batch | Friday |
| Community Verdict Newsletter | Monthly | First Monday |
| Monthly Wrap-Up Newsletter | Monthly | Last Friday |
Why we plan on a rolling 6-week calendar
With 7 overlapping programs, ad-hoc scheduling quickly causes the same subscriber to get two emails on the same day, or a program to skip a cycle unnoticed. A rolling 6-week lookahead — always extended by one week as the current week closes — gives the team enough runway to source content (especially for the Community Story format, which depends on reader submissions) while catching collisions before they happen.
How a send day gets assigned
- No two programs share a send day for the same audience segment unless list overlap is minimal.
- High-effort, single-story formats (Community Story) get placed early in the week to allow time for a follow-up if the featured story needs fact-checking or extra consent confirmation.
- Triggered/lifecycle emails (Maintenance Reminder, Abandoned Wishlist) are excluded from the fixed weekly grid since they fire on user behavior rather than calendar day.
The production timeline for a single issue
- T-10 days: content angle locked (topic, featured story, or data pull identified).
- T-5 days: first draft or data pull completed by the program owner.
- T-2 days (48 hours before send): editorial review deadline — copy, links, and any incentive/regulation figures fact-checked and dated.
- T-1 day: final proof sent to a test address, checking rendering across major email clients.
- T-0: scheduled send at the program's locked time.
| Check | Owner |
|---|---|
| Content accuracy and sourcing | Program owner |
| Region-specific claims labeled correctly | Editorial review |
| Unsubscribe/preference links functional | Email operations |
| Send-time collision check against other lists | Calendar coordinator |
Every scheduled send is checked against CAN-SPAM/UK PECR-equivalent requirements before going out: a working unsubscribe link, accurate sender information, and no send to a subscriber who has opted out of that specific list.
Monthly calendar review
Once a month, the team reviews open and click-through rates per program against the prior three issues. A program with declining engagement over three consecutive issues gets flagged for either a format change or retirement rather than continuing unchanged on inertia. New program ideas are trialed for a 3-issue test run before being added permanently to the standing calendar.
Mistakes we avoid
- Scheduling two programs to the same segment on the same day without checking list overlap.
- Skipping the 48-hour fact-check deadline for time-sensitive content like incentive figures.
- Letting an underperforming program continue indefinitely without a formal review.
Frequently asked questions
How far in advance is content planned?
Do triggered emails like Maintenance Reminders appear on this calendar?
What happens if a program's engagement drops?
How is a send-day collision avoided?
Is compliance checked for every send?
Sources & further reading
Figures, prices and policy details were current at the last-updated date above. Automotive pricing, incentives and regulations change frequently — verify time-sensitive details with the linked primary sources. Read our editorial policy and fact-checking standards.
