2025 may be the last time I’m doing annual planning.
Half the campaigns I’d planned back in January feel stale and disconnected from what my audience is interested in now. The themes I thought would resonate have either been proven less successful than I hoped, seem ridiculously outdated, or have already been beaten to death by every other marketer in my space.
OK, I may be exaggerating for dramatic effect, but you get the gist.
My plan needs a complete overhaul.
So this may be the perfect time to start a New Year.
I mean it: What if we took July as the start of a new marketing cycle?
You can use longer days in a period where not a lot happens anyway to analyze and plan your way. You have two months to test and lay things out well so you can reap the benefits come September.
Here’s how to approach your reset with the same intentionality you’d bring to January planning:
Audit ruthlessly
Start with a zero-based review of everything you’re currently doing. Don’t assume that campaign you planned 7 months ago is still relevant. Look at your content themes, your messaging, your channels, even take a moment to double-check your target personas.
Ask yourself: If I were starting this plan today, from scratch, what would I build? What would I definitely not build?
Focus fiercely
Pick 1-2 big bets for the next six months and go deep. Maybe it’s finally building that expansive email nurture sequence you’ve been planning. Maybe it’s doubling down on the content format that’s actually working instead of chasing every new idea.
The key is choosing something that will compound—efforts that build on themselves rather than requiring constant feeding.
Realign your plan
The problems your audience cared about in January might not be the same ones keeping them up now. Your content needs to evolve with these changing priorities.
This step may be just a matter of auditing your topic plan. Or it may require you to do some customer interviews to confirm you’re on the right track. Either way the only topics worth talking about are the ones that resonate right now.
Recommit with intention
This is where most marketing resets fail—in the execution. It’s easy to audit and plan. It’s harder to actually shift resources, kill underperforming initiatives, and stick to your new focus areas when the next shiny opportunity comes along.
Set clear boundaries around your new priorities. If something doesn’t directly support your 1-2 big bets, it goes on the “not now” list.
***
Mid-year can be so much more than a mere checkpoint! It’s a chance to start fresh while everyone else is still running yesterday’s playbook.
Your audience is ready for something new. Your market is shifting. Your competitors are distracted.
The smart thing is to treat July like your second January.
Fresh starts matter,
📋 How did I do? There’s no way for me to judge the value these pieces have for you based on open or click rates. So, please, help me out. What did you think about the editorial letter today?
🤩 It was valuable, made me think • ☺️ It was OK, but not enough • 🫤 It wasn’t worth my time
📆 The Mid-Year Strategic Reset – Your Invite
Today’s topic started as a one-off thing, but I think I’ll expand it into something more. I’ve designed a workshop to help you reset and refocus:
- Focus your efforts where it actually matters.
- Turn mid-year overwhelm into focused momentum.
- Get renewed energy from marketers navigating the same challenges.
Register for the free workshop here →
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🤿 Diving deeper
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