A web agency's year: what to do, month by month
A web agency has its seasons, just like its clients: budgets at the start of the year, spring campaigns, a summer slowdown, the November rush, December reviews. This calendar follows six periods and gives the reason and the action for each. Maya prepares follow-ups, reports and lists; your team decides and approves.
January and February: the year's marketing budgets
Many businesses settle their budgets and objectives at the start of the year, which reopens engagement discussions.
The action: follow up on proposals left unanswered, present last year's reviews and propose recurring engagements. Maya lists the pending proposals and prepares the follow-ups; if a file has been dormant for seven days, the instruction is to call rather than write and to ask what is blocking: budget, timing or decision-maker. Nothing is promised in these messages beyond what your proposal already states.
March through May: preparing for the busy season
Many shops and service businesses prepare their spring and summer campaigns.
The action: plan advertising campaigns and seasonal content with clients before the rush begins. A generic tip: build the calendar of deliverables and approvals by client and by freelancer from the start, so overloaded weeks show up early. Sharing that calendar with clients also helps them see when their own approvals are needed.
June and July: the summer rhythm
The availability of clients and freelancers often varies during vacations: approvals can drag.
The action: request approvals in advance, confirm freelancers' vacations and use the time for website redesigns, since quieter weeks make longer projects easier to schedule. Maya reminds the client of the approval and the timeline after three days without a reply and suggests warning the freelancer if the date slips, which is valuable when everyone is taking turns on leave.
August and September: back-to-school and fall budgets
The return from summer marks the resumption of activity and often new year-end budgets.
The action: reach out to dormant clients, propose back-to-school campaigns and prepare the holiday period early. If you write to prospects or former clients, make sure you have their consent, with identification and an unsubscribe link, in line with Canada's anti-spam legislation: https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/fra/lois/E-1.6/.
October and November: the retail peak
Retailers concentrate their campaigns around Black Friday and the holidays, and advertising budgets are often higher then.
The action: lock campaign calendars, visuals and approvals before mid-November. Also check the licenses for images, fonts and music used in the visuals, since a license may limit use in advertising (duration, territory, modification); see https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/fra/lois/C-42/. Maya never claims an element is royalty-free without proof.
December: year-end reviews and renewals
Clients take stock of their year and decide what happens with their engagements.
The action: send the annual reviews, present renewal proposals and ask for testimonials, with the client's written agreement before anything is published. Maya watches renewal dates and prepares the review when a deadline falls within the next 60 days. Take the opportunity to tidy your files: keep only what the engagements need, in line with Law 25 (https://www.cai.gouv.qc.ca/protection-renseignements-personnels/).
All year: the appointments that never change
Some tasks do not depend on the seasons. Every month, each client's report (results, work done, next steps) must be prepared, reviewed and then sent. Every recurring engagement deserves an invoice follow-up and an alert ahead of the renewal date.
A generic tip: set a short, regular team meeting to review files with no activity, and keep an eye on late approvals, the first cause of timeline slippage. Writing down what was decided in each meeting keeps the record clear for everyone.
Knowing your clients' seasons lets you propose the right engagement at the right time. Maya keeps the calendar, the follow-ups and the reports; your team keeps the strategy and the approvals.
General information, not legal advice. Check with your professional order or the official source.
Questions
When should I follow up on unanswered proposals?
January and February often reopen engagement discussions, since businesses settle their budgets at the start of the year. After seven days without a reply, it is better to call than to write.
How can I limit approval delays in summer?
Request approvals in advance and confirm freelancers' vacations. Maya reminds the client of the timeline after three days without a reply.
When should year-end campaigns be locked?
Campaign calendars, visuals and approvals should be locked before mid-November, ahead of the Black Friday and holiday peak.
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