Don’t just repeat your 2026 calendar. Put every product to the test for 2027.

45 special sections.

That’s how many I counted on a publisher’s 2026 special section calendar that I reviewed this week.

The obvious question I had: Are all of these working and are they all worth it?

As you start planning for 2027, this is a good time to take a closer look at what’s working and what isn’t. It’s also a chance to figure out where you could do more with what you have or make room for something new.

I have put together a simple exercise you can use to work through your 2027 calendar along with a spreadsheet you can download to help you through the process.

How to evaluate your 2026 special sections

Before you decide you should keep or kill any section, you should look at the revenue, audience interest and the effort that goes into pulling them off.

The idea is to list out every special section you created (or will create) this year and break down how much money they made (this year and in 2025), along with their net profit, audience metrics and then calculate the effort and opportunity.

Often I see publishers looking at how much revenue a section brought in but not totally evaluating all of the costs that it took to pull it off.

Take every special section, themed edition, guide, newsletter and other recurring editorial product from 2026 and put it into a simple spreadsheet. Here’s a template I have created you can download.

And here’s what that spreadsheet looks like:

Decide what you could change in 2027

Every special section should go through a conversation to decide if it stays, goes or is improved and how.

I have built a set of options that you could consider as you go through that process:

• Turn a great annual section into two seasonal editions: Keep your Spring Home and Garden section, but then create a fall Home for the Holidays edition around entertaining, kitchens, decorating, and projects people want finished before the holidays.

• Make a successful print section a digital destination: Private schools and camp sections are great examples where this works. Make your digital edition a real evergreen destination with best lists by locations and create advertiser solutions like targeted display ads, branded content and being featured in roundups.

• Create a limited-run newsletter: Instead of committing to another weekly newsletter forever, run a four- to eight-week email product around summer activities, elections, high school football, holiday shopping or another seasonal topic. This is a good way to test audience interest before you jump into a bigger product.

• Combine two weak sections into one stronger product: If your Senior Living and Health & Wellness sections both struggle, combine them into a larger Living Well After 50 package covering health, fitness, retirement, caregiving, travel and local resources. 

• Look for big anniversaries: Check towns, local businesses, nonprofits, schools and other major institutions for milestone anniversaries. A 50th, 75th, or 100th anniversary can create opportunities for special sections, historical packages, sponsored content or other products.

• Make one large guide into smaller products: A big education guide, for example, could lead to separate content or products around things like private schools, college planning, summer programs or back-to-school.

Where you can find creative ideas

There are a lot of good ideas that you can pull out from your staff, advertisers and data. Here are a few ways you can do that:

• Dig into your audience data: Bring together your web traffic, newsletter clicks and e-edition usage, then group the content by topic. Look for subjects that perform well in several places, especially ones where you don’t already have a strong product.

• Send a short reader survey: Ask what topics readers want more help with and what local guides or resources they wish you offered. Ask them to rank their five favorite special sections you offer now.

• Talk to a mix of advertisers: Pick 10 to 15 advertisers across different categories, gather them in a room or a Zoom and ask what they’re focused on in 2027 and what they wish you offered.

• Ask your staff where the opportunities are: Round up four to five people in different departments of your organization and ask them to share two categories they think you could grow next year and where your current products just aren’t getting the job done.

• Talk with other publishers: Call a handful or publishers outside your market (or post on social media and ask) what they launched that worked, what they stopped doing and what they’re trying next. Basically, walk them through the process of the spreadsheet I laid out above for their feedback.

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