Run December in three waves: 12.12 on Saturday 12 December, Christmas gifting up to Friday 25 December, then year-end clearance and back-to-school before schools reopen on Monday 4 January 2027. Use promotional SMS (LKR 0.70 a message on Bloomwire) to reach your whole opted-in list, and WhatsApp marketing templates (about LKR 24.16 each in Meta fees) for your best customers. Leave Unduwap Poya on Wednesday 23 December free of hard selling.
Updated 6 November 2026
- December has four selling moments: 12.12, Christmas, year-end clearance and the January school reopening.
- Get WhatsApp templates approved and your SMS sender ID checked by the end of November.
- English SMS fits 160 characters in one message. Sinhala or Tamil drops that to 70, so keep local-language SMS short.
- Send WhatsApp marketing only to customers who opted in on WhatsApp. It costs more per message, so aim it at people likely to buy.
- From 1 January 2027 the core parts of the PDPA apply. Use December to tidy your consent records.
Why December matters in Sri Lanka
Card data shows how much spending rises at the end of the year. Visa reported that domestic card spending in Sri Lanka rose by more than 35% over the 2024 holiday season, compared with 2023. Online card spending rose by about 55%.
Shoppers outside Colombo are now part of the rush too. On Daraz's 11.11 sale in 2025, 53% of buyers in the first hour were from outside the Western Province.
SMS reaches every phone, including feature phones. WhatsApp lets customers ask and buy in the same chat.
The key dates, December 2026 to January 2027
| Date | Moment | What to send |
|---|---|---|
| Fri 27 Nov | Black Friday | Test offer and early 12.12 sign-ups |
| Sat 12 Dec | 12.12 sale day | Teaser, launch and last-call messages |
| Mon 21 Dec | Typical last order day for Christmas delivery (set your own) | Gift deadline reminders |
| Wed 23 Dec | Unduwap Full Moon Poya Day (public and bank holiday) | No hard selling. Greetings or service messages only |
| Fri 25 Dec | Christmas Day (public holiday) | Greetings. Keep offers for 26 December |
| Sat 26 to Thu 31 Dec | Year-end clearance | Clearance codes, gift card offers |
| Fri 1 Jan | New Year | Greeting plus a soft offer |
| Mon 4 Jan 2027 | First day of the 2027 school year | Back-to-school bundles from mid-December |
Poya and Christmas dates are from the Central Bank of Sri Lanka holiday list for 2026. The school date is from the Ministry of Education term schedule reported by News 1st. For the rest of 2027, see our Sri Lanka marketing calendar 2027.
Week-by-week plan
Start now. WhatsApp templates need Meta approval, and lists need cleaning before the busy weeks.
- 16 to 22 November: prepareReview what worked on 11.11. Remove numbers that opted out or bounced. Check your SMS sender ID is registered. Submit your December WhatsApp templates for approval.
- 23 to 29 November: testUse Black Friday (27 November) as a small test. Send two versions of one SMS to 5% of the list each and compare clicks. Invite buyers to join your WhatsApp list with a click-to-chat link or QR code.
- 30 November to 6 December: warm upShare a Christmas gift guide on WhatsApp with opted-in customers. Announce your delivery cut-off dates early.
- 7 to 13 December: 12.12Send a teaser on Thursday or Friday. On Saturday 12 December send the launch SMS in the morning. Follow up on WhatsApp only with people who clicked but did not buy. End with a last-call message in the early evening.
- 14 to 20 December: giftingPush gift bundles and remind people of the delivery cut-off. Send WhatsApp utility messages for every order shipped, so customers stop calling to ask.
- 21 to 27 December: pause and greetSend the last gift-deadline reminder on Monday 21 December. Pause promotions on Unduwap Poya (23 December) and Christmas Day. Start the clearance on Saturday 26 December.
- 28 December to 3 January: clear and resetRun year-end clearance and a New Year greeting. Push back-to-school bundles to parents.
- 4 to 10 January: back to schoolSend a final reminder as schools reopen. Then plan Thai Pongal on Friday 15 January.
17 templates you can copy
These are example templates. Replace YOURBRAND, the links and the offers with your own. Character counts are exact for the text shown, using the same rules as our SMS character counter.
Promotional SMS in English and Singlish
English and Singlish use the GSM-7 alphabet, so up to 160 characters fit in one SMS.
Promotional SMS in Sinhala and Tamil
A single Sinhala or Tamil letter switches the whole message to Unicode. One SMS then holds 70 characters, and each part of a longer message holds 67. Our guide to Sinhala and Tamil SMS length and cost explains why.
WhatsApp templates
WhatsApp templates are approved by Meta and placed in a category. Offers and greetings are Marketing. Order and delivery updates are Utility, which costs far less. Buttons such as "Stop promotions" give customers an easy way to opt out.
More wording ideas: WhatsApp message templates for Sri Lankan businesses.
When to send
We could not find a published Sri Lankan rule on the hours you may send promotional SMS. The TRCSL's self-governance policy for operator promotional messages is reported to keep operators' own promotions between 08:00 and 20:00, with at most one a day and five a week. That is reported practice, not law, so check with your provider.
- Send between 09:00 and 19:00 and test your own best hour.
- Send one 12.12 SMS to everyone, then follow up only with people who clicked.
- Pause promotions on poya days and Christmas Day.
- Put the date and the offer in the first 60 characters.
- Send late at night or before 08:00.
- Message the same person more than once a day.
- Use emoji in SMS. One emoji switches the whole message to Unicode.
- Send WhatsApp marketing to numbers that never opted in on WhatsApp.
Budget in LKR
Here is an example December budget for a retailer with 20,000 opted-in SMS contacts and 4,000 opted-in WhatsApp contacts. Promotional SMS is LKR 0.70 each on Bloomwire, inclusive of government taxes. Meta's marketing rate for Sri Lanka is US$0.073 a message, or about LKR 24.16 at LKR 331 to the dollar. Utility messages are US$0.0020, about LKR 0.66.
| Line | Volume | Unit cost | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| English promotional SMS (12.12, Christmas, clearance) | 3 × 20,000 | LKR 0.70 | LKR 42,000.00 |
| Sinhala 12.12 SMS (2 parts each), two sends | 2 × 5,000 | LKR 1.40 | LKR 14,000.00 |
| WhatsApp Marketing templates | 2 × 4,000 | LKR 24.16 | LKR 193,304.00 |
| WhatsApp Utility (shipped and delivered) | 2 × 3,000 orders | LKR 0.66 | LKR 3,972.00 |
| Bloomwire WhatsApp Starter plan | 1 month | LKR 8,500.00 | LKR 8,500.00 |
| Total | LKR 261,776.00 |
WhatsApp marketing makes up most of the cost, so keep it for customers who buy often or have asked about a product. Use SMS for reach. Meta fees are charged in US dollars, so the LKR figure moves with the exchange rate. Check current rates on our WhatsApp pricing page and bulk SMS cost guide.
Rules: opt-out, levy and PDPA
Opt-out. In January 2020 the TRCSL pushed mobile operators to give users a free way to opt out of unsolicited promotional SMS. Add a clear opt-out line to every promotional SMS and honour it quickly.
Levy. A levy of 25 cents applies to each bulk advertisement SMS under the Finance (Levy on Mobile Short Message Services) Regulations No. 1 of 2019, Gazette 2104/16. This is one reason promotional SMS costs more than transactional SMS.
PDPA. The core parts of the Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022, take effect on 1 January 2027, according to law-firm analyses. December is the last campaign before that date. Use it to record where each contact came from and when they agreed to hear from you. Our PDPA guide for SMS and WhatsApp marketing covers the details. This is not legal advice.
WhatsApp has its own opt-in rule. Meta requires customers to agree to receive messages from you on WhatsApp before you send them templates. A phone number on an SMS list is not enough.
For sender IDs, routes and choosing a provider, read our bulk SMS guide or see promotional messaging campaigns on Unecast.
Frequently asked questions
When should I start planning December SMS and WhatsApp campaigns?
By mid-November. WhatsApp templates need Meta approval and your SMS list needs cleaning before 12.12 on Saturday 12 December 2026.
Should I send promotions on Unduwap Poya Day?
We advise against hard selling on Unduwap Full Moon Poya Day, Wednesday 23 December 2026. Many customers observe it as a religious day. Send greetings or service messages only.
How much does a December SMS campaign cost in Sri Lanka?
On Bloomwire, promotional SMS is LKR 0.70 per message, inclusive of government taxes. Sending three English SMS to 20,000 people costs LKR 42,000.00. Sinhala and Tamil messages often need two parts, which doubles the cost.
Is WhatsApp or SMS better for 12.12?
Use both. SMS reaches every phone for LKR 0.70. A WhatsApp Marketing template costs about LKR 24.16 in Meta fees but lets customers ask questions and buy in the chat, so aim it at opted-in, high-value customers.
What time should I send promotional SMS?
We found no published law on sending hours. Operators are reported to limit their own promotions to 08:00 to 20:00. Sending between 09:00 and 19:00 and testing your best hour is a safe approach.
Does the PDPA affect my December campaigns?
The core parts of the PDPA apply from 1 January 2027. December campaigns run before that, but use them to record consent so your list is ready. This is not legal advice.
Sources
- Central Bank of Sri Lanka: bank holidays 2026
- Government of Sri Lanka: 2026 calendar (PDF)
- News 1st: 2027 school term schedule released
- Sunday Observer: Visa end-of-year transactions up 40% in Sri Lanka
- Ada Derana Biz: Daraz 11.11 sparks record early demand
- Gazette 2104/16: Levy on Mobile Short Message Services (PDF)
- Sunday Times: TRCSL pushes for opt-out options for mobile users
- Neelakandan & Neelakandan: Sri Lanka's new data protection framework
- Meta: WhatsApp Business Platform pricing
- Twilio: SMS character limit
