Good morning,
Instagram recently shared some valuable tips on how to get more views on your Reels.
Get rid of the TikTok watermark, keep it under 90 seconds so you can show up on the Explore page, and avoid blurry or grainy effects that donāt give the best user experience.
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Hereās what youāll find in todayās DTC:
š Learn how this simple email stood out among the hundreds of flashy BFCM campaigns in our inbox.
ā Want to get started on TikTok Shops? Be aware of these common violations to avoid getting your store banned.
šø Q4 may be coming to an end soon but thereās still opportunities to capture more sales post-holiday.
š Andā¦the Away marketing team deserves a raise for this spot-on social media campaign.
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Youāre reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Roots & Bloom, Mastercard, and Fervour. š
š NAADAMās Impactful Plain Text Thanksgiving Email
Were you able to stand out in customer's inboxes during BFCM?
Most brands increase their send frequency during BFCM and spend a lot of time creating flashy emails with colorful GIFs and urgent messaging. š
But the thing isā¦ everybody is using the same tactics.
Sending out a more personalized HTML email can be a welcomed break for subscribers and actually make your message stand out in a sea of polished mailer campaigns.
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Here's one we really liked: NAADAM's HTML email. š
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The message from their CEO went out on Thanksgiving Day and gave thanks to customers for their support and included a fantastic offer: 50% off sitewide.
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Why this format works so well:
The email feels personal and not corporate. This email feels more casual and friendly rather than conversion driven.
While the email does advertise a sale, it only includes two hyper links which is minimal compared to most emails sent out during this time.
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Closes with a subtle call to action. He ends the note with a light-hearted joke that resonates with subscribers sitting down for Thanksgiving dinner but it also contains some urgency messaging so customers know to act quickly.
š When subscribers enter their site, NAADAMās sale landing page also conveys that urgency messaging with the āthere wonāt be any second helpingsā copy, which fits well with the Thanksgiving theme.
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The result?
With the short sales time frame, most sizes quickly sold out, the brand got a big sales boost and valuable intel on what SKUs are high in demand so they can prepare inventory ordering for 2025.
Sending plain text emails like this can be highly effective when you want to stand out.
Test this out and give it a try! Itās low lift and can have great returns.
šØ Alert: New FTC Rules Coming in 2025. Is Your Marketing Ready?
Marketers in regulated industries, this oneās for you.
The advertising landscape for regulated industries is shifting.
New enforcement priorities.
Stricter policies for health and financial verticals on Meta.
More compliance pitfalls that can put your brand at risk.
Join the most marketing-friendly legal professional Sean Buckley (Dykema), health/wellness creative expert Shannon Coast (Ready Set), and Finance creative expert Sarah Bauer (Ready Set) on December 11 at 3 PM ET to learn:
Don't derail your 2025 success because you're not up to date on keeping your brand safe.
Limited spots!
*Ā sponsored
āā Sellers Beware Of These Violations
Welcome to the last part of our series on TikTok Shop! Weāve shared tips on how to use affiliates and livestreaming to maximize your sales, and today weāll go over common violations to avoid.
TikTok Shop sellers bewareā¦
You do not want your shop to get banned during the holiday season. Ā
And incurring violation points on TikTok Shop has happened to a lot of sellers.
So hereās what you need to know to stay compliant and donāt run into any roadblocks during this high intent shopping period.
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Rules to watch out for:
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The takeaway?
Sellers should familiarize themselves with TikTokās policies and common violations to avoid accidentally accumulating violation points and getting permanently banned from the platform. Err on the side of caution.
Missed our earlier articles? Click to read the full DTC x RightMetric report here to stay compliant.*
*Ā sponsored
ā” The Party Doesnāt End During Q4ā¦
If you think there aren't any opportunities once Q4 ends, think again.
There is another "quarter" after that paid marketing likes to call Q5.
Q5 is the sneaky little period after Christmas until New Year's and even carries over into mid-January.
Pilothouse shares these insights from Meta's Cyber 5 webinar on how Q5 can be an opportunity to expedite learnings going into the new year or capture some overflowing sales.
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What is the Magic of the Backdoor from Q5?
1ļøā£ Reduced Competition
Often big companies with massive budgets are capped out by the time Christmas comes around. The companies consider the holiday season year-end, and once the budget is spent, it's spent and won't reset until the following year.
In 2023, Meta reported a 60% drop in live campaigns during the week following December 26, 2022. This means when the big players get out, other brands have more opportunities to capture sales and attention.
2ļøā£ Lower Advertising Costs
In Q4, advertising costs soar due to events like Black Friday and Christmas. However, after December 26, there was a marked decrease in ad costs, especially on platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
For example, Facebook's CPM dropped by 26% after Christmas last year, creating a prime opportunity for marketers to reach a larger audience at lower prices.
3ļøā£ Continued Consumer Shopping
A common misconception is that consumer activity wanes after Christmas. The National Retail Federation reported that 70% of holiday shoppers planned to shop during the week following Christmas in 2022.
Many sought to capitalize on post-holiday sales, use gift cards, or exchange unwanted gifts.
4ļøā£ Online Engagement Persists
Another myth is that online consumer activity diminishes in Q5. Contrary to this belief, engagement remains above average.
For instance, during the week after Christmas, the average number of sessions per campaign increased by 29% compared to the yearly average.
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The takeaway?
This is the time to develop a winning Q5 strategy to take advantage of this period. However, remember that although there's a consensus that Q5 lasts from December 26 to mid-January, data shows a notable dip in activity in the first two weeks of January.
Engagement levels during these weeks are 14% and 16% lower than the yearly average, suggesting a more nuanced approach is needed for marketing during this period.
Thereās so many amazing brands in the DTC community! Weāll be sharing brand highlights and discount codes from your fellow DTC Newsletter readers.
ā Hereās todayās brand highlight: Our Little Treasures
āļø A note from the brand: āOLT is a premium organic babywear brand with a trade-up program that aims to provide high quality baby essentials to parents at accessible prices while saving our planet. Parents can send back outgrown baby clothes and get 40% off for the next size up! My background as a founding team member of Uber Eats (I was the first order on the app, ever!) helped me identify the opportunity to innovate the business model in the baby clothing industry once I became a 2x mom myself. We just launched 3 months ago, but have been getting raving reviews from parents, both for the quality of the products and how great the trade-up program is. Most common feedback is "it just makes sense!"ā
š DTC exclusive discount: Use the code OLTLOVESDTC at checkout for a free pocket pal!
Want to submit your brand for consideration for a future send? Reply back to this email with your website, a bit about your brand, and a DTC exclusive discount code.
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š IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE
Earlier this month we talked about how searches for look-a-like contests have hit an all-time high.
These in-person contests have been drawing big crowds as fans try to find doppelgangers of famous celebrities like Jeremy Allen White, Jungkook, and Dev Patel, documenting the process on social media.
Away is the latest brand to leverage these viral feel-good moments by gifting the lookalike winners luggage for the holiday season with the cheeky caption: āeven lookalikes travel with the real thing.ā
This is a great example of how brands can join the cultural conversation even when budgets are capped.
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ā” QUICK HITS
š„ Worried your small team canāt run a successful micro-influencer campaign? Hereās how Plant People, a five-person company, managed to get 400% ROI with the help of minisocial. Read about it here. *
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šø MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
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š EVENTS
Digiday Media Buying Summit - This summit gathers key decision-makers from top brands and agencies, attracting a diverse audience of professionals eager to explore cutting-edge strategies and technologies in media buying.
March 3-5, Nashville, TN š° $2,295 - $4,495
Digiday Publishing Summit - This event for publishers and media professionals is focused on overcoming industry challenges and seizing new opportunities. Participants will engage in discussions around key topics such as monetization strategies, audience engagement, and the impact of emerging technologies in publishing.
March 24-26, Vail, CO š° $3,395 - $4,795
š„ Got a B2B Biz?
Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 160k brand leaders and founders this year. Talk to our team to learn more.
Have you heard our latest podcasts?
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Donāt forget to rate the DTC Podcast on Apple (āļøāļøāļøāļøāļø)
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DTC Newsletter is written by Rebecca Knight and Frances Du. Edited by Eric Dyck.
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Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored or affiliate content.
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