DTC709: How Puresport’s Black Friday Campaign Challenges Overconsumption

Thursday, December 12, 2024

Good morning,

Major ad optimization restrictions for health and wellness brands are coming next month.

Starting in January, Meta will prohibit certain brands from tracking and optimizing for certain events to reduce sharing sensitive data.

Think this might impact you? Find more details in our News section.

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Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC:

📦 Learn why Puresport sent out 500 empty mailers on Black Friday and how the campaign went viral on social media.
⚡ We discuss how blending email with paid ads helps improve ROI and weathering economic downturns.
👀 Want to know if your holiday offer stands out? Here’s a handy tool that can help you spy on competitors' offers from years past.
♥️ And…why this heartwarming ad angle always wins over customers in Q4.

You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Kimonix, Miracle Moon, and Bourne Botanicals. 👋

💡 Puresport’s Brilliant Product Seeding Strategy

Over Black Friday, supplement brand Puresport sent out 500 empty boxes to influencers.

And no, it wasn’t a mistake.

It was all part of their brilliant marketing campaign, which quickly went viral on TikTok.

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Here’s how they did it 👇

Before Black Friday, the brand sent out 500 empty boxes to creators and athletes with a message that read:

“This box isn’t empty.
This box is full of opportunity.
To make a difference.
A symbol of change.
A commitment to do things for the long run.”

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The idea?

For influencers to fill up the empty box with products that they haven’t used and gift these items to someone else.

The wellness brand partnered with a charity called Greenhouse Sports to support disadvantaged youth and develop key life skills through the power of sports.

They tapped into the Puresport Run Club community to bring those packages over to the charity to gift products to those in need.

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The result?

Puresport’s TikTok video about the idea behind the campaign quickly went viral and raked up over 2 million views on TikTok. 📈

Users praised their creativity and thoughtful approach in getting these packages to a charity for a good cause.

Puresport ended up getting 200 mailers back and expects more to come in the following weeks.

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The takeaway?

The best campaigns don’t just sell—they build a narrative that connects, entertains, and/or inspires. Puresport used a thoughtful approach to engage influencers and audiences emotionally, proving that meaningful messages leave a lasting impact and spark action.

🚨 News Flash: Consumers Don’t Want Ads—They Want Stories

Consumers spend hours on their phones, but they don't want ads—they want stories. Brands like Gymshark, Olipop, and Hexclad understand this. They're not interrupting content, they're becoming the content. 📲

Influencers have what brands desperately need: authentic connections with audiences. When a creator recommends a product, it's a personal endorsement that cuts through the noise. 👏

But here's the challenge: Finding these influencers can be complex. Tracking performance. Building relationships. Negotiating deals. It's a full-time job.

Brands like Obvi, Brez, and Homecourt use SARAL because it automates the tedious tasks so you can focus on what matters: building genuine connections that drive real growth. 📈

Reclaim hours of your week. Skip endless spreadsheets. No more manual outreach.

🎧 The Financial Case for Email

In this episode of the TWBERP Podcast, Jordan Gordon from Pilothouse breaks down why email marketing is a financial cornerstone for scaling DTC brands and how blending emails with paid ads can improve ROI and strengthen customer retention.

Jordan explains: "Email is your old friend that loves you dearly. It carries you through the tough times when ad costs rise or the market shifts."

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In this podcast, we cover:

• The Numbers Behind Email’s ROI: How email outperforms ads in cost efficiency and long-term value.
• Email + Ads Synergy: Why the combination is greater than the sum of its parts.
• Strategies for Every Stage: From new brands at $1M to scaled brands at $12M, see how email transforms profitability.
• Resilience During Economic Shifts: Why email helps you survive—and thrive—when ad ROIs dip.

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Whether you're building automations or running a full-service email program, this episode will help you optimize your retention strategies to scale smarter and stay profitable.

👉 You can listen to the full episode with Jordan here.

🔢 P.S. Wanna follow along on the calculator Jordan uses in the episode? Check it out here.

👀 Look Back at Past Holiday Offers

Pilothouse shares a nifty tool to help you with Q4 site changes and beyond.

Can’t remember exactly how your site looked last Q4?

Or are you looking for inspo on how to best display your holiday offer throughout the site?

The Wayback Machine could be your saving grace:

This site lets you search any URL and then see how that website looked on any date in the past.

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Ways to use this site:

• See if competitors run consistent offers (or have been switching them up over the years) so you can come up with a competitive promotion.
• Look at other websites for design inspo to gather ideas on how to best display your offer.
• For your own personal knowledge…Look at brands you will be shopping from this Q4 and try to predict their sales behavior!

The Wayback Machine is a great way to help you plan your offer placements on your website this Q4.

🌐 IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE

Are your holiday ads resonating with your audience?

Remember this is gifting season so tug at consumer’s heartstrings with images of people getting together, sharing memories, and exchanging thoughtful gifts.

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⚡ QUICK HITS

🤔 Making a strategy for your Out-Of-Home Ad campaign? OneScreen helped more than 200 brands plan, execute, and measure successful OOH ads using 100+ data sources. Get your FREE campaign plan here. *

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📅 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 💰 $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 💰 $3,395 - $4,795

📥 Got a B2B Biz?

Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 150k brand leaders and founders this year. Talk to our team to learn more.

Have you heard our latest podcasts?

• 🚀 Lessons from Dr. Squatch’s Walmart Launch with Martin Forde
• 🖤 AKNF 462: BFCM insights and Amazon’s Changing Ad Strategies
• 💬 TWBERP 10: Why Cohesive Email and Ad Messaging Matters
• 🏃🏽 Get on the CPG Fast Track: Insights from O2 and Four Sigmatic
• ⭐ AKNF 460: How to Craft Winning Q4 Sales Ads
• 🛒 TWBERP 9: The Only Site Abandon Flow You’ll Ever Need

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Don’t forget to rate the DTC Podcast on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

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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 content.