👋 What’s selling: Shopify goods of all kinds. This year, Shopify merchants sold $11.5 billion in goods over Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year, beating 2023’s record of $9.3 billion by 24%.

But that’s not why you’re here.

We promised $1000s.

Here’s how you’ll get them:

💰 Free cash for ads this holiday - ad platforms are ready to pay you for your money. 

👁️‍🗨️ The simplest path to $1M+ - waiting for you at the bottom.

➕ Also in this issue - How to make cheap short-form ads & Watch Shopify’s BFCM Live on replay.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

🛍️ China dominates holiday shopping - Platforms like Temu, Shein, and TikTok Shop capture more US holiday spending, with TikTok Shop sales tripling year-over-year.

📱 TikTok ruling due by Dec 6 - A US appeals court will decide on a potential ByteDance divestiture or nationwide ban.

📦 Canada Post strike continues - Ongoing labor dispute disrupts holiday deliveries, causing major losses for small businesses.

🇦🇺 Australia bans social media for kids - New law prohibits children under 16 from using platforms like TikTok and Instagram without robust age verification. No clarity on how they intend to enforce it, though.

DON’T MISS OUT

Free cash for ads

Ad platforms are fighting each other for spend. As a result, some are willing to match what you’re spending elsewhere for your patronage. 

🐤 If you have a small account: X will match your Shopify spend. Shopify merchants can earn up to $100K in matched ad credits from X for the holiday season.

Per X: “From now through December 1st, we’re offering Shopify store owners an unbeatable deal to help you scale your business and drive more sales. To help you take advantage of this exciting new update, we’re offering a 100% ad credit match when you speak with an X Ads Specialist.”

🐔 If you’re a big spender: Applovin, Doordash and GoPuff will offer ad credits (e.g. half your spend back), effectively cutting your CAC in half. 

But you need to get noticed! According to Nick Shackelford, here’s how to do it:

• Keep your spend focused on one channel - e.g. Meta

• Reach out to ad reps on all the other platforms

• Negotiate! Show them your spend and ask for credits or other incentives

WATCH

Replay: Shopify’s BFCM Live

Shopify has been broadcasting a live tracker of BFCM transactions for a few years now. It usually looks like this (replay WebXR experience):

Fittingly for such a record-breaking year, they took it to the next level this time. To the biggest (and most suitably-shaped) screen in the world (click here to watch):

TACTICS

Do You Even Short? 

Are you into selling stuff? 

Social rules at selling stuff. 

And IG, TikTok and YouTube rule Social. 

Why? Because they’re all about short-form video, which rules (at selling).

So we gotta ask…

Whether it’s yes or no, we’ve put together tips from a few excellent sources (Jackson Blackledge, Sprout Social and TikTok) to help you do it affordably and lucratively. 

1. Spy on the competition

Meta Ads Library (IG Reels) and Google Ads Transparency Center (YouTube Shorts) both allow you to search ads by brand.  

TikTok Top Ads doesn’t, but you can find them with relevant keywords, or just look at other top ads.

Watch and learn.

2. Use Shorts for awareness and consideration stages

👀 Awareness Stage

Create attention-grabbing content that introduces your brand and unique value proposition to new audiences. Focus on:

• Clear brand messaging with striking visuals

• Simple, benefit-focused copy

• Problem-solution narrative

• Consistent brand elements

🤔 Consideration Stage

Target interested viewers (people who have already interacted with you) with content that helps them evaluate your offering:

• Product features and benefits

• Customer testimonials and reviews

• Competitive advantages

• Educational content about your product

• Special offers

• Tailored messaging

• Solutions to common concerns

3. Optimize your campaigns

• Exclude desktop, tablet and TV devices

• Focus on conversions as your campaign goal

• Start with a higher CPM than your target, then turn it down gradually over time. You should end up hitting your sweet spot.

• Start with 10-15% of your ad budget, then scale if results are encouraging.

4. Make cheap & effective Shorts

• ⌛ Duration. YouTube Shorts: 30–60 seconds for ads, balancing attention capture and information delivery. TikTok Videos: Flexible, though Sprout Social’s recent study suggests <15 second videos do best. 

• 💇 Content Style. Videos should mimic organic content and leverage formats like unboxings, podcast clips, and customer testimonials. Production quality isn't a priority; relatability is key​. Don’t hesitate to piggyback trends in your industry or try and launch new ones if you feel up for it. 

• 🪝 Hooks and Attention. The first second is critical for grabbing attention, often achieved through questions, hot takes, or curiosity-piquing statements​.

• 🗣️ Call to Action (CTA). It needs to be clear, so don’t be shy with it. According to Robert Cialdini, the guy who found out people buy through emotion, scarcity and urgency work best. 

• 🏗️ Scalability and Testing. Start with small budgets ($50–$100 daily) and scale successful campaigns gradually while cutting poor-performing elements​. The more angles and hooks and CTAs you test, the higher your chances of success. It’s a numbers game. 

Takeaway: Shorts are too good to stay away from, but they can be daunting. Thankfully, “organic”-style, low production content is in fashion. Follow the guide above and you should be able to get up to speed in no time, for little to no money. 

As per Barry Hott: “Make ugly ads”

With ❤️,

The Early Checkout Team

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