Hey there,
If you're waiting until late November to start selling for the holidays, you're already behind — and not by a little.
Shoppers are moving earlier every year. With prices on everyone's mind, people are planning purchases and hunting deals weeks ahead of the old schedule. Retail forecasters expect October to carry a Black Friday's worth of spending this year. Translation: the customers you want in December are deciding right now, this month.
The good news? You don't need a big team to catch them. You need one smart early offer and about an hour with AI. Here's the plan.
PICK ONE "EARLY BIRD" OFFER
Don't discount everything. Pick one thing people already love and make it the early reward. Ask AI to help you choose:
"I run a [type of business]. My best-selling products/services are [list]. My average sale is about $[amount]. Suggest 3 'early bird' holiday offers I could run in October that reward people for buying early — without cutting my margins too deep. Explain the pros and cons of each."
Good early offers include a bonus gift with purchase, a gift card bonus ("Buy $100, get $20"), first access to limited holiday stock, or booking priority for December appointments. These feel generous without training people to wait for 40% off.
WRITE THE WHOLE CAMPAIGN IN ONE SITTING
Once you've picked your offer, have AI build everything at once:
"Write an October early-bird campaign for my [offer]. Include: one announcement email, one reminder email for a week later, one 'last chance' email, three short social posts, and a one-line sign for my counter or website banner. Friendly, clear, not pushy. Emphasize that buying early means better selection and less stress."
That's a full campaign in about two minutes. Spend the rest of your hour editing it so it sounds like you.
GIVE PEOPLE A REAL DEADLINE
Early offers work because they end. Pick a hard stop — "Ends October 31" — and stick to it. A deadline turns "I'll think about it" into "I'd better do it now." AI can help you write that urgency without sounding like a used-car ad: "Rewrite this last-chance email so it feels helpful and warm, not pushy."
CAPTURE EVERYONE WHO SHOWS UP
Every early buyer is a warm lead for December. Ask for an email or phone number at checkout, and tag them as "early holiday buyer." When your main holiday push starts, these are the first people you'll contact — they've already shown they buy from you.
THE GUARDRAILS
Protect your margins. Run the math before you launch. A "deal" that loses money on every sale isn't a strategy. Ask AI: "If I offer [deal] on a product with a $[cost] cost and $[price] price, what's my profit per sale?"
Don't promise stock you can't deliver. If holiday inventory is limited, say so. Honest scarcity builds trust; overselling destroys it.
Keep your December offer better or different. Early buyers shouldn't feel cheated if you run a bigger sale later. Make the early reward something unique, like a bonus gift or priority booking.
YOUR ACTION PLAN THIS WEEK
Block one hour. Use the first prompt to pick your early-bird offer, the second to write the whole campaign, and set a hard October 31 deadline. Send the first email by Friday. Starting now puts you weeks ahead of competitors who still think the holidays begin after Thanksgiving.
Know an owner who's still "planning to think about holiday marketing in November"? Forward this to them today. Timing is the whole game this year.
Talk soon,
Dave
The AI Playbook
