No Thanks or Sales Inside ... [🐝U]

‘Tis the season to drown in a tsunami of emails featuring pretty aggressive “BUY NOW” BS.

It seems like everyone’s trying to squeeze every last drop out of our wallets.

Over the next few weeks, your inbox becomes buried in an avalanche of countdown timers, “last chance” lies, & 47 versions of “best Black Friday deal ever”

It feels like everyone’s trying to bleed your bank account dry
& some of them are using nasty, manipulative tactics.

I get it.

But I don’t have to like it.
& I’m definitely not going to let them suck me in.

You don’t have to fall victim to it either.

So if you want to be proactive in defending your bank balance (& sanity) this year, I’ve got my battle-tested plans below.

If you’re curious, read on …
I can’t promise they’ll all work for you
But they’ll at least give you ideas on how to start building the berm to keep things out.

If you’ve recently won the lottery
& found a fully-functional DeLorean …

Then honestly, go wild
& time travel responsibly
Go buy lots of shiny things
& come back to tell me who wins the Super Bowl this year

For the rest of us without access to the sports almanac … stick with me

Because here’s where things get messy & it’s time we clean things up …

The “Black Friday” & “Boxing Day” Inbox Bloodbath

Every November, like clockwork, my marketer brain gets all excited over the sales tsunami moving towards my inbox.
“Ohhhh, let’s study aaaallll the campaigns!”

Meanwhile, my consumer brain clutches her coffee cup & bracing for impact thinking,
“Please … not again!”

As a marketer, I SHOULD be reading & studying to see what people are doing.
& for 50 weeks of the year, that’s exactly what I do.

I’ll click on ads, read promo emails, all of it.
But there’s a self-imposed ban on it all around Thanksgiving & Christmas

You’ve heard of Christmas in July?
Well I see this is Year-End Spring Cleaning

Because the biggest Black Friday blunder cost me over $10,000 once.
& I vowed not to let that happen again!

That moment was a big wake up call that actually came a year later when I was about to make the same mistake.

I use that as a lighthouse, ensuring I’m not crashing my business into the same rocks that sunk me as a consumer.

So if you’re like me & you’ve fallen for any of these tactics before, you’re not alone.
& I want to save you (& your wallet) from hitting my milestones.

ready?

The Anti-Black Friday Clickbait Sale

Anti = against … right?

So, if you’re against Black Friday, which is a slough of sales
Why have a sale & say you're against it?

Even worse … making it the “best” ever

This from an “A-List” marketer?
Seriously?!

If you’re going to zig when everyone else zags, the actually zig

As in … if you’re going use the “anti” angle, honor the meaning of the word.

Don’t call it “Anti Black Friday” then have a sale!
Don’t tell me you’re reveling against the noise then ADD to it!

To me that means if you’re anti the sale process, give something away
I’ve only seen 1 person do that so far.

Yes, technically, the “cost” is giving your email …
& there’s an option to sign up for a free webinar… that does NOT have a sales pitch

& it’s someone else’s thing …

Somewhere along the way, there IS going to be an offer (it IS a business after all)
(It honors the no CC ask & it is less than 15 minutes as promised)
& I’m pretty sure Daniel gets an affiliate commission from anyone who buys in the end.

But it doesn’t START with asking for money

Or offering BS discounts with a “Black Friday” label … like some other companies do

The BS never-ending Sale

Grammarly offers me a discount EVERY. SINGLE. WEEK.

Without fail!

Then last week that SAME discount got dressed up in a“Black Friday” costume
… as if I wouldn’t recognize it in its disguise.

A quick search for Grammarly reveals their strategy…

I guess it’s working for them … given they’re still doing it.
But …
If I didn’t want the weekly dose of stats I’d run for the hills.

& because of this constant non-sale sale … I’ll never upgrade
#SorryNotSorry

This is how brands lose me & my trust
If it’s always on sale & it’s the SAME sale amount,
Then it’s not really a sale, is it?

Unfortunately, Grammarly isn’t the only company pulling stunts like this … the only reason I can still search for these examples is they’re plopping the “sale” in with my stats.

Everyone else gets an automatic delete when it pops into my inbox.
& eventually, they also get the boot.

When it’s a hardcore Click & Run

Some red flags from businesses are soooo blindingly bad, there’s no waiting around to see if they can “redeem” themselves

When I see these, I open & head straight for the end of the email to click unsubscribe.

The guaranteed unsubscribe honors goes to those who ONLY email for Black Friday & Boxing Day sales.

Where in the frilly heck have you been the rest of the year?
If you don’t make time to talk to me, you don’t deserve my time or money.

Then there’s the fake deal …

A quick note to any brand starting up or trying to scale …
10% off is NOT a Black Friday deal …
That’s not even worthy of a “thanks-for-joining-my-newsletter” deal.

If you’ve been consistently showing up in my inbox & delivering value, awesome!
You’re already ahead of the pack.

But now’s not the time to get lazy.
Don’t slack off now when it matters most.

THIS is the time to actually stand out, not slap a discount sticker on some random thing

UGH

Using Logic Instead of Emotion

Focus on what you need instead of what you want.
I realize it’s easier said than done these days.

The truth is, you might want what they’re selling.
You might even need it.

But do you need it right now?
Be brutally honest with yourself.

If yes … great. That’s an investment.
If no though … that’s an expense disguised as urgency.

& if you already bought one “must-have” tool this month?
You don’t need another.
Not during the season where our emotions drive the car & our logic is tied up in the trunk.

1 - Do I need this thing - right now - or do I feel like I do?
2 - If I can only get 1 thing to use at a time, is this where I really need to plant my flag?
3 - If I wait until tomorrow, is the “need” just as strong?
4 - Is this buying clarity & creating momentum … or making motion to avoid discomfort?

These are some of the questions I ask myself (& have posted near my monitor) to help save me (& my bank balance) over the years.

Still with me?

OK so maybe I am “selling” something…

Your inbox sanity.
& it’s also saving your bank balance.

Because building a business isn’t just about making more money.
It’s also about spending it wisely.

So here’s my tiny Black Friday “offer” for you:
→ Protect your attention.
→ Safeguard your wallet.
→ Hit delete (& unsubscribe) with ZERO guilt.

Your sanity is worth more than any countdown timer.

Make it a great “spending-spree-free” week.
You’ve earned it.

EG

PS:

Drowning in Details? Here’s Your Life Raft.

Stop doing it all. Start leading again. BELAY has helped thousands of leaders delegate the details and get back to what matters most.

Access the next phase of growth with BELAY’s resource Delegate to Elevate.

Download BELAY’s eBook!

A Framework for Smarter Voice AI Decisions

Deploying Voice AI doesn’t have to rely on guesswork.

This guide introduces the BELL Framework — a structured approach used by enterprises to reduce risk, validate logic, optimize latency, and ensure reliable performance across every call flow.

Learn how a lifecycle approach helps teams deploy faster, improve accuracy, and maintain predictable operations at scale.

Read the Full Guide

PPS:
Every email is based on what you ask for … the more something’s asked for, the faster it finds its way to the top of the to-write-about pile
📣 Tell me what you want to read about … here

🔗 Connect with me on LinkedIn … here

📈 Want to talk about better marketing results for your business by being yourself?
Find a time that fits your schedule.