Lock In Your Q4 Wins Now
Why Q4 Winners Are Already Locked In by July Black Friday isn’t about who shouts the loudest in November, Microsoft Advertising Gets a Major Upgrade in Targeting and Budget Control, and more!
Howdy readers 🥰
In this newsletter, you’ll find:
📦 BFCM Is a Logistics Game, Not a Promo Game
📈 Microsoft Advertising Gets a Major Upgrade in Targeting and Budget Control
🏆 Ad of the Day
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📦 BFCM Is a Logistics Game, Not a Promo Game
Why Q4 Winners Are Already Locked In by July Black Friday isn’t about who shouts the loudest in November.
It’s about who set the quietest traps in July. Because the brands that dominate Q4 don’t win with discounts, they win with supply chain sequencing.
The Promo Myth: “We’ll Figure It Out in Q4”
Every year, average brands scramble through this playbook:
- Finalize offers in October
- Launch creatives in early November
- Pray that the inventory shows up on time
- Spend hard during Cyber Week to make up for the chaos
It’s reactive, fragile, and margin-destructive. The illusion is that success is driven by better promos. But in reality? The most profitable brands made their logistics bets months ago.
The Real Game: Port Timing × SKU Sequencing × Capital Buffer
Here’s what pros lock in by July:
- SKU prioritization: Which 20% of SKUs will drive 80% of Q4 velocity?
- Port targeting: Which entry points avoid the November congestion tax?
- Batch staggering: How to layer inbound inventory for promos without overcommitting cash
- Production tempo: What’s your fallback plan if a TikTok hits mid-campaign?
Portless gives you the infrastructure to win BFCM before November even starts. You can book a free risk assessment and get a custom audit that maps out your fulfillment delays, SKU sequencing gaps, and untapped cost savings across your Q4 timeline.
The BFCM Ops Formula: “S.A.F.E.”
Let’s frame it: S.A.F.E. = Sequencing + Agility + Fulfillment Speed + Elasticity
This is the real Q4 growth stack:
- Sequencing: Plan drop cadence and bundles around arrival windows, not just calendar weeks
- Agility: Launch with 50% of inventory, then double down on what moves
- Fulfillment Speed: Ensure 3–5 day delivery even during peak congestion
- Elasticity: Shift SKU mix based on early-week data before Cyber Monday hits
Most brands run “Black Friday campaigns.” The winners run Black Friday simulations in July.
Final Take
In 2025, BFCM isn’t about better CPMs or smarter copywriting. It’s about who ships the right thing, at the right time, with the least cash tied up.
The loudest brands might get attention. But the smartest ones get profit, and still have inventory left on Tuesday.
📈 Microsoft Advertising Gets a Major Upgrade in Targeting and Budget Control
Microsoft is rolling out updates aimed at giving advertisers more control and flexibility across their Audience Ads campaigns. From improved remarketing list logic to long-requested budgeting tools, these changes simplify cross-channel strategy and campaign pacing.
The Breakdown:
1. Lifetime Budgets Now Live for Audience Ads - Advertisers can now set a fixed total spend for an entire Audience Ads campaign, instead of relying on daily budgets. Each budget applies to a single campaign and can run up to 365 days.
2. Overspend Protection and Refund Safety Net - All Lifetime Budgets come with built-in overspend protection, so advertisers won’t be charged above their set limits. The feature is available to all Audience Ads users.
3. Impression-Based Remarketing Gets a Big Boost - Remarketing lists can now pull from up to 20 source campaigns or ad groups, up from previous limits. If at least one source is an Audience Ads campaign, those lists can be used across any campaign type, including Search.
Microsoft Ads is clearly pushing to make Audience Ads more powerful and versatile. Both features, lifetime budgeting and scaled remarketing, give advertisers a low-maintenance, high-control setup. Even thought leaders like Navah Hopkins are calling this a prime moment to test or scale Audience campaigns.
🎥 Ad of the Day
What Works:
1. Hero Phrase That Stops the Scroll - The phrase “Bye, Bye Brass!” is emotionally charged and visually loud, it speaks directly to a pain point for blondes and silvers. By using a bold, serif font with high contrast, the copy evokes both urgency and style.
2. Quick-Hit Benefit Box That’s Easy to Scan - The white benefit box in the center spells out exactly what the product does: enhances tone, removes yellow, boosts shine. This breaks down the emotional promise into functional proof, within 3 seconds, viewers know the value.
3. Smart Pairing With the Existing Balm - The purple toning drops are placed next to the “Mistress” hydrating balm, suggesting they work together as a system. This increases basket size subtly, a strategic visual upsell without saying a word.
Broader Insights:
IGK nails a visual flow that mimics beauty influencer storytelling: pain point → fix → transformation. It leads with a problem, proves the solution, and shows product texture, all in a minimal yet luxe layout. This is performance branding built to convert, especially in Stories, TikToks, and Sephora digital shelves.
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