DTC908: Building Lovevery, Vacation Email Pop-up, and Meta Ads Playbook

Good morning,

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

🚀 Lovevery’s Growth Tactics
Tips for scaling via subscription.

🥥 In Vacation Mode
Analyzing the SPF brand’s cheeky pop-up.

🚨 Daily Tariff Update
Revealing stats on the global economy.

🏆 Steal This Meta Playbook!
Expert tips to scale your Meta creatives.

You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Lowe’s, XO Skin Co, and SMYTHE. 👋

⏰  This BFCM, Timing Is Everything. Don’t Miss A Beat With This Ultimate BFCM Countdown Calendar

You already know Black Friday and Cyber Monday are a huge deal. 80% of consumers are forecasted to spend on average $650 each this year. 💸

😬 But miss your timing, and you’re losing out on profit—missing opportunities, getting trapped in cost spikes, making just a fraction of what you could be.

That’s why Vibe.co built the Ultimate BFCM Countdown Calendar, a step-by-step playbook to plan, build, scale, and optimize campaigns without missing a beat.

👉 From aligning creative and audience segments, to executing precise retargeting and budget pacing during the peak, this calendar maps the exact cadence top performers use to win BFCM.  

Get the expert guide, and maximize your CTV campaign’s impact this BFCM.

P.S. Want to add CTV to your BFCM strategy? Vibe.co will 50% match your first 30 days spend!

🎧 How Lovevery Built a Nine-Figure Subscription Engine – Then Rebuilt It to Unlock Even More Growth

In this episode of the DTC Podcast, Roderick Morris, co‑founder of Lovevery, walks us through the journey of launching a product built for early childhood development, scaling via subscription, and expanding internationally, all while balancing quality, mission, and profitability.

Roderick shares how test launches, product design rooted in developmental science, and strong customer feedback shaped Lovevery’s early days and how those foundations helped them sustain growth, improve retention, and become profitable.

In this episode, we dive into:

• From First Product to Subscription Model: How Lovevery started with one premium product then launched its subscription PlayKits and expanded the product line.
• Mission, Quality & Customer Trust: Earning customer trust via product experience and educational content.
• Retention Value of the App: How their mobile app improves engagement, retention, and customer lifetime value.
• Balancing Accessibility with Premium Positioning: Roderick shares how they target people who love the brand but aren’t ready to subscribe.

“Our thought was maybe [customers] would be willing to subscribe if they tried some of the products. This motivated us to start testing selling individual kits with a slightly higher price.”

👉 Listen to the full episode with Roderick here.

📦 Your Daily Tariff Check-In

Whether it’s a minor tweak or a major shift, we’ll keep you posted on the latest tariff changes—so you’re always in the know.

September 23, 2025 update:

• OECD Reports on Global Economy
  • The OECD now projects global growth at 3.2% for 2025, up from its June forecast of ~2.9%. The Paris-based organization shares that this was due largely to stockpiling and investments in AI.
  • U.S. GDP is projected to rise by 1.8% in 2025, up slightly from earlier estimates, but well below 2024’s ~2.8%.
  • For 2026, U.S. growth is expected to drop further to ~1.5%.
  • OECD warns the "full effects" of tariffs are only beginning to show and growth will slow in 2026.

🛍️ 42% of Shoppers Are Already Looking for Offers Before November Even Begins

Black Friday & Cyber Monday are closer than you think, and this year, shoppers are getting a head start. 🛒

🗓️  That’s why Vibe.co built the Ultimate BFCM Countdown Calendar, to guide you step-by-step through this vital period.

Inside, you’ll get:

• 💥 Weekly Action Items to keep you on track
• 💡 Proven Strategy Ideas to boost performance
• 👉 Practical Tips to maximize ROI

Ready to make every ad count? Yeah, you are.

Get a 50% match on your first 30 days campaign spend.

💰 Vacation’s Clippable Coupon and Cheeky Copy

Looking to grow your list size ahead of Q4? We’ll be analyzing some email pop-ups the next few weeks and share what’s working and ideas you can borrow for your own.

This creative is very on-brand for the sunscreen brand.

It’s a retro clippable coupon that comes with a dotted outline, a barcode, and cheeky imagery that feels very “Vacation.”

What works well:

✅ Brand alignment: This is a great example of a pop-up design that aligns with a brand’s voice and image, and this clippable coupon style shows up again after users sign up, so the experience feels cohesive.

✅  The copy is clear and direct: “10% off your first order” and the percentage amount is emphasized in bold blue text, so it's easy to read. Even at a quick glance, users understand the value in signing up.

✅  The form is simple. It only has one email field, which helps boost opt-in rates and reduces friction.

If your pop-up already checks these boxes, here are a few tests worth trying: 👇

🧪 Offer testing: Many brands use a 10% discount for sign-up, which can blend in with other brands doing the same.

Playful brands can test not just the incentive itself, but also how it’s framed.

E.g., a brand like Vacation could spin “10% Off” into something more distinctive, such as “10% Off + First Dibs on Limited-Edition SPF Drops” or “Your Official Ticket to Poolside Perks — 10% Off Inside.”

🧪 Value positioning: Subscribing to claim a welcome discount (and use it!) is great, but positioning the future value of staying on the list may have them stick around longer.

Consider teasing what subscribers will continue to get after sign-up. E.g., Black Friday early access, limited exclusive deals, etc.

🧪 Disclaimers, like this one from Vacation: “Vacation Inc. is not liable for the excessive enjoyment and/or recurring compliments received following the use of any Vacation Brand product…” can be a great place for humor, but if they’re hard to read on desktop or mobile, users may miss the joke.

This pop-up nails brand alignment and simplicity, and shows how any brand can turn a basic sign-up perk into a more memorable, high-converting asset.

Zack Stuck shares a Meta Ads playbook that wins 99% of the time:

1. Keep campaigns consolidated (though more products usually mean more campaigns).
2. Test creatives in ABO, or in CBO with min spend if you’ve got lots to launch.
3. Scale using lowest cost bidding.
4. Use cost controls if inventory is constrained, but expect tradeoffs.
5. Keep testing clean: isolate variables so you know what’s driving results.

For a deeper dive, including targeting and what Zack says really moves the needle, check out the full tweet.

Want to see the full post? Click here

👀 CTV is a high-impact channel for reaching BFCM shoppers early. Want in? This calendar combines tactical timing, precise targeting, and data drawn from real advertiser outcomes. Grab your free copy now. Plus, get a 50% match on your first 30 days’ spend with Vibe.co. *

📥 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?

• 💡 Ad-venturous 20: Creative Workflow Hacks
• 💰 TWBERP 50: Email Like A Billion Dollar Brand Part 1
• 🧠 Master The First Second: Hook Attention in Meta Ads
• 🎃 AKNF 540: Using Seasonal Ads Like Halloween as Q4 Prep
• ✨ Ad-venturous 18: Taste v.s. Discernment Around Creative and AI
• 📥 TWBERP 49: American Eagle v.s. Everlane Part 2

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

DTC Newsletter is written by Rebecca Knight and Frances Du. Edited by Eric Dyck.

Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content.