DTC927: October Holiday Prep, Dad Gang, and GA4 Update

Good morning,

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

🧢 Why Simplicity Scales
Dad Gang’s philosophy for unlocking growth.

🛍️ The Holiday Rush Is Already Here…
How consumer shopping habits have changed.

👏 A Big GA4 Update
Cross-channel ROI tracking is finally here.

You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Soaps Candles and Dots, Premier Portable Plates, and Bee Inspired Clothing. 👋

🚨 Price Sensitivity Is Rising... But Brands That Adapt Can Still Win Big

Klaviyo’s 2025 BFCM Forecast breaks down how consumers are navigating economic pressure and what the most successful brands are doing differently. 📈

This year, high-performers aren’t relying on last-minute sales. Instead, they’re:

• 💲 Earning loyalty through value, offering personalized discounts and real benefits that matter
• 📲 Making omnichannel communication non-negotiable, connecting mobile, in-store, and online touchpoints into one seamless experience
• 🛒 Meeting the growing demand for AI, using automation to enhance service, deliver recommendations, and anticipate shopper needs

👀 With insights drawn from 7,000 global consumers, the report offers a data-backed look at how to stay relevant in a season when attention is fleeting and spending is more intentional than ever.

Get ahead of shifting behaviors and build a BFCM strategy that works in 2025. 💵

🎧 How Dad Gang Scaled From 100K to 700K Hats Without Changing Their Simple Playbook

In this episode of the DTC Podcast, Eric dives back in with Bart Szaniewski, co-founder of Dad Gang, to explore how he scaled his headwear brand from 100,000 to 700,000 hats sold, all without abandoning his original ‘Keep It Simple, Stupid’ philosophy.

After turning a boosted Facebook post into a six-figure success story, Bart proves that growth doesn’t always require complexity. Instead, it’s about staying scrappy, community-driven, and emotionally authentic.

Bart unpacks how staying lean and connected to his audience allowed Dad Gang to scale sustainably, all while keeping the heart of the brand intact.

In this episode, we dive into:

• The Power of K.I.S.S. Scaling: Bart reveals how resisting the urge to over-optimize, over-hire, or over-engineer has kept Dad Gang nimble and profitable.

“Everyone thinks growth means adding layers. For us, it meant removing friction.”

• Community as a Growth Engine: The Dad Gang community doesn’t just buy hats, they co-create them.

“Our best designs come from people who already love what we do.”

• Lean Tools, Big Impact: From using Shopify’s default theme to AI video tools like CapCut, Dad Gang runs on simplicity and it works.

“You don’t need a studio to tell a great story. You need a story worth telling.”

• Emotional Storytelling That Converts: Every launch connects back to fatherhood, legacy, and presence, themes that resonate far beyond the product.

“People don’t just buy the hat; they buy what it represents.”

• Authenticity Over Algorithm: Bart explains how resisting constant ad tinkering and trusting organic resonance leads to stronger creative performance.

“If you chase every metric, you lose the magic.”

👉 Listen to the full episode with Bart here.

🔥 Hot Off The Press: Most Consumers Aren’t Spending Less This BFCM, They’re Just Being More Selective. Here’s What They’re Looking For

🎁 According to Klaviyo’s 2025 BFCM Forecast, a strong majority of the 7,000+ surveyed shoppers plan to spend the same or more on holiday purchases this year, but only with brands that meet their expectations.

Their latest report reveals how consumers are actually thinking and buying. Then, it gives you step-by-step brand strategies that won’t just keep up this holiday season, they’ll lead the way. 🌟

👉 What’s inside:

• A breakdown of the trends reshaping Q4
• Key moments to engage across email, SMS, and mobile
• Real examples of how top brands are adapting

Shoppers haven’t stopped spending, they’ve simply raised the bar.

🎃 It’s High Stakes Season: Execute and Drive Sales Now

There was a time when Black Friday marked the official start of holiday shopping.

Not anymore.

Pilothouse shares that the holiday rush now begins in October, and every major retailer knows it.

The New Reality?

Holiday shopping has crept earlier each year, and 2025 officially cements October as the starting line.

Yes, well before Halloween.

Big-box retailers set the pace with overlapping events:

• Amazon Prime Big Deal Days: October 7–8
• Walmart Deals: October 7–12 (with early access for Walmart+ members)
• Target Circle Week: October 5–11

Once considered a low-stakes pre-season, October is now prime time for capturing attention and driving sales.

Why It Matters for Brands

The early surge means brands must rethink their timelines, both strategically and operationally.

✅ Marketing: Launch campaigns earlier to meet customers where they already are shopping.

✅ Promotions: Use October to test offers, creative, and messaging before BFCM.

✅ Inventory: Stock up early and plan fulfillment around multiple October events, not just November.

The takeaway?

October isn’t just for planning anymore. It's the start of the holiday season for some.

Brands that treat it as a real opportunity can capture early intent before competition peaks and gather data to refine offers and messaging for Black Friday.

So start executing in October and build momentum that carries through Cyber Week and beyond.

GA4 just got smarter.

Google finally added the ability to import cost data from Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok directly into Google Analytics.

You can now merge clicks, impressions, and spend data from paid social with your paid search results, giving advertisers a unified view of ROI/ROAS across channels, all inside GA4.

What this means: Make data-driven decisions without bouncing between dashboards.

🛍️ BFCM isn’t just a weekend anymore. Learn how 7,000 global consumers are changing the way they shop AND how to build campaigns that keep up and convert. Get your copy of the report here. *

📥 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?

• 📈 AKNF 552: Use Amazon As Part of A Unified Growth Strategy
• ✅ Ad-venturous 24: Q4 Sale Ad Best Practices
• 🦃 TWBERP 55: Talk Turkey; The Q4 Email Gut Check
• 🌿 WYNX Engineered Explosive Growth In a Regulated Environment
• 🔍 AKNF 550: Crown Affair’s Ritual-Driven Growth Strategy
• ⭐ Ad-venturous 23: Brand Differentiation v.s. Alienation

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.