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Welcome to the 1,701 new operators that joined us this week. 🤯
Hey, Fastlane Insiders! 👋
Happy Thursday—and hope you’re charging ahead with fresh wins.
This week’s theme is clear: breaking through old barriers, streamlining how your shop converts, and taking inspiration from places (and people) scaling faster than ever.
Inside, you’ll find:
🎧 Podcast Spotlight: Bobby Palmieri’s full-funnel system—how real alignment drives profit, not just spend
🛒 Big Moves: Shopify's Universal Cart—one-click, one-journey shopping that lifts conversion across the board
🌏 Inspiration Drop: Side hustle lessons from China’s digital economy—why speed, platforms, and scale win
💰 Q4 No-Brainer: Turn those “ghost” shoppers into found money (hint: Instant makes it easy)
Grateful to be part of your journey—let’s run smarter, borrow what works, and make every tactic count for real growth.
Whether you’re leading a big team or building your next project solo, momentum is on the table.
Ready?
Let’s dive in…
Top Publishers Hand-Selecting Amazon Brands to Promote this Holiday Season
This holiday season, top publishers are actively sourcing brands to include in their gift guides, newsletters, listicles, reviews, and more to drive high-intent shoppers straight to Amazon storefronts.
Here’s why it matters:
Amazon brands are seeing a 5:1 conversion rate compared to their DTC site
Millions of shoppers discover products through trusted publishers
Levanta is working directly with these publishers to introduce them to a small number of 7–9 figure brands.
If you qualify, your products could be featured in high-traffic placements that deliver predictable CAC and directly measurable sales.
🎧 New Podcast Episode! 🎧
🎧 Unlocking Profitable Growth: Full-Funnel Marketing for Shopify Teams
Ready to turn messy, siloed marketing into a growth machine? This week, I sat down with Bobby Palmieri (CEO, Lilo Social) for an inside look at how the fastest Shopify brands break through plateaus—even with rising ad costs and attribution chaos.
Here’s what Bobby shares that nobody else is talking about:
Growth That Actually Moves the Needle: No more teams winging it. Every channel—creative, paid, email, ops—marches toward one profit-driven KPI.
Creatives That Convert: Forget copying competitors. Start with deep customer insights and emotional triggers for ads people can’t ignore.
AI for Speed (Not Magic): The edge? Using AI for instant research and creative volume, while others burn time on manual grunt work.
Real Attribution, Real Accountability: Ditch fuzzy ROAS figures. Nail tight exclusions, relentless A/B tests, and hold platforms to business results.
Landing Pages That Sell: Stop shipping generic templates. Lead with sharp messaging and offers tailored to each customer journey.
The brands winning now question everything, create fast feedback loops, and refuse to treat any channel like a “set and forget.” If the old playbook feels broken, Bobby’s approach unlocks your next level.
💡 Knowledge Drops of the Week 💡
🛒 Universal Cart: Shopify’s Commerce Revolution
Shopify’s Universal Cart is quietly rewriting the rules: now, shoppers can fill one cart with products from multiple brands—even beyond Shopify—all in a single, seamless flow. There’s no logging in, no juggling tabs, and zero friction.
What winning brands are seeing right now:
One Cart, One Journey: Forget abandoned checkouts—users glide from discovery to purchase in a streamlined experience you can’t afford to ignore.
Checkout Kit = Zero Worry: Compliance, payments, trust? Handled. You focus on scaling, while Shopify does the heavy lifting behind the scenes.
AI-Driven Personalization: Imagine smarter product suggestions and lightning-fast orders—no duct-taped integrations required.
Here’s the hard truth: sticking with outdated, siloed shopping carts means losing sales to brands already embracing unified commerce. Each week you wait is lost revenue.
👉 Your cart isn’t just for transactions. It’s the nerve center of loyalty and LTV. Don’t get left behind—upgrading is the move.
🚀 Side Hustles That Thrive in China’s Digital Economy
In China, side hustles aren’t just pocket change—they’re launching entire industries in the world’s fastest-moving digital marketplace. While gig work defines the West, Chinese entrepreneurs are flipping side projects into powerful, scalable businesses.
What sets China’s side hustlers apart right now?
Livestream Selling is Huge: Nearly a third of all e-commerce sales now come directly from live video streams, fueling real-time conversions, trust, and viral growth.
Platforms Like WeChat, Douyin, and Taobao = Zero Barriers: These super-apps let anyone start a marketing agency, affiliate channel, or service business overnight—no big upfront costs.
Digital-First Services Scale Fast: Tutoring, social media management, and virtual assistance reach millions instantly, designed to multiply—and not just trade time for pay.
Hard Truth: Those clinging to “old-school” side gigs are falling behind. Today’s winners leverage platforms, automation, and scalable offers for explosive growth.
The takeaway: Steal the playbook. Think platforms, speed, and scale—because the best side hustle isn’t just a grind. It’s an engine for serious revenue.
🔥 Tool of the Week 🔥
💰 Q4’s Easiest Win: The Traffic Goldmine You’re Missing
This one’s wild: nearly every Q4 holiday shopper will visit your site and then disappear. Ninety-eight percent—gone, with no chance to retarget, no email, no sale. Most people just shrug and accept it.
But Instant flips that story instantly (pun intended). You install it, and suddenly you’re catching 5–10x more anonymous visitors—feeding them straight into your email flows with zero friction. No popups. No need for dev. You don’t even have to mess with discounts.
Here’s why you just gotta try it before Q4 hits:
You get results day one. No waiting.
Holiday traffic is surging, but retargeting is tougher than ever. Every bounced visitor could have been a sale.
The tool’s scaling fast—from $18M fresh funding to big successful brands already raving about their ROI.
If printing money were as simple as clicking “install,” this is it…
Seriously—those lost visitors? They’re not coming back unless you make a move right now. Why wouldn’t you grab the revenue sitting right there?
👉 Fastlane readers get 50% off for Q4—but only if you’re quick.
🌏 Inspired to Build, Ready to Scale 🚀
That’s the theme this week—from Bobby’s full-funnel game plan, to Shopify’s frictionless universal cart, to China’s unstoppable side hustle energy. No matter if you’re running a brand, launching a fresh project, or scaling up a proven offer, there’s a play here for every operator.
Here’s the real cue: Momentum doesn’t care what stage you’re at. Big teams win with alignment, solo builders thrive by acting fast, and everyone benefits from fresh ideas. Borrow the best tactics, experiment, and let compounding wins do the heavy lifting.
So—what grabbed you this week? Tightening your funnel? Bringing your shop closer to frictionless checkout? Getting creative and borrowing what’s booming in China’s digital economy? Or maybe plugging Instant in and reclaiming the revenue most founders miss?
I’d love to hear what you’re testing, tweaking, or questioning on your end.
When you reply, you’re helping someone else see around their own corner—and who knows, your insight might be the spark they need.
⚡ Here’s to making inspired moves that matter—no matter which lane you’re in.
Steve
