📜the little-known secret to Q4 sales

Hey! It’s Dr. Marcella Wilson!

In today’s issue:

• 3 reasons why your holiday buyers are slipping away already

• Why Labor Day shoppers (and Q4 buyers) can’t find you in AI search yet — and why that’s urgent now.

• The shocking way your competitors are teaching AI to skip you

Class starts next week and this is your last opportunity to join “Show Up in AI Search” before doors close. Secure your spot today and get personal guidance to make your site visible in AI search just in time for Q4.

👉Enroll NOW

PROMPT OF THE WEEK

Create Labor Day Sales Posts in Minutes

Haven’t got your Labor Days sales and promos ready yet? Try this prompt…

“Write 3 social media posts for a Labor Day promotion. Each post should:
– Highlight a [percentage or dollar amount] discount on [your product/service]
– Use a fun, patriotic or back-to-school theme
– End with a strong call-to-action (CTA) to shop now”

Bonus: Ask ChatGPT to “make one Instagram Story, one Facebook post, and one email subject line” to get platform-specific results.

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BEYOND THE SCROLL

Why Labor Day Shoppers Can’t See You

Labor Day is this weekend!  Are you ready for the sales that are (hopefully) about to come your way?  Well, I just want to reassure you that consumers are hunting for deals as Labor Day sales heat up.  And guess what, more and more shoppers are starting online. 

Here are some quick stats to put things in perspective (and to get you excited!!!)

• Labor Day shopping continues to grow because last year, 23% of U.S. adults planned to shop Labor Day promotions.  That’s up from 17% the prior year.

• More Labor Day shopping will occur online.  Only 35% of shoppers will shop in-store only, down from 40% last year.

• Labor Day shoppers are most interested in buying apparel (30%), followed by electronics and tech (22%) and furniture, mattresses, or home goods (17%).

Meanwhile, e-commerce is surging. In Q2 2025, U.S. e‑commerce sales hit nearly $304 billion which represents a 5.3% increase year-over-year.  And now e-commerce sales make up over 16% of all retail purchases.  That means more eyeballs, more carts, more opportunities for you - but only if AI can find you first.

That’s why now, during Labor Day buzz, is the best time to make sure AI actually sees and understands your site. It’s more than just short-term gains.  Get visible now, and you’ll be front and center going into Q4.

Because I want you to be sure of one thing.  Creating Labor Day sales, promotions and social media posts for your products and services is fun.  It’s what you should be doing in your business. But remember that even the best promo copy won’t move the needle if AI search can’t actually find your website when shoppers ask for deals.

This is the hidden gap most business owners miss:

• They run great seasonal sales.

• They post on social media.

• But when customers ask AI tools like ChatGPT or Perplexity “Where’s the best Labor Day deal on [product]?” … their site doesn’t appear.

3 Things to Know About AI Search and Holiday Sales

1. Labor Day sets the tone for Q4
   Labor Day isn’t just a weekend of sales.  It’s the kickoff for holiday shopping behavior. Consumers and early deal-hunters who buy now are the same ones who will look for deals during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. If your site isn’t visible in AI search today, you’ll also be invisible when the big spending wave hits.

2. AI is the new shopping assistant
   More shoppers are asking ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google’s AI results for Labor Days sales recommendations.  They are asking things like: “What are the best Labor Day furniture deals near me?” or “Which brands are running back-to-school discounts?” If your site isn’t structured for AI readability, it simply won’t appear in these answers—even if you have a killer deal. 

3. AI visibility compounds over time
   Optimizing now doesn’t just help with Labor Day. Once AI bots can read and understand your products and services, your visibility continues to grow. The earlier you “train” the AI to recognize your site, the more likely it is to recommend you for Q4, when spending skyrockets. So learn how to show up in AI search results now, and you’ll be on AI’s radar heading into Q4.

Timing Matters

That’s why the timing matters so much. Labor Day isn’t just a holiday weekend. It’s not just the kick off to Fall or when kids go back to school.  It’s the start of how shoppers will spend for the rest of the year. And if you're not showing up in AI search today, you’ll be skipped over when the bigger Q4 sales wave hits. 

But the good news? 

You don’t need to guess. With the right framework, you can make your site readable to AI, train the bots to recognize your offers, and get recommended when buyers are searching. Start now, and you’ll set yourself up for visibility all season long.

SCROLL-WORTHY TAKEAWAY

Q4 is the biggest sales quarter of the year and it’s just around the corner. Christmas will be here before you know it.

If your site isn’t AI-visible right now, here’s what you’re risking:

1. Lost holiday buyers – Customers are already asking AI tools for recommendations. If you’re not included, they’ll never even know you exist.
   

2. Competitor advantage – Every week you delay, AI tools collect more data from other sites (not yours). That compounds over time.
   

3. Missed momentum – Getting optimized now means AI sees and remembers you when the real holiday rush begins.

BEHIND THE PROMPT

Fix This Before Q4

Labor Day is here and it’s more than a weekend of discounts. Last year, nearly a quarter of U.S. adults shopped Labor Day sales. That same wave repeats every fall and explodes into Q4.

If AI can’t “see” your site, you’re missing sales today and setting yourself up for disappointment in November.

That’s why I created the Show Up in AI Search Beta. Inside, you’ll:

• Get my step-by-step process to show up in AI search results.
  .

• Get direct, personalized support from me in this small beta group
  

• Be ready for Q4 holiday shoppers.
  

👉 Enrollment closes soon.  Save Your Spot in Show Up in AI Search

SCROLL TO THE END

Here’s how I can help you get seen in AI search results:

1. Free Download: What your site needs to be seen → AI Visibility Checklist

2. Replay: Invisible No More: How to Show Up in AI Search webinar → Watch now if you missed it

3. You’ve spent $27 on dumber things (don’t worry, me too 🤷🏽‍♀️). Why not spend it on something that makes your content easier to sell? → Grab my Seen and Sold Kit

See ya next week!

Dr. Marcella Wilson

P.S. - Since AI handled half my workload, I finally caught up on Stranger Things (I know, I’m late 😅). Still not sure how those kids are surviving all that chaos without adult supervision, but I was glued to the screen anyway.