Podcast Summary: SPECIAL SERIES ==> STOP Believing Email HOT Takes <== | BATHROOM Break #85

Podcast: Do This, NOT That: Marketing Tips with Jay Schwedelson
Host: Guru Media Hub
Guests: Jay Schwedelson (Do This, NOT That) & Daniel Murray (The Marketing Millennials)
Date: December 8, 2025

Episode Overview

This “Bathroom Break” special series episode is a fun, rapid-fire collaboration between Jay Schwedelson (of the Do This, NOT That podcast) and Daniel Murray (of The Marketing Millennials), focusing on debunking popular email marketing myths (“hot takes”) and sharing actionable, up-to-date strategies for 2026. In an informal, conversational style, the hosts each bring their most important lessons learned from the past year in email marketing, mixing in personal banter and practical tips that are meaningful regardless of your marketing niche.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

December Traditions & Work-Life Balance

• Daniel opens with a lighthearted discussion about December routines. Both he and Jay talk about the importance of family trips and taking time off during the holiday season to recharge and make memories.
  • Daniel: “It's hard being married to a person in E-Com because this is like the peak… for E Comm and then it's not the peak time for B2B… figuring out what went right, what didn’t and preparing for 2026.” (01:59)
  • Jay: “Once a year, at least for a week, you lock in and you go do something.” (01:11)

Top 5 Email Marketing Lessons for 2025–2026

1. Use Conversational, Easy-to-Reply CTAs

• Daniel underscores the value of encouraging replies in every email—with simple, approachable questions:
  • “I always add CTAs in the top… bottom… middle of the email. I want people to have conversations. I don’t make it too deep… I want a low lift response, but I want people to respond.” (03:18)
  • Benefits: Improves relationships, list health, open rates, deliverability.

2. Ditch the Myth of the "Best Day and Time"

• Jay emphatically rejects the idea of a single optimal send time as outdated:
  • “Nobody should have their best day and time to send out an email. I think that is out the window and it’s a misleading statistic... What you should be thinking about is your weekly aggregate unique number of humans that are opening and clicking and interacting with your emails.” (04:07)
  • Tip: Send at varied times to reach different audience segments.

3. Verified Subscriber Metrics: ICP-Focused Tracking

• Daniel introduces the concept of verified subscriber metrics:
  • “We do verified subscriber and open rates... people in [our] ICP that click the emails, that open the emails... we want to know truly in ICP what they like and what they don’t like.” (05:11)
  • Insight: Separate list-wide stats from key, high-value audience segments.

4. Domain Frequency Reports: Uncover Deliverability Issues & Opportunities

• Jay recommends regularly reviewing domain-level data:
  • “Take your database and run a report by domain… you’ll be shocked. You’re going to see a boatload of people at [certain companies]. This can be a boat anchor in your email deliverability, which is bad… or it can be an opportunity.” (06:07)
  • Action: Clear stale/bad domains, target clusters from key companies.

5. Repurpose Long-Form Content with AI

• Daniel urges using AI to turn long-form content (talks, webinars, podcasts) into email-ready material:
  • “Repurpose that talk you gave, that webinar you did, that podcast... break down the tactics… AI help[s] find the key takeaways.” (07:21)
  • Tip: Send bite-sized versions, and link back to the source content.

Email Metrics: What Still Matters (and What Doesn’t)

• Jay: Pushes back on industry claims that open rates and pre-headers are now “meaningless.”
  • “Open rates still matter. I don’t care what anybody says. I don’t care about bots, I don’t care about Apple. Open rates matter. Anybody that says otherwise is a dork.” (08:23)
  • “Pre-headers still matter... Whenever people say things don’t matter, they do matter and they’re losers and they have no life.” (08:23)
• Daniel: Counterpoint on the trend of rage-bait email takes:
  • “I think people just say that to rage bait people and get clicks. It’s like ‘email’s dead,’ ‘don’t care about open rates.’ These things matter…” (08:58)
  • “When in doubt, kick them out [of your list].” (09:29)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Daniel on conversation CTAs:
  “I want people to have conversations. I also think it helps my email list grow, get more opens… deliverability stay consistent. Especially in the age of AI.” (03:18)

• Jay on myths:
  “The idea of having your best day and time is absolute garbage… Send them out at different times.” (04:07)

• Jay on data hygiene:
  “Get them out of there. But the opportunity side is... We have 60 people at Ford Motor Company… run a domain frequency report, it will uncover a lot of issues and opportunities.” (06:07)

• Jay’s hallmark bluntness:
  “Whenever people say things don’t matter, they do matter and they’re losers and they have no life.” (08:23)

[09:32–11:44] Lighthearted Banter: Snow, Miami Culture & Childhood Memories

• The hosts share stories about their first experiences with snow, contrasting Californians’ and Floridians’ lack of exposure to real winter with Midwest and East Coast traditions.
  • “It’s more sandcastles when you’re from, like, a beach city than snowman.” (10:35)
  • Jay teases Daniel about shoveling snow, and they riff on “Frozen” references.

Notable Timestamps

• [03:04] — Daniel’s lesson on conversational CTAs
• [04:07] — Jay’s breakdown of the “best time to send” myth
• [05:11] — Daniel on verified subscriber metrics
• [06:07] — Jay’s actionable domain frequency advice
• [07:21] — Repurposing long-form content with AI
• [08:23] — Jay on open rates and pre-headers
• [09:29] — Daniel on list hygiene: “When in doubt, kick them out”
• [09:32–11:44] — Banter on snow, sandcastles, and cultural differences

Tone & Style

The episode is brisk, practical, and lighthearted—full of banter, a touch of sarcasm (“anyone who says open rates don’t matter is a dork”), and a no-nonsense refusal to follow superficial marketing trends.

Actionable Takeaways

• Invite easy replies to encourage engagement and maintain list health.
• Use varied timing for email sends—focus on aggregate unique engagement, not arbitrary “best times.”
• Segment your metrics by verified, ICP-aligned subscribers to understand your true reach and resonance.
• Regularly run domain reports on your database for both hygiene and opportunity.
• Leverage AI to efficiently repurpose deep-dive content for your email programming.
• Ignore knee-jerk hot takes on metrics—open rates and pre-headers still matter in performance analysis.

For listeners and doers:
Expect quick, tangible tips you can implement—even if you’re listening while on a bathroom break. The banter between Jay and Daniel ensures even technical insights are delivered with a smile.