Podcast Summary: The Ops Experts Club Podcast

Episode 91: Bundles, Bonuses, and Benevolence: Holiday Ops Playbook
Date: December 4, 2025
Hosts: Aaron, Taryn, and Savannah (The Collab Team)

Episode Overview

This episode of The Ops Experts Club Podcast dives into the operations playbook for end-of-year holiday planning in seven- and eight-figure private businesses. Aaron and Taryn (with Savannah chiming in) discuss practical and creative strategies for holiday bundling, team appreciation, tax planning, and fostering a benevolent company culture. Their conversation blends detailed operational advice with lighthearted banter and real-life examples from supporting high-profile entrepreneurs.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Favorite Holidays: Icebreakers & Team Dynamics

• The discussion opens with ribbing between co-hosts about nicknames and favorite holidays, setting a casual, humorous tone.
  • Taryn prefers the Fourth of July:
    “You know, Fourth of July is pretty fun because nobody judges how many hot dogs I eat that day.” (02:23, C)
  • Aaron likes Thanksgiving:
    “There’s no pressure with gifts. I just get to show up, have some good food, like taking some time with family and that’s it.” (03:01, B)
• Takeaway: Recognizing what your team values about holidays can help when planning appreciation initiatives.

2. Virtual Holiday Parties for Distributed Teams

[04:00 - 05:15]

• Many teams are now remote or spread across time zones.
• Taryn’s example:
  An owner sent DoorDash gift cards to the whole team; everyone Doordashed a meal for a virtual party. They shared food, played games, wore festive sweaters, and didn’t talk about work.
  • “They just had fun and had some holiday games and cheers and... getting together and funny sweaters and eating a meal paid for by the company.” (04:29, C)
• Actionable Tip: Send gift cards for a shared experience, prioritize non-work connection, and let people expense their own preferences.

3. Year-End Money Moves: Bundles, Write-offs & Tax Planning

[05:16 - 08:05]

• Aaron stresses leveraging Q4 for both revenue and responsible tax planning.
  • “Quarter four is the time to make some investments ... are there ways you could be benevolent with your team, you know, that would make income drop a little bit... I just want to pay as little taxes as I have to pay.” (05:16, B)
• Advice:
  • Identify any equipment, resources, or services to invest in before year-end to reduce taxable income.
  • Consider gifting or bonus programs as a dual-purpose: team appreciation and reducing tax liabilities.
• For Product/Service Companies:
  Run Q4 bundles or special offers (even if primarily service-based).
  • “Maybe ways that you can bring up some revenue in non-traditional ways for your business.” (07:30, D)
  • Last year, their mostly service-based team bundled some ancillary products for Black Friday/Cyber Monday and had surprising success.

4. Creative Gifting & Organic Growth

[07:36 - 09:17]

• Platform Innovation Example:
  Kajabi now lets users gift a course/product. This opens up new organic revenue streams—empower your buyers to gift subscriptions or courses to friends/family at a reduced rate.
  • “I wonder if we could empower buyers... to give a gift to someone for a reduced payment... it’s like a very subtle organic launch.” (08:14, D)
• Playbook Tip: Send coupons to existing customers to share as gifts, incentivizing new referrals and sales.
• Quote: “That’d be really cool to do with… email your buyers a coupon to give to their friends and family.” (09:09, C)

5. Matching & Team Benevolence

[09:18 - 10:39]

• Encourage generosity internally by matching employee donations for causes or team members in tough situations.
  • “Maybe taking a poll with your people of what would you... like us to give to this at the end of the year... whatever they’re willing to donate towards it, we’re willing to match it.” (09:56, D)
• Actionable Idea:
  Poll employees for a shortlist of charities/causes, then match contributions as a company to increase impact and morale.

6. The Gift of Time

[10:45 - 14:53]

• “The gift of time is really appreciated by people. Give people some time off during the holidays... That time together with the people they love is what’s really gonna make a difference.” (10:47, C)
• Concrete suggestion: Extra paid time off between Christmas Eve and January 2nd.
  • “I saw it once... gave people Christmas Eve through January 2nd off... gave them that whole week.” (11:50, C)
• Takeaway: More valuable than money to many; consider flexible schedules and bonus time as a high-impact Q4 benefit.

7. Appreciation on a Budget

[16:04]

• Not every gesture needs to be expensive. Thoughtful gifts (like a bottle of wine and a handwritten note) leave a big impression.
  • “Most people just want to be appreciated, too. It’s not necessarily like you have to spend $500 on them, but you just send them a bottle of wine and a note…” (16:04, C)
• Actionable Tip: Personal gestures and acknowledgement count for more than flashy or generic gifts.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Taryn on food and fun:
  “Fourth of July is pretty fun because nobody judges how many hot dogs I eat that day.” (02:23, C)
• Aaron on team celebrations:
  “They just had fun and had some holiday games and cheers ... getting together and funny sweaters and eating a meal paid for by the company.” (04:29, C)
• On taxes and generosity:
  “I’m not opposed to taxes. I just want to pay as little taxes as I have to pay. And I’d rather put money into the business if I can for the sake of taxable income.” (05:16, B)
• On gifting and organic launches:
  “If you’ve experienced some kind of life that’s come to you from this course... we'd love to allow you to gift this to a friend for this reduced amount ... it’s a very subtle organic launch.” (08:14, D)
• On time off:
  “The gift of time is really appreciated by people... that time together with the people they love is what’s really gonna make a difference.” (10:47, C)
• On appreciation:
  “It’s not necessarily like you have to spend $500 on them, but you just send them bottle of wine and a note, you know, say hope you and your wife have a great holiday. Enjoy this with a nice dinner like that goes a long way.” (16:04, C)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:49 - 03:27: Holiday preferences & importance of understanding team values
• 04:00 - 05:15: Virtual holiday party example & making remote teams feel included
• 05:16 - 08:05: End-of-year purchases, tax tips, and holiday bundles
• 07:36 - 09:17: Gifting digital products, referral offers, and organic launch ideas
• 09:18 - 10:39: Company donation matching and benevolence programs
• 10:45 - 14:53: The value of giving the gift of time (paid time off)
• 16:04: Low-cost, high-impact appreciation gifts

Concluding Notes

Impactful Themes:

• The holidays provide not only a chance to drive revenue (bundles, offers) but—more importantly—an opportunity to deepen team connection, express genuine appreciation, and operate with a spirit of generosity.
• Smart operational leaders prep for year-end both from a compliance and culture standpoint.

Final Host Banter:
The episode wraps with the hosts joking about personal holiday traditions and appreciating the lighter side of running operations in entrepreneurial companies.

This episode is packed with actionable ideas and real-world anecdotes for business owners looking to close the year with impact—on their bottom line and their people.