Here’s what my AI advent challenge taught me

In December, I ran a 12-day AI challenge for small business owners.

One short video a day, each one teaching a different AI tool or technique they could actually use in their business.

I was nervous about it. Not because I doubted the content, but because:

• December is busy. Would anyone be interested?
• I had heard that people weren’t engaging with challenges anymore.
• I’m precious about my email open rates and didn’t want them to tank!

I’ve worked hard to build a list of people who actually want to hear from me. The thought of appearing in inboxes every single day during the busiest, most cluttered time of year? I was genuinely worried I’d tank my stats and annoy people into unsubscribing.

Here’s what actually happened, and what I’d tell anyone thinking of running something similar in 2026.

The format

Each day had one task. Not “here’s everything you need to know about AI” but “today, you’re going to use Perplexity to research a potential client.” Specific. Achievable. Done in under 10 minutes.

The videos were short, unscripted, and deliberately imperfect. I showed myself working through things live, mistakes included. No polished production, just me demonstrating something useful like I was showing a mate.

People had to sign up to access it, but it was completely free. I wanted people who genuinely wanted to learn, not people who’d grabbed a freebie and forgotten about it.

The incentives

I thought long and hard about what content I’d actually engaged with in the last year. I realised the time limited offers definitely got my attention (rather than being saved till later). But I didn’t want people to feel overly rushed so decided to give a full week after the last video to be able to catch up. 

I also ‘hid’ a secret word in each video. Submitting a form with all the correct words entered you in a draw to win a power hour. 

The numbers

Here’s what I expected:

Open rates would plummet as the series went on. People would get email fatigue. December is chaos, everyone’s drowning in Christmas promotions, and surely nobody wants another daily email cluttering up their inbox.

Here’s what actually happened:

The average open rate across the 12 days was around 75%. Some days hit over 80%.
For context, I usually sit around 70% open rates on my regular emails, which I’m already chuffed about (industry average is closer to 20%). So not only did daily emails not hurt my stats, they actually performed better than my normal sends.

I think Day 1 was lower because that was the big launch email to my whole list. Once people had opted in and were receiving the daily content, engagement stayed remarkably consistent.

Unsubscribes? Basically zero across the whole series.

The list actually grew during the 12 days. I started with around 106 people on the advent list and finished with 160. People were sharing it and others were joining mid-way through.

Why I think it worked

Every email had a task, not just information. People weren’t passively consuming content. They were doing something. “Today you’re going to create a lead magnet using this tool.” “Today you’re going to turn a meeting transcript into a client summary.” The task focus meant each email had a clear purpose, and people could see immediate results from opening it.

Short beats long, every time. No video was longer than 10 minutes. Most were closer to 5. That’s achievable. People watched them during their morning coffee, on their lunch break, between meetings. A 45-minute masterclass would have sat unwatched. Five minutes? Easy.

The “busy time of year” thing worked in my favour. December is hectic, yes. But it’s also when people are winding down, reflecting on the year, thinking about what they want to do differently. A short, practical email that helped them tick something off felt like a gift, not an intrusion.

Time limited. People I spoke to kept saying the were keeping on top of it because they knew it was time limited availability. 

Make it fun! The secret words were honestly a pain in the backside. One of the words appeared twice because I got confused and on more than one occaision I had to rerecord the video to add the secret word in. BUT it definitely helped some people to watch all the content so I’m taking that as an overall win.

Showing up daily built momentum. Instead of one email that people might forget about, I was a regular presence. The daily rhythm created a habit. People expected me in their inbox and actually looked forward to it.

What people said

I asked for feedback afterwards. Some of it surprised me.

“Doing things in bite-sized chunks just works for my ADHD brain.”

I hadn’t set out to create ADHD-friendly content, but this came up multiple times. Short, structured, daily tasks suit a lot of people who’ve given up on traditional courses that sit untouched for months.

“I love the fact that she works through things live so we can see that it’s really as simple as she says.”

The unpolished approach built trust. When people see you make a mistake and fix it, they believe they can do it too.

“It’s also been really helpful for just reminding me AI exists.”

This one’s underrated. Sometimes the biggest value isn’t teaching something new. It’s nudging people to actually use what they already have access to.

“Yours is STILL the only newsletter I ALWAYS open and read.”

That one made my day.

What I’d do differently

Sort the video quality from day one. A couple of people mentioned occasional blurriness. I was recording on my laptop and didn’t always check. Lesson learned.

Explain how to access subtitles. Someone specifically requested them for accessibility and they were there all along but they didn’t see them. Should have made this clear from the start.

Be clearer about tool differences. One person wanted more explanation of how ChatGPT, Claude, and others compare. I touched on it but could have been more explicit.

Would I do it again?

I already have! Off the back of the advent, I launched Jumpstart January, a 15-day follow-up going deeper with the tools. The people who’d done December were ready and bought it.

If you’re thinking about running a challenge in 2026, here’s what I’d tell suggest:

• Make each day task-focused. Not “learn about X” but “do X today.” Give people something concrete to achieve.
• Keep it shorter than you think. If you’re wondering whether your content is too brief, it probably isn’t. People are busy. Respect that.
• Don’t be afraid of daily emails. If what you’re sending is genuinely useful, people won’t unsubscribe. They’ll look forward to hearing from you.
• Show up imperfectly. Polished is overrated. 

I hope this is useful… I nearly didn’t do the challenge but I’m so glad I did so if you are on the fence then maybe this is the sign you needed.