This week’s pattern: fake “new year promotion” partnership offers, exploiting the general planning and goal-setting energy of January to pitch a too-good marketing opportunity.
The setup
Several sellers reported messages this week from accounts offering to include their shop in a “2026 best Etsy shops” roundup, a curated New Year gift guide, or a similar promotional feature, requesting payment or free product in exchange for placement. This follows a similar pattern to the fake gift-guide scam we covered back in October, adapted to January’s specific framing.
Why the New Year angle works
Sellers are actively thinking about growth and fresh starts for the year ahead right now, making an offer framed around New Year visibility and promotion particularly well-timed to catch someone open to new marketing opportunities they might otherwise question more skeptically.
Red flags, largely consistent with what we’ve flagged before
Requests for payment specifically to guarantee placement, vague or unverifiable details about the supposed publication’s actual audience or track record, and pressure to respond quickly citing limited spots. If you saw our October coverage of the holiday gift-guide version of this scam, this is largely the same pattern with new seasonal framing.
How to evaluate a real opportunity versus this pattern
The same standard applies as before: legitimate promotional partnerships have a verifiable track record you can check independently, not just the pitching account’s own claims. Be especially wary of anything requiring payment or free product before any real value has been demonstrated.
What to do if you’re genuinely interested in promotional opportunities this year
Rather than waiting for these offers to arrive unsolicited, consider proactively researching and reaching out to verified, established platforms or local media if broader promotion is a genuine goal for your shop this year. Initiating contact with a vetted opportunity remains safer than responding to an unsolicited pitch.
The pattern worth remembering
As we’ve said with every seasonal variant of this scam throughout the year, it attaches itself to whatever sellers are genuinely hoping for at a given moment. January’s version leans on New Year growth ambitions specifically. The defense doesn’t change: verify independently, and treat any payment-for-placement request as a serious warning sign.
