Ecommerce Evolution

While I’ve spent most of my marketing career focused on driving traffic that converts, I know the importance of a good landing page and sales funnel.  A few months ago I met The Lady Boss. Kaelin Poulin and her husband Brandon when I spoke at an event in Atlanta.   I was struck by how good they’ve been at building funnels, building community, and selling products.  First a little about Brandon, then an overview of our discussion.   Brandon Poulin is CEO and Co-Founder of LadyBoss, the first global weight loss system and support community for women. With the help of his rockstar wife Kaelin and their leadership team, he has helped transform the lives of over 140,000 customers across the world. With its 4 unique product lines having accumulated tens of millions in revenue, Brandon and his team at LadyBoss are disrupting the weight loss industry by simply focusing on helping women lose weight while loving themselves again.   What we cover in this episode: How to approach building a new funnel? Keys to a succ

When I first met Charlie Youakim the CEO and co-founder or Sezzle I was surprised by a few things he told me: Millennials prefer to pay with debit cards Only 1 in 3 millennials have credit cards Not having credit cards impacts the way millennials shop online and most don’t like the hassle of applying for a card.   Some regulations put into place after the recession in 2008 like prohibiting credit card companies from marketing on college campuses and raising the legal age to sign up for a credit card to 21 instead of 18 have all played into this.     Sezzle has put together an interesting product that allows both merchants and customers to get what they want.  The interesting thing is that Sezzle didn’t start with their current offering. As a long-time entrepreneur I was fascinated to hear how Sezzle pivoted from their original idea (which just didn’t take off) to its current offering with great success.     How outerwear company 686 raised AOVs by 22% and increased total sales by 5% by offering paym

While exit pops, lead magnets, page takeovers are not necessarily new, I love the approach that Lindsey and her team at Hello Bar take to improve online conversions.   I met Lindsey through a good friend of mine and was immediately impressed with her approach. She’s strategic in her use of conversion tools.  Many merchants just sort of throw tools together and hope that something works. Anyone who’s listened to this podcast for any length of time knows that I’m a huge fan of good data and letting data speak.  Lindsey takes a data driven approach to creating better use of conversion tools and lead magnets.   Here’s a quick look at what we dive into on this call: Why customers actually prefer page takeovers to other exit pops (and the numbers back it up) Headline tips from marketing masters and why your current headlines might suck How Neil Patel gets more conversions on his properties Headline formulas to get more clicks, signups and sales Lead magnet ideas that drive conversion vs. lead magnets that

f you aren’t using YouTube at least for remarketing - you’re missing out.  With over 1 Billion monthly users and average session durations of over 40 min. (longer than what most people spend on Facebook in a day) YouTube has the attention of your prospects and customers.     Not only does YouTube have your prospects and customers eyes and ears, they also have a really attractive advertising offering - TrueView.  With the TrueView pre-roll (aka “before” videos) you as the advertiser only pays if someone actually watches your video or clicks through to your site. If someone skips before the :30 mark, you pay nothing.  Pretty cool.   Throw some really advanced audience targeting features on top of that and you have all kinds of options for both top and bottom of the funnel marketing on YouTube.     This episode is a recording of a talk I gave in San Diego at Social Media Marketing World.  In it I cover the following:   How your prospects are using YouTube and how that should influence your strategy The best

  Tracey Wallace has a unique perspective on eCommerce.  As Editor-in-Chief at BigCommerce she has the distinct privilege of rubbing shoulders with the top eCommerce brands on the BigCommerce platform.  And the BigCommerce is home to some pretty impressive eCommerce stores such as Skullcandy, Cargill, Sharp, Camelbak and more….   In this podcast we talk about some key eCommerce success factors and how some of the best and brightest store owners on BigCommerce are winning.  We dive into important topics such as:   Why you need to spend time perfecting your Product Detail Pages (PDPs).  As a reference see what companies like Bliss World Cosmetics, Kelty and Solo store have created amazing PDPs.   How to build community by leveraging micro influencers and by creating amazing content. Payments! How understanding Amazon Pay, Apple Pay and Consumer Financing can help you improve checkout and increase conversion rates.   Plus more!  

Even if you’re on another platform you have to pay attention to what Shopify is up to. Now with over 500,000 stores using the platform, when Shopify makes a shift the whole industry feels it.   I wanted to know the latest and greatest from Shopify so I invited on the King of Shopify himself, Kurt Elster on to the podcast.   In this episode we dig into some new releases and how they impact you including:   How Shopify Stacks up in the ecommerce platform ecosystem Shopify myths that need to be busted - such as “Shopify is bad for SEO.” Dynamic check out - Now that Amazon’s one click checkout patent has expired Shopify has built their own version...and it’s awesome. Now Fraud protection is built in and available for those who use Shopify pay. Want to get all of your marketing app data in one place?  You can with Shopify’s new Marketing dashboard. Kit how you can have a legitimate automated “bot” employee Thinking of replatforming?  What questions should you ask before you do? Plus more!

To scale an ecommerce business you can’t be a one-trick pony when it comes to traffic generation.  Pushing past 7 figures into 8 figures and beyond requires a focus on reaching customers at every stage of the shopping funnel.  Having a “hodge podge” mix of campaigns won’t cut it either. You need a team of campaigns that attract customers at different stages of the funnel and pulls them through to conversion.     Recently I spoke at a marketing conference in St. Louis on the topic of full funnel growth.  I outlined 7 keys for smart full funnel growth including:   Why You Need a Team of Campaigns - how getting your campaigns to work together is a lot like building a world-class basketball team.   Better measurement - when you apply the wrong measurements to your campaigns you stifle growth.  Bad data leads to killing successful campaigns prematurely or running weak campaigns for too long.   How Google Shopping, AdWords and YouTube work together - While Google Shopping is super competitive now, I remain extremel

I know what you're thinking…Ross and Rachel?!?  From Friends?  Well, no, but this is even better (for your business). It’s really Ross Johnson and Rachel Bell of Trill Media. One of the topics that I'm super interested in is influencer marketing.  What was made popular by the Kardashians is actually something that's been around forever - endorsements.  But with social influencers it's a whole new ball game and one you can do and succeed at…and sometimes for as little as $100 paid to an influencer.   Along with influencer marketing we also lay a foundation for growth using Instagram.  Many of the fastest growing eComm brands I know are investing both time and money into Instagram.   Here are some of the growth tips we tackle in this episode: - How to collaborate with influencers - How to partner with complementary brands on Insta - Tips for using giveaways to add engaged followers - How to use Story Takeovers  - How to be transformational rather than transactional  Check out the episode here…

  Even if you're not a numbers person, you need to understand the math behind your marketing.  The good news is that this is not nearly as complex as it seems.    This does NOT mean you need to be a math wiz kid, or a coder, or a master of analytics.  But you do need to know the story your data is telling you.     Chris Mercer (known mostly as Mercer) is one of the smartest analytics guys I know.  But more than just understanding the technical side of analytics, Mercer knows how to find actionable data.   That's what understanding the math behind your marketing is all about…finding what needs to be fixed or improved to help you grow.     In this episode we discuss: - Go to Google Analytics with a specific question in mind.  This is important.  Most people pop open their Google Analytics account and just wander around.  You need to go to the data asking a specific question.   - Learn to ask good questions of your data.  Often you don't take the right action, because you aren't asking the right questions. - Why

  For most marketers, Facebook Messenger is the ultimate black box.  What is it really?  How are customers using it?  What's a marketer to do with it?  These are a few of the many important questions that marketers may have a hard time answering.     The temptation for some marketers is to treat Messenger marketing like they would email marketing.  Big mistake.  It's a very different platform at a very different stage of maturity compared to email.     Then there's the question of chatbots…what are they?  How can we use them without being super creepy?   I had the perfect guest for this Episode - Dan Gamito of ManyChat.  ManyChat is leading the charge in a lot of ways when it comes to Messenger Marketing and the use of chatbots.  In this episode Dan does an amazing job of demystifying and educating.  Here's a look at what we cover:   - Understanding tribal mentalities on Facebook and how that influences Messenger - Understanding how consumers are using Messenger and, more importantly for this discussion, how

I've been looking forward to this interview for months.  I met Bryant Garvin at Ezra Firestone's Blue Ribbon Mastermind in Nashville back in January.  Hearing the details of how Bryant and team leveraged YouTube (as well as other channels) to achieve massive scale at incredible speed blew me away.  I knew immediately I wanted to have him on the podcast.     Purple Mattress has grown from obscurity to being one of the most popular mattress-in-a-box offerings in just a few short years.  In 2017 they posted annual revenues in excess of $187 million.   Purple Mattress was largely made famous because of a brilliant video made in partnership with the Harmon Brothers staring Goldilocks and featuring the "broken egg test."  It's an amazing example of demonstrating the uniqueness of a product in a fresh, creative way.     Here's a quick look at what we cover on this episode…   - How to hook someone properly in the first 5 seconds of a YouTube video ad - Surprising test results - even really smart people are wrong half

Today I’m excited to welcome back my business partner and the co-founder of OMG Commerce - Chris Brewer.  Chris Brewer is a seasoned entrepreneur who’s successfully started and sold multiple businesses in the advertising and marketing space.  In 2010 he and I started OMG Commerce. Since then we’ve consulted with, partnered with and provided agency services for HUNDREDS of eCommerce stores.  We’ve seen nearly everything - the good, the bad, and the ugly of eCommerce.  In this episode, we break down the biggest X Factors of success from our perspective as we’ve observed a lot of winners and a lot of, um….not so much winners.  Hopefully, you have as much fun listening as we did recording this...  Here’s a quick look at what we cover:  The importance of Lifetime Value of a Customer (LTV) and how to    measure it and cultivate it. Why businesses that are too “romantic” about their own ideas are destined to struggle. How the best eCommerce stores think about and leverage Amazon Pop Quiz - Chris lays out his top eC

Amazon truly is a jungle.  Legitimate competitors are chomping at your heels vying for your rankings and clicks.  Unscrupulous and even fraudulent competitors are wreaking havoc and forcing a “race to the bottom” with product prices.     In this episode I interview John Bullard Sr.  John has a unique perspective on Amazon.  First off, he’s a successful seller with a $3 million per year private label Amazon business.  He also has 30 years of experience as a retail wholesaler.  On top of that, he owns and operates a fulfillment center.  Finally, he’s the host of Pro Seller Talk a paid community bringing insights and training to Amazon sellers.     Here’s a quick look at what we cover as John and I get “in the trenches”... Top Amazon Trends for 2018  - including the end of retail arbitrage Brand registry and brand gating - what you need to know How to diversify using Walmart marketplace - plus a couple of little known functionality on Walmart you have to know about to be successful.   The need for multiple stre

Logan Christopher doesn’t do anything halfway.  He’s one entrepreneur you likely wouldn’t want to challenge in a test of strength.  Logan is thin but deceptively strong.  He’s deadlifted 505 lbs, rack pulled 1,000 lbs.  In his spare time, he juggles flaming kettlebells and pulls fire trucks with his hair.  Not making this up.  Check out the details at legendarystrength.com or visit his YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/LegendaryStrength).     While this is impressive and interesting, this is not why I had Logan on the show.  He’s also a  successful eCommerce store owner.  Like most successful store owners, Logan is doing a lot of things right. I think you’ll find this talk inspirational and educational.     Here’s a quick look at what we cover:   - How info marketing style content can drive traffic and sales - How daily emailing can still work in 2018 - Conversion improvements by lining up with charity - Affiliate marketing for rapid growth - How long form sales pages can work for eCommerce - Bene

Today we take a deep dive into Amazon from two unique perspectives - from that of a very successful seller and that of an Amazon Ad Specialist.     As we close out 2017 we do so with two record sales days under our belts.  Black Friday and Cyber Monday both set online sales records.  Amazon was a big driver of that online growth.  All signs point to continued growth into 2018.  In this episode, we'll outline how you can get the most from Amazon in the coming months.     First a little about our guests…   Brandon Andrews is a successful Amazon seller and now the co-founder of Freedom Shark, providing training to up-and-coming Amazon sellers.  Chris Tyler is an SEO Specialist turned Amazon Ad expert.  Currently, he manages successful Amazon Ad campaigns for large and smaller sellers alike and is part of our team here at OMG Commerce     Here are a few things we cover in this episode: - Takeaways from Black Friday and Cyber Monday and how to prepare for next year's holiday sales - The 1-2 things likely holding y

Few people know Facebook advertising like Ralph Burns and his team at Dominate Web Media.  In this interview we take a look at the latest features, strategies and tactics working for eCommerce merchants on Facebook.   This episode is rich in content and contains some real Facebook gold.  Here’s a look at what we cover:   - Top misconceptions regarding Facebook ads that are holding you back - Top targeting methods you should be using - Ralph’s 3-Step video marketing formula - Understanding the Facebook algorithm and how it impacts your ad performance - Competitive Remarketing - now you can target people on Facebook who have purchased similar product to what you sell. - Changes likely on the horizon for Facebook ads

In 2009 Chegg was one of the leaders in the online college textbook market.  They offered college students the ability to rent textbooks online for a fraction of what they could pay at the campus bookstore.  Word of mouth from delighted students and strong online marketing efforts fueled rapid growth…Then they had an unwelcome competitor enter the ring - AMAZON.     Most companies would shrink in terror, get angry, cry about the world being unfair and potentially leave the space altogether.  Chegg had been anticipating this move by Amazon and had been working feverishly for months to try and prepare.  In this podcast, I interview John Fillmore, Chief Business Officer for Chegg.com.  We dive deep into how they responded initially to Amazon and how they continue to innovate and stay relevant.     Chegg’s best move (and they’ve had a LOT of great moves) was understanding that their best asset was not an offer on cheap textbooks.  It wasn’t their website.  It wasn’t even their SEO value (that was immense at that

  Few people have mastered social media marketing like Michael Stelzner.  Michael is the founder of Social Media Examiner, one of the most visited social media marketing websites on the planet.  He’s also the host of the Social Media Marketing podcast.  He started the podcast in 2012 and has since racked up over 12 million downloads.     Michael and team also run the Social Media Marketing World - featuring some of the top social media marketers sharing their best stuff.  I’m super excited about the 2018 event - mainly because I’ll be sharing a stage with Michael - talking YouTube Remarking.  Want to join me?  Learn More.     In this episode, I wanted to pick Michael’s brain on how he and his team approach content.  I want you to be able to capitalize and learn from Michael’s success.     Here's a glimpse of what we cover:   - Keys to success with Facebook Live & Video marketing in general - How his new behind-the-scenes shows called the “Journey” are racking up 10’s of thousands of views on Facebook and

This is part of the "how I did it" series where we interview successful eCommerce entrepreneurs and dig into the tactics and strategies that propelled them ahead of the pack.  This interview with Jared Mitchell, Co-Founder of Skincare by Alana, is a great example of building a community, testing everything, and diversifying traffic.     Jared and Alana's story is pretty awesome. Jared went from a bass player with a record deal that fell through to self-employed deck builder to helping his wife launch an online skincare company.  Jared took some SEO knowledge and combined it with Alana’s passion and as an esthetician to build a budding eCommerce skincare store.   We dig into some really interesting stuff in this episode including:   - Jared’s top 4 Conversion hacks over the last 12 months - A shipping offer test with surprising results - Using Quizzes & Surveys for better conversions (this was an eye-opener for me) - How to grow a new brand piggybacking on existing brands - Jared’s top traffic sources - Us

This is Jeff Bezos’ world…we’re just living in it.  Or at least, that’s how it feels for an eCommerce merchant.  It’s hard to overstate the continued growth, innovation, and reach of Amazon.  With 214 distribution centers and growing.  Sales growing at 20-30% per year.  Forays into apparel, electronics (Kindle and the Echo family of products), batteries, and several other categories.  It’s hard not to look at Amazon with awe and wonder.  So, what's a merchant to do in light of Amazon's dominance?  Is Amazon friend or foe, or somewhere in between?   Andrew Youderian knows the world of independent eCommerce store owners better than arguably anyone on the planet.  He started the eCommerce Fuel podcast in 2014 and the eCommerce Fuel private forum shortly thereafter.  He’s bought, grown and sold several eCommerce businesses and he interacts regularly with top independent merchants on a monthly basis.  When it comes to eCommerce Andrew has done and seen it all.   In this episode, we look at how you as a merchant ca