Podcasts about AOV

Mark Young is the CEO of Ryze Agency, where he helps brands scale through world-class marketing, sharp product positioning, and operational clarity. Mark has built multiple successful businesses and has become a trusted advisor for founders looking to break through plateaus and expand into new markets.  He has recently published a series of 5 books titled the Ecommerce Brand Guide to the Galaxy with Benjamin Hardy.Highlight Bullets> Here's a glimpse of what you would learn…. Differences between selling on Amazon and Shopify, focusing on intent-based versus cold traffic marketing.Common misconceptions brands have about marketing metrics, particularly the focus on ROAS.Importance of understanding customer acquisition cost (CAC), lifetime value (LTV), and average order value (AOV) for sustainable growth.Strategies for increasing average order value through upsells and bundles.The significance of customer experience and retention marketing on Shopify compared to Amazon.The role of storytelling and brand identity in engaging customers on Shopify.Examples of successful and unsuccessful brand strategies in e-commerce.Actionable takeaways for brands looking to scale on Shopify.The impact of brand loyalty and customer relationships on long-term success.Recommendations for influential books and tools in the e-commerce space.In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley speaks with Mark Young, CEO of Ryze Agency, about scaling DTC brands on Shopify. Mark explains the fundamental differences between Amazon's intent-based selling and Shopify's cold traffic environment, emphasizing the need for brand storytelling. He challenges the common obsession with ROAS, introducing the "holy trinity" of metrics: Customer Acquisition Cost, Lifetime Value, and Average Order Value. Mark also highlights the importance of retention marketing and authentic customer relationships, sharing real success and failure stories to illustrate how strategy, not tactics, drives sustainable e-commerce growth.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Shift from “conversion” to “connection” Stop treating Shopify like Amazon. Build demand through storytelling, content, and brand experience—optimize for trust and engagement before expecting conversions.Scale with the right metrics (not ROAS) Track and optimize your CAC:LTV:AOV triangle. Aim for a 1:3 CAC:LTV ratio, and be willing to accept lower short-term ROAS to acquire high-value customers.Increase AOV + retention to unlock profit Bundle products, upsell, and improve post-purchase experience. Focus on repeat buyers (email/SMS, loyalty, CX) to maximize LTV and make your paid acquisition sustainable.Timestamps:00:00:38 Introduction to the E-comm Breakthrough PodcastThe announcer introduces the podcast, aimed at helping seven-figure e-commerce business owners unlock their full potential and growth.00:00:52 Host's Introduction and Guest WelcomeHost Josh Hadley introduces himself and the episode's guest, Mark Young, CEO of Ryze Agency and author.00:02:12 The Challenge of Scaling from Amazon to ShopifyMark discusses why brands successful on Amazon often struggle on Shopify, highlighting the fundamental differences between the platforms.00:04:15 Amazon vs. Shopify: Intent vs. Cold TrafficA breakdown of how Amazon is an intent-based platform, while Shopify requires cold traffic marketing and brand storytelling.00:05:57 Common Misconceptions Brands Have with AgenciesMark explains the two types of clients he encounters: startups who think they know everything and brands with agency trauma.00:08:20 The Problem with Over-relying on ROASMark details why Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) is a "fool's metric" and how agencies can manipulate it.00:11:02 The Holy Trinity of E-commerce MetricsMark explains the three core KPIs brands should focus on: Lifetime Value (LTV), Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), and Average Order Value (AOV).00:18:24 The Importance of Average Order Value (AOV)Discussion on why an AOV of at least $50-$100 is crucial for profitability due to shipping costs and consumer psychology.00:21:09 Focusing on Customer Experience and RetentionMark argues that brands focus too much on acquisition and not enough on creating an impressive backend customer experience.00:24:49 The Mindset Shift from Amazon to ShopifyBrands moving from Amazon must learn to focus on customer experience and brand storytelling, which Amazon handles for them.00:28:11 Building a Relational BrandThe importance of creating a personal, relational brand on Shopify, as opposed to Amazon's transactional nature. People buy from people.00:33:19 Be the Guide, Not the HeroUsing the "StoryBrand" framework, Mark explains that brands should act as the guide (Gandalf) for their customer (Frodo).00:35:09 Case Study: A Successful Skincare BrandA brand succeeded by understanding its brand voice, embracing omnichannel marketing, and defining clear goals for its agency partnership.00:38:00 Case Study: A Failed BrandA brand failed due to a reactive CEO, a singular focus on top-line revenue, and training customers to expect constant discounts.00:41:38 Three Actionable TakeawaysJosh Hadley summarizes the key lessons: understand your brand story, focus on LTV over ROAS, and prioritize customer retention.00:44:03 Mark's Most Influential BooksMark shares his favorite and most influential books, including works by Donald Miller, Will Guidara, and Stephen Covey.00:45:12 Leveraging AI in BusinessMark discusses how his agency uses AI, specifically "Claude bots," to imagine a new kind of business, not just automate tasks.00:48:08 Who to Follow in the E-comm SpaceMark recommends following Alex Hormozi and Donald Miller and emphasizes the value of nano and micro-influencers over macro-influencers.00:49:16 How to Connect with Mark YoungMark shares where listeners can find him, his books, and his agency, and discusses his passion for helping entrepreneurs.Resources mentioned in this episode:Josh Hadley on LinkedIneComm Breakthrough ConsultingeComm Breakthrough PodcastEmail Josh Hadley: Josh@eCommBreakthrough.comTools and Websites  "Ryze Agency": "00:02:01"  "Shopify": "00:02:55"  "

TikTok Shop isn't just a sales channel. It can be the top-of-funnel engine that creates demand across your entire ecommerce ecosystem.Jordan West sits down with Noah Almanzar from Read Arest to unpack Noah's journey from 3D printing and launching his own product to helping grow a Shark Tank brand through TikTok Shop.The conversation turns into a live consulting session as Jordan and Noah break down the real constraints facing the brand: building an engaged creator community, increasing AOV, making creator commissions attractive, navigating GMV Max with a low-ticket product and measuring TikTok Shop's halo effect on Amazon.You'll learn:- How product-content fit can drive organic TikTok virality- How Read Arest grew from $3.5K to $22K in monthly TikTok Shop GMV- How to approach creator community building when response rates are low- Why AOV matters for creator recruitment and profitable scale- How TikTok Shop can generate demand that spills over to Amazon- Why TikTok, Meta and marketplaces should operate as one connected ecosystemTikTok Shop can create the attention. The bigger opportunity is understanding how that attention translates into profitable revenue across the rest of the business.Need help scaling your TikTok Shop?Visit https://socialcommerceclub.comSubscribe for more TikTok Shop, GMV Max and social commerce strategies.

Your Shopify discount strategy could be costing you sales and profit.Want to test smarter promotions on your Shopify store? Try 506's Shopify apps with an extended 30-day free trial using code WWS.Should you offer 10% off, give customers a free gift or encourage shoppers to spend more to unlock a better deal?In this episode, Nick is joined by Charlie Tyler from 506, the team behind EasyGift, 506 Sale & Bulk Discount, EasyScan and EasyLink, to reveal how Shopify brands can create promotions that increase conversion rates and average order value without unnecessarily sacrificing margin.You'll learn:When free gifts outperform traditional discountsHow to use spending thresholds to increase average order valueWhy some promotions train customers to wait for salesHow to run BOGO offers, quantity breaks and tiered discounts effectivelyThe biggest discounting mistakes Shopify brands makeCharlie also shares how growing ecommerce brands can use smarter promotions, urgency and offer structures to increase sales while protecting profitability.In this episode:(00:00) - Free gifts vs discounts(03:45) - How free gifts can increase AOV by 30%(05:05) - Finding the right free gift threshold(06:35) - What gifts should you offer customers?(10:10) - Mystery gifts and digital gifts(15:10) - Free gifts vs traditional discounts(20:10) - Automating Shopify discounts and offers(25:20) - Tiered gifting to increase customer spendFollow Winning With Shopify for practical ecommerce growth advice every Tuesday and Friday.Exclusive listener offers:506 - Extended 30-day free trial on Shopify apps with code WWS.Ships-A-Lot - Improve fulfilment costs and find hidden shipping margin leaks.Inventory Planner - Free seven-day inventory bootcamp.Omnisend - 30% off paid plans for three months with code WINNINGWITHOMNISEND.Yoast - 15% off Shopify and WordPress with code WWS15.About Winning With ShopifyWinning With Shopify is powered by Spec Digital, a PPC & SEO agency helping ecommerce brands grow through performance marketing.

Alexander Morabbi Wulsch is a Danish entrepreneur and business leader. Previously, he has held leadership roles in several companies across sectors including design (URU Design) and digital marketing/social media (Nordic Social).Alexander's background also includes earlier ventures, after a stint in banking he launched an e-commerce business selling socks online, before eventually co-founding Nordic Social which was sold to PE in 2023. Today, he is the CMO of OMHU, one of Europe's fast growing D2C brands.In This Conversation We Discuss:[00:00] Introduction[01:56] Starting young in Ecommerce [02:55] Joining brands as an early as employee[03:44] Lessons from a failed first business[04:52] AOV then versus now[05:23] Unit economics simply explained[06:51] Sponsor: Klaviyo[09:00] Bundling and upselling on big-ticket items[10:18] Leaning and maximizing social first strategy[11:47] Why doubling down beats spreading thin[13:08] Building influencer teams in today's market[14:04] Sponsor: Intelligems[15:59] Remembering the zero discount policy[17:26] Training customers to anticipate sales[18:50] Sponsor: eFulfillment Service[20:25] Discovering the long customer journey[22:32] Learning curves of a European brand in the US[24:49] Callouts[26:05] Navigating culture and politics in business[28:22] Difference of Brand and product led growthResources:Subscribe to Honest Ecommerce on YoutubeHome of the TEDDY Sofa omhucph.com/ Follow Alexander Morabbi Wulsch alexander-morabbi-wulsch-4486b3113Get your free demo klaviyo.com/honest Book a demo today at intelligems.io/ Lower scale costs today eFulfillmentService.com/honest If you're enjoying the show, we'd love it if you left Honest Ecommerce a review on Apple Podcasts. It makes a huge impact on the success of the podcast, and we love reading every one of your reviews!

Beck Williams took the CEO chair at Seed & Sprout in 2022. A business in decline. A warehouse full of bread boxes nobody wanted. And a plan to fix it that started with people, not spreadsheets.If you've followed Australian sustainable retail over the past few years, you've watched Seed & Sprout climb. Beck came up through corporate, with an apprenticeship at GM Holden, a transformation role at Mercedes-Benz and a stint at Thermomix, before joining founder Sophie Kovic in 2022 to lead the turnaround of the Byron Bay brand behind plastic-free lunchware, kitchen and homewares. She rebuilt it around product, supplier relationships and a fiercely flexible team, and it now turns over $30 million and ships to more than 50 markets. As CEO working alongside a founder, she's also one of the clearer voices going on how that partnership actually survives.Nathan sat down with Beck to dig into how the turnaround really happened: why she ran a one on one with every single person in her first 48 hours, how the team clears dead stock without slashing prices, and why radical transparency, from a $2 fuel surcharge to exactly where they use AI, keeps customers on side.Today, we're discussing:Why Beck started the turnaround with a one on one conversation with every single person in the business, and why she refuses to do them in a group [06:02]The bread box gate cleanup, and how 18 months of dead stock cleared in six weeks as a gift with purchase [13:44]Testing new products in pilot runs of just 500 units using pre-orders and long supplier relationships [15:19]How Seed & Sprout separates a quality customer from a cheap one using AOV, second purchase timing and cross-category buying [27:02]The science behind the deliberately odd 8, 9 and 11 percent discounts [29:13]Why owning the $2 fuel surcharge out loud built more trust than hiding it [42:51]Connect with Beck Williams | Explore Seed & SproutSubscribe to the Add To Cart newsletter  SMS us to Suggest a Guest Connect with Nathan Bush Join the Add To Cart Community 

Rob Ward exited Quad Lock last year for half a billion dollars. He never took a cent of outside investment to build it, was profitable every single month from day one, and ran the business with a skeleton team for years while competitors burned cash chasing scale. His first product got ripped off. His second became the thing everybody with a phone mount on their bike, car, motorcycle, or desk knows by name. This is his third appearance on the Foundr Podcast across a decade, and the first since the exit. In this interview, Rob breaks down the three-gate model he now uses to diagnose why DTC brands break, why he deliberately pulled his own face out of Quad Lock's content years before selling, and the single biggest myth he says destroyed a generation of e-commerce companies. What you'll learn in this interview: • Why "scale will fix our unit economics" is the biggest myth in DTC - and what it actually does instead • The three-gate model: first-order profitability, cash-back time, and LTV ratio - and how to know which gate you're failing • Why he built an ecosystem instead of a hero product - and how $200 of mounts creates real lock-in • How hiring painfully slowly kept Quad Lock profitable every single month it existed • Why he deliberately stopped putting his face in the brand's content - and how that decision protected the half-billion exit • The gross margin number he'd insist on if he started again today • Why the customer with the higher AOV today isn't always the one worth acquiring • How they used retail to extend reach without breaking the DTC model • What the private equity deal actually changed - and why the money never even entered the business • The three separate emotional hits of exiting: the first sell-down, the full sale, and the last day If you're bootstrapping a DTC brand, trying to fix unit economics that don't quite work, or thinking about what makes a business actually sellable one day, this conversation will fundamentally change how you think about lock-in, margins, and building something bigger than yourself. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend with the code FOUNDR50. Just head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://your.omnisend.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get started. WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/operators⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH ROB WARD Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/robyward/ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/robwardau/ Website → https://www.quadlockcase.com FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

Jasim Eisa is the founder and CEO of Voadera, a global e-commerce partner helping brands win on Amazon and other online marketplaces. He built the company from selling used books at 15 into a 150-person operation managing over 30,000 SKUs and driving $100M+ in sales. Through Voadera's Marketplace Accelerator, he helps brands fix broken listings, eliminate unauthorized sellers, and scale profitably with full-service marketplace execution. He is on a mission to help great products achieve the dominance they deserve online.Highlight Bullets> Here's a glimpse of what you would learn…. Challenges of margin compression on Amazon and strategies for adaptation.Importance of operational efficiencies and cost savings for scaling e-commerce businesses.Tactics for reducing operating expenses, particularly in supply chain management.The significance of procurement strategies and direct sourcing from manufacturers.Shipping cost optimization through density and packaging strategies.Fulfillment strategies, including the use of FBA versus third-party logistics.Marketing efficiencies focused on organic ranking and conversion rate optimization.Increasing customer lifetime value (LTV) through various promotional strategies.The role of AI in enhancing operational capacity and workflow efficiency.Key performance indicators (KPIs) for tracking business metrics and ensuring team alignment.In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough podcast, host Josh Hadley sits down with Jasim Eisa, founder and CEO of Voadera, to discuss scaling e-commerce businesses profitably on Amazon. Jasim shares how his team achieved nearly $820,000 in operational savings through supply chain optimization, smarter procurement, and shipping density improvements. The conversation also covers marketing efficiencies, coupon strategies to boost customer lifetime value, reimbursement recovery, and practical AI applications. Jasim emphasizes that as brands scale, small per-unit savings compound significantly, making operational efficiency as important as growth.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Stack Small Wins Relentlessly Audit every step of your operations and implement micro-improvements (e.g., packaging, shipping, processes). Small savings per unit compound into massive annual gains. Optimize for Profit, Not Just Growth Regularly review SKU-level profitability, Amazon fees, and inventory levels. Shift focus to efficiency as you scale—margin control is the new growth lever. Use Data to Drive Conversions & LTV Double down on high-converting keywords, continuously test PDPs and coupons, and implement strategies like Subscribe & Save and bundling to increase repeat purchases.Timestamps:00:00:00 Introduction & Cost-Saving InitiativeJasim discusses a major initiative to cut $1 million in operational expenses, focusing on supply chain efficiencies.00:00:24 Podcast Introduction & Guest BackgroundHost introduces the podcast, Jasim Eisa, and his experience scaling an e-commerce business to $100M+ in revenue.00:01:43 Managing Large-Scale Amazon OperationsDiscussion on managing 30,000 SKUs and the complexities of large-scale Amazon selling.00:02:07 Amazon's Evolving Marketplace & Margin CompressionExploring margin compression, Amazon's profit-maximizing changes, and how brands must adapt to new fee structures.00:04:26 When to Focus on Growth vs. Operational OptimizationAdvice for brands on prioritizing top-line growth versus operational cost optimization, depending on business maturity.00:07:30 Leverage in Cost Savings: High-Volume ProductsHow optimizing costs on high-volume SKUs yields significant savings, and the importance of leverage as brands scale.00:08:37 Operational Savings Strategies OverviewJasim outlines the philosophy of achieving savings through many small improvements rather than one big change.00:09:03 Procurement & Cost of Goods OptimizationTactics for reducing product costs by eliminating middlemen and running RFPs to manufacturers.00:10:40 Shipping & Supply Chain OptimizationStrategies for shipping cost reduction, including RFPs for freight, optimizing packaging density, and leveraging Amazon programs.00:13:43 Shipping & 3PL Strategy RecommendationsHigh-level recommendations for shipping from China and choosing between Amazon's logistics and 3PLs.00:15:17 Optimizing FBA Fees & Inventory ManagementBest practices for managing FBA storage, inbound placement fees, and maintaining optimal stock levels.00:17:01 Freight Forwarders vs. AGL RatesComparison of AGL and freight forwarder rates, and when to use each based on business size and shipment volume.00:17:53 Marketing Efficiency: Organic Ranking & ConversionHow aligning SEO, creative, and marketing teams to target high-converting keywords saves money and boosts organic ranking.00:21:39 AOV & LTV Strategies on AmazonIncreasing average order value and lifetime value through coupons, multi-basket analysis, and subscribe & save tactics.00:24:47 Stackable Coupons & Tactical PromotionsUsing stackable and visible coupons to increase conversions, with caveats for premium brands.00:26:02 Ships-in-Product-Packaging & ReimbursementsCost savings from shipping in product packaging and maximizing Amazon/Walmart reimbursements and recovery.00:28:39 KPIs & Data Tracking for Operational EfficiencyKey metrics tracked at leadership and departmental levels to ensure efficiency and profitability.00:30:59 Counter Metrics & Avoiding Operational PitfallsImportance of pairing KPIs (e.g., revenue vs. profit, in-stock rate vs. months on hand) to avoid unintended consequences.00:32:43 Team Structure & KPI ManagementHow leadership and teams use KPIs, Google Sheets, and the Traction framework to manage performance.00:34:33 AI in E-commerce OperationsCurrent state of AI in e-commerce, realistic expectations, and how AI is integrated into specific workflows.00:35:54 AI Use Cases: Creative, SEO, and Product DevelopmentExamples of AI increasing creative output, improving SEO, and aiding product development through contextual prompts.00:39:27 AI vs. Human Labor: Cost-Benefit AnalysisDiscussion on when AI automation is cost-effective versus when human or VA labor is preferable.00:41:08 Final Takeaways & Action ItemsThree actionable takeaways: focus on high-impact savings, optimize high-volume SKUs, and leverage AOV/LTV strategies on Amazon.00:44:04 Book, AI Tool, and Influencer RecommendationsJasim shares his most influential books, favorite AI tool use cases, and respected figures in the e-commerce space.00:46:08 Contact Information & Episode Wrap-UpHow to connect with Jasim Eisa and closing remarks from the host.Resources mentioned in this episode:Josh Hadley on LinkedIneComm Breakthrough ConsultingeComm Breakthrough PodcastEmail Josh Hadley: Josh@eCommBreakthrough.comTools and Websites  "Voadera": "00:01:43"  "AGL (Amazon Global Logistics)": "00:11:17"&nb...

Johnny Cox launched a brand new ecommerce brand and hit $70,000 in its first full month on Meta ads, and he validated the whole idea with a $2,000 test before the product physically existed. On top of that, his first brand, Gold Spartan, climbed from $840,000 to $2.3 million in a single year, with $3–4 million on track for this one.In this episode, Josh sits down with MPM client Johnny Cox, founder of Gold Spartan and Cross & Helm, to break down the exact pre-launch playbook he used to build demand, validate the product, and sell it out before making a single unit.Inside this episode:The $2,000 Meta ads test that pulled in around 2,000 leads at under $1 each, and how he knew the product would sell before he ever made oneWhy "seasoning your pixel" is a myth, and what actually makes a cold pixel convert from day oneThe 3-day "Founders Edition" presale that did $12,000 before anything shipped (planned with Alex Hormozi's offer framework)How he used AI to design the pendant, generate photorealistic mockups, and build the entire offer stackThe website "sleeper" most stores skip: pop-ups, A/B tested offers, a slide-out cart, and the free-pendant hook that pushed AOV to around $200The Klaviyo email flows quietly turning non-buyers into repeat customersWhy Cross & Helm sells "a reminder, not jewelry," and how selling identity instead of product changes everythingThe messaging shift that made his second brand easier to scale than his first, and why product choice matters more than most founders admitIf you've been grinding for years and you're stuck at $20K–$30K a month, this is the episode that shows why someone can walk in and hit six figures in 60 days. It's not luck, it's a stack of skills you can copy.Loved this episode? Drop us a rating because we're going for #1 ecommerce podcast in the world and every single rating moves the needle.-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-► Visit Our Website For Training and Resources► Leave Us An Honest Rating, Email An Image Of Your Rating To team@theecommercealley.com, We'll Send You A $10 Amazon Gift Card As An Appreciation Gift!► Learn About Our Mentorship Program For Ecom Brands Making Over $10k/month► Checkout Our Software, Breezeway - Never Second-Guess Your Meta Ads Again►  Follow Josh on social media: YouTube | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok | 

Shopify brands fail to harness to power of AOV increases through Upsells and Cross-Sells. This week, Nick unveils his top tips and methods he has actively seen brands deploy to increase AOV. You've got the sale, why not sell another product for the same advertising and delivery cost? The logic is sound, but execution is where it falls down. In this episode, you'll learn: - Different ways you can encourage customers to buy more through upsells and cross-sells- How leading brands have got creative with this - Where Shopify brands fail to cut through with cross-sells 0:00 — Introduction & What We're Covering Today0:38 — Why Upsells and Cross-Sells Matter for AOV1:00 — Tip 1: Bundling — Simplify It and Drop the Discount2:05 — Use Microsoft Clarity to Watch Real User Behaviour2:39 — Tip 2: Do Not Overwhelm the Customer4:02 — The Sainsbury's Example — How Over-Pushing Kills Conversions5:26 — Tip 3: Post-Purchase Upsells on the Order Confirmation Page6:43 — Tip 4: Be Careful Using Data Before You Hit 5–10K Orders Per Month8:09 — How to Do Upsells Manually as a Smaller Store8:55 — Tip 5: Create a Customisable Look or Set10:18 — How This Flips the Customer Conversation Completely11:13 — AB Test the Outfit Feature Before Rolling It Out11:46 — Tip 6: Sell Packs Instead of Single Items13:05 — T-Shirt Pack Pricing Strategy Example14:23 — Tip 7: Set a Spend Threshold to Trigger a Reward15:29 — The $500 Minimum Spend Club Strategy16:22 — Tip 8: Use Real Statistics as Social Proof17:54 — Outro — Subscribe and Visit the WebsiteWinning With Shopify is the Shopify podcast for store owners who want to grow revenue, increase conversions, and scale their ecommerce brand. New episodes every Tuesday and Friday.This Shopify Podcast is bought to you by Spec Digital, a PPC & SEO Agency based in the United Kingdom. Seguno: Shopify Email Marketing Listeners get a free customer analysis and strategy session with an email expert. https://www.seguno.com/winning-with-shopify-podcastYoast: Shopify SEO. Listeners get 15% off Shopify and Wordpress, with code WWS15 https://yoast.comInventory Planner: Shopify Inventory Management Listeners can join a free 7-Day inventory bootcamp https://info.brightpearl.com/winning-with-shopify-holiday-planning-bootcamp TaxCloud: Shopify Sales Tax Management Listeners get free Migration onboarding, as a Winning With Shopify Listenerhttps://taxcloud.com/winning

In this episode, we dive into how discount codes impact online store profits and customer behavior. Cara Marin, Product Lead at Seguno.com, shares how analyzing 182 million Shopify discount codes reveals the winning strategy between percentage-off and amount-off deals. She reveals why percentage discounts drive much higher average order values and how to use personalized workflows to maximize margin. She also shares strategies for stopping leaked codes and timing discounts perfectly to grow revenue safely.Use discount code "COFFEE" to get 20% off your first month at Seguno.com. Topics discussed in this episode:  How percent discounts boost average order value.What 182 million Shopify codes reveal about sales.Why amount off codes get higher redemptions.How to protect margins with a 20% discount cap.Why minimum spend rules rescue flat profits.How personalized codes stop coupon leaks completely.What lifecycle offers drive five times more sales.Why relationship based deals beat holiday sales.How to plan strategic discounts for net growth.What integrations automate personalized revenue. Links & ResourcesWebsite: https://seguno.com/bulk-discount-code-botShopify App Store: https://apps.shopify.com/bulk-discount-generatorLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/segunosoftware/X/Twitter: https://x.com/SegunoSoftwareYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SegunoSoftwareGet access to more free resources by visiting the show notes at https://tinyurl.com/ykh9jur9I'd love your feedback. Tap the the link to send me a text.______________________________________________________LOVE THE SHOW? HERE ARE THE NEXT STEPS!Follow the podcast to get every bonus episode. Tap follow now and don't miss out!   Rate & Review: Help others discover the show by rating the show on Apple Podcasts at https://tinyurl.com/ecb-apple-podcasts   Join our Free Newsletter: https://newsletter.ecommercecoffeebreak.com/   Support The Show On Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/EcommerceCoffeeBreak   Partner with us: https://ecommercecoffeebreak.com/partner-with-us/

Zum Live-Workshop anmelden: https://www.berend-heins.de/live-q4?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=live-q4 Unsere freien Stellen: https://join.com/companies/broes-media In dieser Folge des Onlineshop Geflüster Podcasts geht es um ein Muster, das viele Shopbetreiber kennen: man dreht den Adspend hoch, der ROAS bricht ein und man zieht das Budget wieder runter. Beim nächsten Versuch dasselbe Spiel. Ich erkläre an einem Bild, warum das passiert. Ein Onlineshop ist wie ein Stelzenhaus im Meer. Steht das Ganze nur auf einer Säule, also nur auf einem guten Shop, nur auf einem starken Creative oder nur auf einer guten Conversion Rate, kippt es beim ersten Sturm. Erst ab vier Säulen wird das Fundament so stabil, dass es viel AdSpend aushält. Genau deswegen klappt die Skalierung bei den meisten irgendwann zusammen. Ich gehe durch, welche Säulen das konkret sind, vom Creative-Volumen über Iteration und Vielfalt, Hook-Qualität und Message bis zu Offer, AOV und Conversion Rate. Und ich erkläre warum es fast nie an "der Markt ist zu klein" liegt, sondern fast immer an Sollbruchstellen im eigenen Fundament. Viel Spaß beim Anhören! Dein Berend. __________ Mache den ersten Schritt und buche dir eine kostenlose SHOPANALYSE: https://www.berend-heins.de/termin __________

Episode Summary: Abundance in the Startup Ecosystem with Naseem Sayani In this episode of The Founder's Sandbox, Brenda McCabe sits down with investor, ecosystem builder, and female founder advocate Naseem Sayani to explore how capital, community, and visibility can create a more abundant and equitable startup ecosystem. Naseem shares her journey from management consulting and digital innovation to venture investing, where she became increasingly aware of the disparities women founders face when raising capital. After leaving a successful consulting partnership, she dedicated her career to supporting female entrepreneurs, investing in overlooked founders, and helping reshape how venture capital recognizes opportunity. The conversation dives into practical fundraising advice for women founders, including why founders should "lead with the money, not the empathy," how gender bias shows up in investor questioning, and how pitch decks can be strategically designed to guide investor conversations. Naseem also discusses the research-backed differences between the questions male and female founders receive during fundraising and offers actionable strategies for reframing those interactions. Brenda and Naseem explore several of Naseem's current initiatives, including her podcast The Capital Flex, which amplifies real fundraising stories from women founders, and the newly launched SoCal Women's Health Collective, a community focused on advancing innovation and collaboration in women's health. The discussion also examines the future of healthcare investing, where Naseem advocates for shifting the conversation from "women's health" to precision health—a broader framework that highlights the enormous market opportunities in personalized care, diagnostics, and health solutions that have historically been overlooked. Naseem emphasizes the power of abundance over scarcity, encouraging women to share networks, knowledge, and opportunities rather than competing for limited seats at the table. She argues that true progress will come when more capital flows from traditional funding sources into diverse founder communities, creating better outcomes for investors, founders, and society alike. Captions: 00:09 All right, welcome back to the Founder's Sandbox. I'm Brenda McCabe, your host, now in this fourth season of the Founder's Sandbox. And my mission is quite simple. With the Founder's Sandbox, I have guests that are business owners, service providers, VCs, and corporate directors. 00:36 who like me want to use the power of the enterprise to make change for a better world. And with stories in the sandbox on resilience, scalability, and purpose-driven experiences of my guest, um we have an origin story and we get to really understand what's under the hood of the businesses that my guest, um our owners have. So I'm absolutely delighted to have Naseem Sayani as my guest this month. Welcome, Naseem. 01:06 Thank you. I'm so excited to be here. Yeah. So Naseem and I go back um many, many years. She touches, um checks many, many boxes. Our first encounter was while I was m leading a women's corporate, a women's investment fund. So we invested in women owned companies with a minimum 33 % equity holding of uh the woman uh founder or m C-suite. 01:34 member and Nassim at that time was within Emily Ventures. She's since moved on to other firms and we've we're she's my first port of call when there is a very talented woman founder, particularly in the life science or digital health area. So I was absolutely delighted when the same also launched her own podcast podcast. So we'll get into that in a minute. So let me just make a uh bit more proper. uh 02:04 Introduction to you, Naseem. You're an investor, ecosystem builder, and speaker, as you guys are going to see here. Currently, the operating umbrella for all of the different ventures um that Naseem is orchestrating is Game Changers, World Changers. I love the title of your umbrella. You lead, and I've seen it in real life, commitment to empowering female founders. um 02:34 Her network across the United States and elsewhere is uh has no paragon. She is amazing. She's largely focused in health tech and fintech. And there's something that you've been doing recently, which is really giving a voice to women founders and what's it like raising capital. So with that, we're going to jump into uh our podcast today, abundance in the startup ecosystem. how, why are you doing what you do today? 03:04 Tell us about your origin story. Oh goodness. Yeah. No, back in time, back in time. Back in time. You were a consultant. all. I was. Yeah, we all grew up somewhere. So I like, I like to say I'm a recovering consultant. So I spent many, many, many years in core management consulting. So really problem solving. 03:27 at various strategic levels with Fortune 100s. I was working across healthcare, financial services, consumer, little bits of energy and other things along the way. But it was really those three sectors that I spent most of my time in. And this is early, early 2000s. So digital was a thing, but it wasn't. And we had Facebook that was happening already, you know, early 2000s. But it was in 2007 that we got iPhones in our hands and something shifted. 03:56 Right? It dramatically changed what the words digital strategy might mean. And that's when I started doing very continuously, very core digital strategy work with all of those same clients. And to put this in context, they didn't know what those words meant. Those words didn't mean anything. Like, what is digital strategy? What does it mean to my business? How does it change how I organize? How does it change how I go to market? 04:26 personalization moving from a one to many advertising model to a one to one ad model. That was a, it was a whole new paradigm, right? Of how we might interact and talk to the market as a brand or as a business. And that was all of the work I was doing in mid 2000s. And so it was fascinating to be in the center of, of that much problem solving. Well, that's what it feels like now. 04:54 That's what it feels like now, but at the time we didn't know that we were on the front end of what was this massive transformation, right? We were just doing the work and having fun and a bunch of young people straight out of MBA programs, problem solving. But it was great because you learn so much so quickly when you do that kind of work. And then a couple of years into it, we realized that our clients couldn't really execute against the strategies that we had built because they don't have 05:21 product and tech and UX and UI and scrums don't mean anything. Like this language that we take for granted now was just getting established mid late 2000s. And so we launched a product studio inside of the consulting firm to help them build product and launch experiences. And we, I was living in New York at a time. We launched this product studio out of Los Angeles. And in that same window, I moved back to LA. So I ended up being the person who ran the studio. 05:51 for about two and a half, three years. And so I was doing core strategy work. I was running the product studio and for about three years, every single digital proposal for the firm went through my inbox. Oh my gosh. Globally. it was every single project, every single client, we were tacking on the studio effort onto the back of that proposal. And so I didn't sleep for three years. I worked harder than I've ever worked in those three years. 06:20 But it was tremendous because I got to see so many different things so quickly. And we built a really great studio team. We were doing really great work in that team. And then the firm that I was at got acquired. There was lots of transformation things that happened. And then that product studio went and got acquired by a different management consulting firm and grew up into a full venture incubator. So the products we were building 06:47 ultimately needed different governance, different KPIs, different growth models, different leadership than what the corporate owner was able to do. So now we were, it was a different business. was a spin out turned into a spin out. So the value proposition turned into, we're not just building products. We're actually helping you build the startup that would otherwise put you out of business. That became the thing that we were doing. So now, now we're building startups and we're doing it at scale and we're doing with our clients and we're doing it. Now it's early. 07:17 2010s, 2011, 2012, and we're building startups and in parallel, right? Things like Uber and other things are happening in parallel and we're watching all kinds of change happen in how we engage and what kind of tools we're using across the marketplaces and what's broadly from a digital perspective. And it was great. I got to learn a lot really, really quickly. But in these... 07:43 Rooms right and you can imagine because you've been in these rooms also uh There's not enough women. There's not enough diversity We're building great product, but we don't really cover all the use cases because we're missing women and because we're missing diversity and so I was in parallel trying to meet as much of the I was trying to more founders I wanted to just see what else was out there. So I gravitated towards a lot of the the events that had more women and I was also 08:12 I'd led the diversity efforts inside of the incubator. was always protecting the careers of the women behind me. I held the diversity flag. I was one of three female partners in the incubator of like 50, right? So we were already standing on top of a pretty, on top of pretty small The token women, right? Right, right, exactly. So I was meeting a lot of women outside the building and building great products, building incredible businesses, but like, 08:41 fighting to the nail to raise capital for the companies that they're building. Meanwhile, my day job has capital. We're pouring money into building startups, but I'm surrounded by men all day. So this contrast between my day job and the struggle of what was happening for the female founders outside of the building, this contrast became... just this cognitive dissonance was too much. 09:09 stick too much to handle, right? It just doesn't work. And so I ultimately decided that I had to shift all of my energy, all of my focus. I know how to do things. I know how to build businesses. I know how to think strategically. I know how to problem solve. I can look at a market and hopefully figure it out. So let me just redirect all the energy to actually helping the whole other half of the ecosystem raise some capital and move some money and build some businesses because the boys have all the help that they need, right? 09:39 But the women don't. You left a partner position. I did. Yeah. No, my husband is super excited about that. I left my partner job at the consultancy to go full venture and decide to move some capital. Absolutely. And I started investing. This was 2019-ish and started writing some angel checks, larger angel checks, got deeper in the ecosystem. It was in that window that I met the two women. 10:08 that I launched Emmeline Ventures with. We raised about six and a half, seven million seats, stage focus, healthcare, fintech, sustainability, wrote some fantastic checks. I got some great capital out the door. And then I jumped, as you mentioned, to go do a whole host of other things. Now much more embedded, almost an ecosystem level, so more horizontal than just the vertical of the fund. And it's been great. It's, it's... 10:35 serendipitous that I got involved in the ecosystem in a moment where the female founder ecosystem was growing up the way that it was the women's health ecosystem was growing up the way that it was. And so the notion that I'm a pioneer comes up a lot because people like you've been in this for a while. Like you, you were one of the few people who built this thing. uh 10:57 But it doesn't feel that way to me. But there's a few of us who have been here since the beginning, really crafting this. And so it's really kind of fun to have been in it since the beginning, it feels like. So one of the things that we did with you uh from Ty last year is you did a master class with a cohort of women-owned businesses on how to pitch. Oh, yeah. And granted, I don't want to steal your thunder. 11:27 You're tagline with this, but we go into a room with VC, Rangel Investors. It's largely male. So what are your two or three core messages from that training? I used to it a lot. I attribute it to Naseem Sayani, but it is when women hear this, they're like, oh, I've got to go back and redo my text. 11:54 Yes. Yeah. So there's a couple of things I tell that I coach, I should say, female founders on all the time. One is you need to lead with the money and not the empathy. What we have been conditioned to do as women, and it's not conditioned, it actually comes from a lot of where our core empathy and how women move in the world is. We lead with the emotion. It's how we engage, it's how we build relationships. 12:21 But when you are in a money driven ecosystem, such as venture, you cannot lead with empathy. You have to lead with money. You have to tell me and tell who you're talking to how much this thing is worth. And you have to tell them that quickly. What typically happens with a pitch deck from a female founder is that there are four or five pages on pain. 12:46 pain and stress and how hard it is and just all this stuff that is so, so hard and you don't get to the size of the market until page seven. And that's too far, right? Because by then the people are bored and they don't care. you have do it in a page. Fine. But it's not five pages. Pull the market up sooner. Talk about the size of the opportunity sooner. I don't want any personal stories at the front of that deck. 13:14 The place where I want you to put the personal story is in how you're going to win. Because if you understand the market so closely and this pain point so closely because it happened to you, that is why your hustle is so much stronger. That's why you're after it so much more that your founder market fit comes from that. So put it there. Don't put it into product market fit. That's the wrong place. Right. Founder market fit. 13:42 Put it into founder market fit because that's the reason you're going to win is because you care about it in a way that other people don't care about it. So it's in the wrong place in the story. So put the empathy in the appendix. Nobody cares. I love you, but nobody cares. Lead with the money. That's point number one. Point number two is that there is data. It is validated that women get different questions in pitch meetings than men do. Yes. Harvard research. 14:08 Harvard research proves it. Two out of every three questions that a male founder gets will be about growth and vision and opportunity and how big this market can be. Two out of three questions that a woman gets will be risk related. So, oh my gosh, that CAC number is so high. And oh my goodness, what if you can't find the customers? And oh my goodness, what if somebody else does this? It is prevention. Yeah, it is prevention minded questions. Men get promotion minded questions. And if you're not... 14:37 prepared for that. You will be on the defense of the entire time in that meeting. So you have to practice. You have to spend a weekend with your camuja or your glass of wine or whatever it is and write down all of the prevention questions you might get on your deck, whether it's a main page or a footnote or something on the bottom of page 10. Write down everything. Be horribly brutal. 15:03 and then let it sit for a day, come back and write down your answers. And your intention with the answers is not to answer the question, but to flip that question into a promotion-based response. Excellent. Shift the power dynamic back. As an example, you have a revenue page that has the chart, revenue goes up from zero, year one to year five, and then you've got three bullets, you've got three data points on the right-hand side. Everyone should have a page that looks like this. You've got CAC, you've got AOV, you might have LTV as well. 15:33 More than likely, as a female founder, they're going to ask you about CAC. They're say, oh my God, CAC is $28. That's so high. How are you going to manage that? A male founder is going to get a question on AOV. AOV is $1,200. That's incredible. Can it get to $1,500? That's the difference in the questions. If you get that CAC question, your natural response might be, yeah, it's $28. We're going to work on it. We're going to run some tests. We really think we can get it to $25. 16:03 That might be how we naturally respond. What you should say is, it's $28, but our AOV is $1,200. So we actually think it's performing pretty well. 16:16 Very, very convincing. And that's it. Yes. Yeah. You don't respond to the defensiveness. You redirect them to the data point that actually matters. And you take back the power in that conversation. And it may also be that you have to reformat your deck. Yes. Yes. Yes. 100%. Yeah. So that's the third. That's the third thing is that your deck is a strategic asset. 16:44 Okay. And you should be very thoughtful about what you put in the deck so that you are teeing up the questions that you want to answer. Okay. There's a thing is too much information and there's a thing is too little information. The line in the middle is that if you're putting data on that same page on the right hand side, yes, put AOV at the top, put LTV next, put CAC at the bottom. Don't put CAC at the top because everyone's going look on the top right. It's natural. 17:14 Eyelines go to the top right of a page. Don't put CAC at the top. Put AOV at the top. Is that the biggest number? Put that one at the top. Be very deliberate about where you put data on the page so that you can tee up the questions that you want to get. You can bait the document with the things that you want to answer and set up the conversation that you want to have at least halfway. Right. It takes practice though. It takes practice. It takes practice. Yes. 17:42 And where are you now dedicating a lot of your uh time? We are fellow podcasters. And I know it was some time in the making. So you launched, was it six months ago, the Capital Flex podcast? Yes. Yes. And this is where you hear real stories, right? So to share a bit with my little. Yeah, absolutely. So I launched. 18:08 I launched the Capital Flex in January. I've been working on it since mid last year. It's been living on a post-it on my desk for the last two years, maybe more. So I get a lot of inbound from founders on the crazy things that happen when they're fundraising. A weird conversation, uh a offhand comment, an unfortunate behavior. Just the things that we know happen to women when they're out fundraising. 18:37 So I do a lot of, call myself, I've become this like de facto therapist for the female founder side of the ecosystem. And so I've been making notes on just the crazy that happens. And what I started, what happens is that there's founder, founder in New York and founder in California who are dealing with the same problem, but they don't know each other. So I'm, I'm sharing information across these two women when they should just know each other. So I'll bridge the connect, but you can't, I can't scale that. 19:04 quickly, right? And so instead I said, what if we just talked about it out loud on a podcast and just shared the stories and made it real and not just stories for the sake of, you know, kind of the victim hood that might come with that. That's not the intent. That's not my stance in any case, but I want to share the story so that we know that they're real. And then I want to share the learnings from that experience so that when another founder listens to any one of these episodes, you go, Oh my God, 19:34 Yes, that happens to maybe that's happened to me too. So I'm not alone. It's not just me and it's not personal and three That's a great way to deal with it because that founder dealt with it that way. Maybe I can do that too So it's really the toolkit that comes out of each episode. That was that was the end game And so episode, uh, sorry season one has just wrapped about a week ago 12 20:00 Great conversations, 12 fantastic founders. Each story is just tremendous. You learn a lot. They're very candid. It's very raw. And it's great. it's on Spotify and everywhere you can find it. called the Capital Flex. Everyone should go listen. It's tremendous. And then season two is going to drop in just a few weeks. And we've got another slate of 12 great founders. And we're running. Yeah, that's great. um 20:26 the impulse to actually launch a podcast, and the scene, if I hear you correctly, is you really wanted to amplify and scale these lessons that and experiences that other women founders have lived in their own skin. Yes. And not so much. It's not in a private way, but you really what do you think you're going to get out of this in terms of effectuating change in how people write checks? 20:55 It's visibility on really what's different about the rooms that women walk into versus the rooms that men walk into. It's awareness and accountability on behavior. Because if we know what's happening and we see it happen, we can call it out. Because now there's proof, right? And we go, oh, it's not her being sensitive. These things are really happening. 21:23 And then three, there's a pattern recognition problem in the ecosystem. And there's been so much money has moved in certain ways. there's indicators of success that a lot of the money moves on. But a lot of that is based on a very historical founder profile. And that profile doesn't include women. And it doesn't include people of color. And those levers of success look different in women. And they look different. 21:53 in founders of color. And unless we are understanding the impact of not seeing that we're never going to move capital in bigger ways. And ultimately we're just missing huge opportunities. We are missing massive opportunities spaces because we, our pattern recognition is stopping us from writing checks into spaces that we don't know enough about. So if you were to pitch yourself, right? Or, um, 22:22 game changers, world changers in front of investors. What would be your top line? Do you want to effectuate change over x million of women founders? Are you going international? mean, do a pitch here if you want. I don't know if I'll do that, but I can. So what would be your key guys, right? And yeah, yes. Yeah. So it's how much capital do we shift from? 22:51 from kind of the core buckets, the capital goes to, to founders that they haven't written checks before. Okay. That's, and so that's a big one. Uh, and, and how that, and what's the profile of the check writer? Because we have, there's been a increase in women who run funds in the last 10 years. So there's a lot more diversity in who's running funds, which is great. There's also a lot more diversity in who's building companies. So there's a lot more women, a lot more people of color. 23:20 building companies, but the bulk of the money is still sitting in traditional hands going to traditional profiles of builders. I want both of those things to move. So if we have better awareness of who's building and how they're building and what they look like and how they move in rooms and how they might show up in rooms, then the people writing the profile of who writes the check should also shift, right? It's not just women who should be writing checks to women. Men should be writing checks to women as well. 23:50 So how do we cross the social and gender circles better? capturing that metric, like that's the KPI that I want, is how much capital is going from male-led funds into female-founded teams. That's the metric that I want to be able to track. Because right now what's happening is that all the women-led and diverse funds are who's funding the women-led and diverse founded companies. Say that again. 24:19 for my listeners, because this is important. Women-led and diverse-led funds are the bulk of the money that's funding women-led and diverse founded companies. 24:30 And that cannot persist because we need big capital to go into these companies because they are building fantastic game changing businesses and everybody should make money from what they're doing. And they're going to hit a series a, a series B, a series C, and they're going to need bigger checks. You heard it here on the founder sandbox. Let's, let's, let's change to sectors. largely health tech, fintech. 24:59 Where do you see um greater, where are you focusing your initiatives in terms of um getting more check writers, right? uh Into the ecosystem and where have there been the greatest deficiency in, you you talk about these big product or these sectors, right? That have not addressed women's needs. So, so the answer is the same for both of those. I'm, I'm calling. 25:27 This will come out. This is a semantic problem, but I'm causing I'm calling it precision health. This is a place where I'm spending where I'm spending all of my time where I want to be investing in where the biggest opportunity is is our ability to leverage precision health. This is insight driven health care, whether it's in care delivery, whether it's in diagnostics, whether it's in understanding cancer, whether it's in 25:56 delivering smarter insights based on the type of human we're talking to, that is where we're going to change the game in healthcare. And that's where I want more capital to go and where it should go. Now, we've historically called this women's health, right? You've flipped the term use. So we've called this women's health for a long time. We're still calling it women's health. The problem that we've now uncovered is 26:24 Women's health carries stigma. The language carries stigma. You hear women's health and still I'll have people that say, oh my gosh, no, yeah, we've one or two things. We've made our women's health investment this year. Check the box. We're good. Yeah. Or they'll say, oh, but it's, it's, it's just so niche. We're half of the population. Yeah. Half of the population is not niche. just, I can't even, I have to just look at them and say I'm half the population. 26:55 And then the third thing you'll hear is, there just haven't, we just haven't seen the exit. So we're just not sure that the value is there. And so on the third one, have my, I hope there's two responses. One is, you know, when Google and Facebook and Amazon came to market and we're raising capital, there were no exits for search and e-commerce and social. No, we didn't know what it was. These things were brand new. 27:22 The reason the money went there was because there were behaviors and there was demand and there was money that was moving towards these categories. That was the reason we invested was there was a behavior trend that was shifting. There was a market trend that was shifting. There was something we were after because there was going there was a value pool that we could get after. That's why the money moved. This is what's happening with women's health right now. There is demand. There's behavior. There's money moving there right now. Menopause is a 60 billion dollar category. 27:52 When it comes down to it, women will spend money on their health care and they'll do it out of pocket. They're doing it right now. Right. We have no interest in our grandma's health care. We're absolutely going to go get what we need to solve for the hot flashes and the brain fog and whatever it is. And that's we have the proof now. Now, in January of this year, 2026 at JPMorgan, there was a report that was launched. There's a fantastic team that spent the last year doing the work to reanalyze all of the health care exits for the last 20 years. 28:21 The report is called follow the exits. Okay. And what they did was reclassify all of the exits in healthcare for the last 20 years into three different buckets, assuming that they qualified. If those exits were aligned to conditions that exclusively differently or disproportionately affected women, they bucketed them that way to recast the exits against conditions that affected women. When they're not 28:50 They weren't talked about that way in the market already. But when they did that, they were able to quantify $100 billion of returns that have already made its way back to investors from exits related to companies that built and exited because they were in conditions that exclusively, differently, or disproportionately affected women. 29:13 So people have made money from women's health already. But we don't know how to talk about it. They weren't calling it women's health. They were calling it diagnostics in oncology. It didn't matter that it was breast cancer. It was diagnostics and oncology. So this is why the semantics problem has to get solved and addressed is that when we call it women's health, we're trying to prove a horizontal over and over again, or saying people to believe in this horizontal that has value. And it's not. 29:43 semantics aren't landing. What has been working is just the proof of value in cardiology or in cardiovascular or an autoimmune or in diagnostics where you go, there's money there. Let's go invest because there's money there. And that's the shift that we have to have. And this is why precision health is how I'm phrasing it now is that we need to get after precision health because if I can prove value in precision health because I can solve for cardiovascular disease. 30:11 for women differently than men and there's value in that and I can deliver better services, better care. I can access reimbursement codes. I can do all of these things differently because I understand what a heart attack looks like in a man versus the woman. And that means that they'll end up at their doctor's office and not in the ER, which is more expensive. That's a place we can invest. it's a semantic change, but that's why I'm now calling it precision. I hope it doesn't. 30:38 take another 20 years after the... I don't think it will. I think there's more and more of us talking about it now and actively talking about the semantics differently. And from this Follow the Exits report, what I'm working on, and this is through my role at Women's Health Access Matters with WAM, is that we're taking the data from that report and we're creating assets that founders can use in their pitch decks to actually showcase the exits that line up with the category that they're in. Amazing. 31:07 So here's the market. Here's three exits. I'm good. I have proof. Yeah. So I think we can get there faster. Excellent. So that's a great segue um to yet another initiative that um is near and dear to your heart, which is it's still in a seed stage. Talk to us about the SoCal Women's Collector. Oh, yeah. Yeah. This is brand new. Me and five other fantastic women here in Southern California. 31:37 decided that we wanted to better connect the ecosystem here in SoCal. So from LA to Orange County to San Diego, there are fragmented groups of wonderful humans, all building, researching, investing, et cetera, into women's health, whether they are at universities or at accelerators or independently investing or they're founders, et cetera. So we launched what's called the SoCal Women's Health Collective. 32:04 And we are actively focused on connecting community. So it's budding, it's growing. We're organizing and still setting full strategy. But at the very least, we are bringing people together at events. We're hosting virtual and live events, whether it's happy hours or panels. We're doing things virtually where we're doing coaching sessions with founders. And we're building a mailing list so that we can get this community connected and talking to each other and at least know who else 32:33 is in Southern California touching this category and building in this category. And it's been really incredible because we were just sitting around dinner one night going, my God, couldn't we do this? And now we have a mailing list that's more than 500 people long. And we meet people everywhere that want to be part of it, want to join, want to come to events. And it's really grown. And we're only within a year. It's really only 10 or 11 months old. 33:00 But it's really taken off. It's great. So we can do a lot with it. I love it. And are you at all working with, is it GLG or the Women's Collective? It's an advocacy group in Washington, DC. Yes, the policy group. Yes, the policy group. Yes. So there's a parallel group called Women's Held Advocates, which is the policy and lobbying organization that's focused in Washington. 33:29 that is entirely organized around uh supporting policy initiatives focused on women's health. So across breast cancer, menopause, we now have recently added bone health, fertility, et cetera. We have sub teams under the women's health advocates umbrella that are focused on policy initiatives to get budget lines or policy lines into different things in Congress to make sure there's a tension on women's health across, again, aligned by conditions. 33:58 so that we can get things done in Congress. So, Women's Health Collective and Women's Health Advocates, at least in SoCal, there's high overlap in the leadership across these two groups. So, we can do a lot of good things together because the women on the steering committee for Women's Health Advocates who are in LA are the same women who launched the SoCal Women's Health Collective. It's symbiotic uh and I've attended... 34:26 sessions with both groups and it's a very exciting moment. It's there's bipartisan bills going to Congress on just why are knee replacements for men being birthed at a higher rate than for women? We all have the same. So it's like really just providing the transparency. pulled that thread. It's a whole different podcast. I know. know. know. So anyway, so you heard it here. 34:55 What else? I could go on and on, Naseem, but we have a certain time here. And I just wanted to give you this moment to share with my listeners how to contact you, how to get involved in your multiple initiatives. These will be in the show notes. 35:16 Yeah, no, absolutely. So I love that the so find the podcast. It's on Spotify and Apple and all the places where you listen to your podcast. It's called the Capital Flex. So all the subscribers would be amazing. Come and listen. I love feedback. Tell me what you think. Season two will drop on May 6th and season one is tremendous. So start from the top. The second thing is I also host something called a Founders Coven, which is a monthly meetup for female founders. And it's a virtual session. It's an hour. 35:45 uh once a month and the entire intent is to infuse expertise, insight, education into the female founder half of the ecosystem. So we've had three sessions so far and I was doing these in a previous life and I've now rebooted it this year. We've talked about vibe coding. We've talked about healthcare reimbursement. uh Our next session is in two weeks. We have a exited founder coming to talk about how she built her business and then led to the exit. So 36:12 You can join the coven. It's on my LinkedIn. You can find the sign up sheet so you can join the coven and join us when you can each month. And then I also I do a lot. I'm very active on LinkedIn. I'm always writing and posting. I'm speaking at lots of events so you can find me out in the wild pretty easily also because I tend to be around a lot. So that's the easiest. as a pioneer, this is a question that just came to my mind. You were so in the early stages of social media, right? um 36:42 Would you dare to give an opinion on what is the best type of platform to get your voice out there as a, as a leader, a change leader like you, is it LinkedIn? Is it how it. I believe it's LinkedIn. I tell a lot of founders this, that if you want to build credibility and thought leadership in parallel to building your company, start to build a platform on LinkedIn. Got it. Build a point of view. 37:13 have a point of view on what the future looks like when your company wins and start to talk about it. And it doesn't have to be long. It's a couple of it's like blog posts type things and use headlines, right? Use what's going on in the news and in healthcare to express a point of view and to talk about what it means and what are the implications and what are the so what's of what's going on and how does that tie back to what you're building and why you're building it? Because when investors go out to research a company and to research the founder, 37:40 If they, will look at your data room with a look at financials, a look at what you're building. All of that has to be up to snuff. And then they're going to go research the founder. And if they go on LinkedIn and they see that you're writing and publishing and that you've built an audience and that you're somewhat prolific in terms of communicating a point of view, those things are important. They pay off, right? You go, well, she, she's talking about what she wants and she has a perspective that's valuable because it means that you're really committed to the thing that you're after. And 38:09 And women don't spend enough time building platforms. We don't spend enough time standing on soap boxes talking about the things we care about. And we should be doing it more. And all of your friends should like comment and share every single thing that you post. And so I also tell everyone once you share it, send it to all your friends and tell them they have to comment and post on it. We have to keep building the flywheel. A flywheel. You heard it here on the Founder's Sand. 38:38 All right, we're going to go to the sandbox. I like to close out asking my guests, um what is the meaning to you for the following three terms, which I am passionate about and how I work with my founder clients. What does scalability mean to you? Oh, scalability means an ability to grow and navigate the market. 39:03 in line with market trends and market behaviors. knowing, having a good perspective on what's going on, dynamics in the sector that you're in, and having built enough mobility in how you navigate your organization so that you can turn left, turn right, etc. in line with what's going on outside the business. That's scalability. Perfect. How about resilience? 39:32 Resilience. one is it's that. So one, it's a necessary skill. We'll start there. And two, it's an ability to take in what's going on in the market, not take it personally, reflect and keep going. uh Feedback can come from everywhere. A lot of it from places that maybe aren't relevant and not that useful. So knowing how to filter and listen and then really be able to be open minded and take the good feedback when you get it. 40:02 And I had one founder on my podcast say that she spent a lot of time on the floor while she was fundraising, like curled up in a ball because it was so hard. But she got up again every single time and she raised the capital and she built a business and she can use to do that. And that's resilience. Right. I'm after something big and it matters. So I'm going to get it done. Amazing. Amazing. And I heard you when we were talking about the subtitle for the episode. uh 40:32 Abundance. What's abundant? Why is abundance so important for you? Abundance is really important for me because we have been, we women have been conditioned so badly in scarcity where there's not enough. There's only one, only one of us can win. We can't all win. And so we don't share our networks easily. We don't share our relationship easily. We, we feel like we have to keep things really close because if I share it, then I lose it. 41:02 It's a mentality I hear em from founders and it's a bit generational as well. And I don't want us to do that. I have found more than once that the more I put into the ecosystem, the more I get back. Comes back to me in spades. so opening up our networks, sharing what we know, being open about the learnings, pulling everyone forward with us. All of that is going to... 41:29 it's going to benefit all ships rise. it's how our male counterparts have been doing it for years. The golf course is the golf course for a reason. Right. And so we don't have a golf course, but we do have our networks and we do have our relationships and women are very innate relationship builders. It is superpower territory and we should be using it. And that means abundance. That means not worrying about 41:57 being the only one because you know what? We're building our own tables and we're pulling up more chairs and that's how we're gonna get this done. I love it. have goosebumps just listening to this last part about bandits. Thank you, Naseem. Final question. What does purpose, purpose driven mean to you? No, purpose driven means that 42:21 your the things you are doing and the things that bring you joy are lined up. Amazing. Yeah. And you can make money from it. Yeah. Without the joy, right? Yeah. Make money better. Yeah. Final question to Jeff on here in the sandbox. This was great. Yes. Thank you. Amazing. I really enjoyed listening. Just I enjoy our friendship, our working together on 42:50 Common theme, which is getting more money into the female. This is 100%. Yep. So to my listeners, if you like this episode with the same, so Yanny sign up for the monthly release of the founder sandbox, you can find it on any major streaming platform. You've got to find founders, business owners, corporate directors and service providers that are building resilience, scalable and purpose driven companies with great corporate. 43:19 uh governance. So thank you for joining us today and see you next month. Thank you.

What does it actually take to launch a product-based eCommerce business from scratch, scale it to over 400,000 customers, land in 170 Officeworks stores, crack Amazon US, and run a live Kickstarter campaign, all while raising a family from the other side of the world?In this episode of eCommerce Australia, Ryan Martin from Remarkable Digital, sits down with Lou Rice, Co-Founder of Strapsicle, the silicone Kindle and e-reader strap brand that went from a 2am maternity leave idea to a globally recognised eCommerce brand in under four years.Lou gets refreshingly honest about the messy middle of building a product business: the overstock nightmares, the borrowed money, the Amazon learning curve, and why she thinks most Australian eCommerce founders move too slowly on international expansion. If you sell physical products online, whether on Shopify, Amazon, or both, this episode is packed with hard-won tactical and strategic insights.The Strapsicle origin story: how a dropped Kindle at 2am became a 400,000-customer brandLaunching a Kickstarter campaign: why Lou chose crowdfunding and what it takes to run one successfullyAmazon US in 4 months: Lou's approach to international expansion that most Aussie founders avoidScaling into Officeworks: from 13 stores to 170, and what actually drove sell-throughTikTok Shop lives vs. Instagram Live: which channel is converting and how Lou runs flash sales in real timeBuilding a brand community: how a Facebook group with engaged customers becomes a product feedback engineOvercoming eCommerce growing pains: overstock, cash flow, production costs, and how to navigate themFinancial clarity for product founders: why knowing your numbers (especially unit economics on a low-AOV product) matters more than you thinkAccessibility as a product category: how Strapsicle is opening up reading for people with physical limitationsThe one thing most eCommerce founders don't do early enough: Lou Rice is the Co-Founder of Strapsicle, a silicone strap accessory for Kindles and e-readers that makes hands-free reading possible. What started as a 2am maternity leave invention is now a global eCommerce brand with over 400,000 customers, stocked in 170 Officeworks stores across Australia, and sold across the US, UK, and beyond via Shopify and Amazon.Lou is known in the Australian eCommerce community for her direct approach, her willingness to talk about the hard parts of building a product business, and her speed-first philosophy on international expansion.Strapsicle website: strapsicle.comStrapsicle Kickstarter campaign: Search "Strapsicle" on KickstarterOfficeworks: officeworks.com.auAmazon US: amazon.com: search "Strapsicle"eCommerce Australia Podcast: Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTubeShopify eCommerce Australia, product-based business, eCommerce growth strategy, Amazon FBA Australia, Officeworks retail distribution, TikTok Shop Australia, live shopping eCommerce, Kickstarter product launch, Kindle accessories, scaling a physical product business, eCommerce founder story, international expansion strategy, eCommerce community building, Shopify store growth, low AOV product strategy, Australian eCommerce podcast

Check out our corporate subscription plan: https://the-ken.com/corporate-teams/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=corporate-subscriptionsPart 1 of Rohin Dharmakumar's conversation with Riyaaz Amlani is the origin story: why a returning UCLA grad decided Bombay was missing "places to be," how Mocha became Social, and what it actually takes to keep a restaurant group alive for 25 years in the highest-mortality business there is. The shisha ban, the private-equity money that never arrived, COVID, the marble hustle at age six, and the real engine underneath it all: people.CHAPTERS00:00  Intro: 95% fail by year two — and the man who didn't01:46  Why Mocha in 2001: a city missing "places to be"03:23  Bombay the "coolest cousin"; South Bombay snobbery moves to Bandra05:05  The MTV / Gen X generation and a West-facing India07:47  UCLA, entertainment management, and learning to live culture11:29  What "Handmade" and "Impresario" mean14:13  The business today: 80 restaurants, 900 cr, 5,500 people15:29  Why restaurants die; learning from the community18:02  People vs processes — and why he keeps returning to people19:32  Social: the millennial third space and the shisha ban25:41  The Gen Z puzzle; Saltwater to Bandra Bourn; evolution vs revolution30:46  Real estate: location vs locality and India's "80 pockets"32:32  The metric that matters: AOV x covers x table turnaround35:33  COVID and surviving "mass-extinction events"39:17  The town hall: the team takes 40% pay to save the company40:51  What losing a restaurant feels like; the discipline to quit42:44  Mental model: 4-5 engines to ride economic cycles46:42  The marble business and hustling from age 1251:20  Bowling alleys & Phoenix Mills: people buy time together53:44  Self-rating: 7.5 as a parent, 5 as a CEO55:15  Building a restaurant vs building an organization56:15  The HR crisis: severe attrition, talent going abroad58:44  The one thing he can't delegate: layouts and property selection1:00:49 Becoming a "boardroom warrior" against his will KEY COMPANIES & BRANDSImpresario Handmade Restaurants; Mocha; Social; Saltwater Cafe/Grill; Bandra Born; Cafe Coffee Day; Phoenix Mills "Bowling Company"; Amoeba; UCLA. KEY CONCEPTSThird spaces; "handmade" at scale; West-aspirational MTV-generation culture; people vs processes; AOV x covers x table turnaround; frequency as a metric; location vs locality / "80 pockets"; evolution vs revolution; mass-extinction events & resilience; working-capital-negative business; building a restaurant vs building an organization; restaurant-industry attrition; the layouts/property selection he won't delegate.

Most e-commerce brands pour everything into getting customers to checkout — and then hand them a generic, one-size-fits-all experience that quietly kills the sale. Avi Moskowitz, co-founder of PDQ, has processed millions of checkouts across top Shopify brands (including Jones Road Beauty), and his diagnosis is blunt: cart abandonment isn't a technical problem. It's an emotional one. And it's leaving $270 billion on the table every year.Inside the episode:Why your checkout is the one place segmentation goes to die — and how personalizing it by customer type (first-time, returning, high-value) can drive an 18% AOV lift or double-digit conversion jumpsThe "WISMO problem": why more than 50% of order-related support tickets arrive the same day the order was placed — and what it tells you about the trust gap you're creating at checkoutThe free shipping threshold mistake almost every brand is making (hint: they copied a competitor who also just guessed)Surprising checkout wins from PDQ's testing: why moving the economy shipping option down one slot meaningfully increased revenue per session — without a single new ad or productHow to think about every order as its own P&L — factoring in CAC, COGS, fulfillm—Sponsored by OMG Commerce - go to https://www.omgcommerce.com/contact and request your FREE strategy session today!—Chapters:[00:00] Intro — The $270B checkout abandonment problem[00:22] Welcome & Guest Introduction: Avi Moskowitz, Co-Founder of PDQ[01:52] Avi's Background: From Craft Beer to SaaS Founder[03:23] COVID Timing & The eCommerce Wake-Up Call[05:09] The Root Cause of Cart Abandonment: Trust, Not Technology[07:27] How PDQ Solves the Checkout Confidence Gap[14:30] Reducing Friction: Shipping, Delivery Dates & Upsells[23:00] Free Shipping Thresholds & AOV Optimization[34:00] Building a Checkout That Converts Like Amazon[43:24] Thinking in Mini P&Ls: Per-Order Profit Optimization[46:26] Personalized Checkout Logic at the Customer Level[48:24] Where to Find PDQ & Get Your Free Checkout Audit—Connect With Brett: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thebrettcurry/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQmbMwBW8LYDfFAqNqlgTGw Website: https://www.omgcommerce.com/ Request a Free Strategy Session: https://www.omgcommerce.com/contactRelevant Links: Avi's LinkedIn: /moskowitzaviPast guests on eCommerce Evolution include Ezra Firestone, Steve Chou, Drew Sanocki, Jacques Spitzer, Jeremy Horowitz, Ryan Moran, Sean Frank, Andrew Youderian, Ryan McKenzie, Joseph Wilkins, Cody Wittick, Miki Agrawal, Justin Brooke, Nish Samantray, Kurt Elster, John Parkes, Chris Mercer, Rabah Rahil, Bear Handlon, JC Hite, Frederick Vallaeys, Preston Rutherford, Anthony Mink, Bill D'Allessandro, Stephane Colleu, Jeff Oxford, Bryan Porter and more

Tori Gill was still cutting hair on weekends when she sold her first 20,000 sunscreens. A former hairdresser with two kids, no e-commerce background, and a product that took two years to develop, she launched Sun & Daughter on Boxing Day 2024 and hasn't really stopped since. This is the follow-up episode - and a lot has happened. In this episode, Tori gets real about what scaling from $100K to a million-dollar brand actually looks like from the inside: the stockouts, the 54-hour Facebook ad account lockout, the $20,000 orders she had to back herself on, and the retail decision she's made that could either be her smartest move yet - or, in her own words, "the biggest mistake of my life." What you'll learn in this interview: How a consumer watchdog report on failing sunscreen SPF tests became an unexpected growth moment - and how Tori moved fast enough to capitalise on it Why she packed every order from her spare room for a full year, alongside two kids and two days a week in the barber shop, before finally moving into a warehouse the week before Christmas The exact moment a Choice magazine article turned into a sales spike, and how having your formula independently tested can become your most credible marketing asset How Tori used a trending audio format - kids in hats, waiting for SPF results - to make an ad that outperformed every polished campaign she'd ever run Why she treats her Instagram like a reality TV show, and what that means for how she handles UGC, consistent visuals, and the decision never to post other people's faces on her brand page The average order value lesson she learned from Founder that led her to build out hats, brushes, wet bags, and bundles - and push her AOV from $75 to over $111 Why she skipped Black Friday, never ran a sale in year one, and then sold 1,000 sunscreens in 24 hours the first time she did - and why she hasn't done it since Lessons from adding 5 to 10 new ad creatives every single week, and why she's changed her entire campaign structure three times in 15 months How she uses Instagram Stories polls to let her community choose product colours, hat designs, and packaging - and why it's as much about solving her own indecisiveness as it is about building loyalty What she's learned about going into major retail - the upfront stock commitments, the hidden marketing costs, and why she still doesn't know if it was the right call If you're building a product brand and starting to feel like you're holding multiple plates in the air at once - ads, content, stock, manufacturing, team, retail - this episode is worth your time. Tori doesn't have it all figured out, and she says so. But the way she thinks through each decision, tests before she scales, and keeps backing herself anyway is exactly the kind of thinking that turns a spare-room operation into something real. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend with the code FOUNDR50. Just head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://your.omnisend.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get started. WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/operators⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH BY TORI GILL Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/sunanddaughter_/ Tori's ⁠⁠⁠Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/@torigill__/ Tori's Barber ⁠Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/torigill_barber/ Website → ⁠⁠https://www.sunanddaughter.com.au/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

I see it every single time. Great product. Solid branding. Ads running. And yet it won't scale. Conversions are flat, the economics don't work, and the founder is convinced it's the creative or the funnel or the targeting. It's never the ads. It's the offer. Here's the problem: most founders spend 90% of their time perfecting the product and almost no time on the complete package around it. The framing, the bundle, the guarantee, the AOV. And without that, no amount of ad spend is going to save you. In this episode, I break down what a deliberately engineered offer actually looks like, why getting it right is the single biggest unlock for scaling, and the real-world examples from our Foundr Operators members and the brands spending $100K-plus a day that prove it. Here's what you'll take away: Why conversion problems are almost always an economics and offer problem, not a product, creative, or funnel problem How IM8 turned a supplement powder into an irresistible offer and why every element of their bundle is deliberately engineered How Foundr Operators member Emma tripled her brand's revenue with Sisu without increasing traffic, just by rebuilding her offer The AOV floor every e-commerce brand needs to hit before paid ads can scale profitably What makes an offer feel risk-free: guarantees, social proof, returns policy, and friction reduction done right Why your customer isn't buying a product. They're buying certainty, value, and the feeling that this is the obvious choice If your ads aren't scaling and your conversion rate isn't moving, stop tweaking your creative and start here. Getting the offer right is the thing that changes the trajectory, and everything else gets easier once it clicks. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/operators⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

Jason Kutasi is the founder and CEO of SkyHouse, a performance marketing agency that managed $50M in ad spend for 2025 - its first full year of business. He's driven roughly $500M in advertising over his career and built a children's book publisher acquired by Scholastic and a digital marketing platform acquired by Capital One.  Jason specializes in copywriting, funnel analytics, and scaling high-growth DTC and telemedicine brands.Highlight Bullets> Here's a glimpse of what you would learn…. E-commerce growth strategies and challenges.Comparison of selling on Amazon versus Shopify.Importance of average order value (AOV) in scaling advertising.Strategies to increase AOV, such as product bundling and premium versions.The role of TikTok and other platforms in e-commerce marketing.Managing advertising campaigns and the balance between creative volume and quality.The significance of agency versus in-house marketing teams.The impact of AI on marketing and the importance of human expertise.Insights on effective copywriting and video content in advertising.The future of e-commerce marketing and the evolving landscape of digital advertising.In this episode of the E-comm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley speaks with Jason Kutasi, CEO of Skyhouse, about scaling e-commerce brands. They discuss the importance of average order value (AOV), emphasizing that brands need at least $60 in margin to run profitable paid ads. Jason contrasts Amazon-first versus Shopify-first strategies, recommends bundling and subscriptions to boost AOV, and advises starting with freelancers before scaling with agencies and in-house teams. They also explore Meta advertising, creative quality versus volume, and how AI augments—but doesn't replace—skilled marketers and copywriters.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Fix Your AOV Before Scaling Ads Don't run paid ads until your average order value and margins can support CAC. Aim for $60+ margin per order using bundles, upsells, or subscriptions.Build on Shopify, Use Amazon as a Bonus Channel Prioritize DTC (Shopify) to control pricing, data, and AOV—then layer Amazon as an incremental revenue stream, not your foundation.Test Creatives Broadly, Then Double Down on Winners Launch multiple ad variations quickly, identify what works, and scale only high-performing creatives with better production and audience targeting.Timestamps:00:00:00 Introduction to the AOV ProblemJason Kutasi explains that Amazon sellers often struggle to scale on other platforms due to a low Average Order Value.00:00:34 Host & Guest IntroductionHost Josh Hadley introduces the episode's topic and guest Jason Kutasi, founder and CEO of performance marketing agency Skyhouse.00:02:26 Amazon vs. Shopify MindsetA discussion on the two primary approaches to starting an e-commerce business and the challenges faced by Amazon-first brands.00:03:39 The $60 Margin RuleJason explains why brands need at least $60 in margin to profitably acquire customers on paid ad platforms like Meta.00:04:37 Strategies to Increase AOVActionable ways to increase Average Order Value, including creating sister brands, bundling products, and offering aggressive subscription models.00:07:56 The "Shopify First" AdvantageThe benefits of a higher AOV, which provides more margin to scale advertising across multiple channels beyond Amazon PPC.00:10:30 Why You Must Be OmnichannelJason argues that Shopify brands should sell on Amazon to avoid losing customers who prefer to purchase there.00:14:01 Case Study: A Massive Meta Ad WinJason details a recent successful video ad campaign that scaled to thousands of orders in a single weekend.00:20:04 Navigating Meta's Andromeda UpdateA discussion on Meta's shift to creative-driven campaigns and the strategy of slicing avatars for better, more stable performance.00:23:34 Agency vs. In-House TeamsJason breaks down when to hire a freelancer, an agency, or build an in-house team for your marketing efforts.00:29:13 Why Most Marketing Agencies FailJason shares his experience with underperforming agencies and what brand owners should look for when hiring one.00:33:28 Building an In-House Team Alongside an AgencyThe importance of building an internal team to de-risk your business and test new offers before scaling with an agency.00:36:38 The Future of E-commerce and AIJason predicts AI will commoditize ad creation, making predictive modeling and data-driven rules the new competitive edge.00:41:42 AI as a Human AmplifierAI won't replace skilled marketers but will augment their abilities, allowing them to perform at a much higher level.00:44:43 Three Actionable TakeawaysThe host summarizes the episode's key lessons: fix your AOV, build in-house, and leverage AI with smart people.00:49:33 Jason's Final RecommendationsJason shares his most influential book, favorite AI tool (Claude Code), and a respected figure in the e-commerce space.Resources mentioned in this episode:Josh Hadley on LinkedIneComm Breakthrough ConsultingeComm Breakthrough PodcastEmail Josh Hadley: Josh@eCommBreakthrough.comTools and Websites"Amazon": "00:02:26""Shopify": "00:02:26""Meta (Facebook/Instagram Ads)": "00:02:56""Google Ads": "00:02:56""YouTube Ads": "00:02:56""TikTok": "00:06:23""PayPal": "00:11:49""Apple Pay": "00:11:49""Google Pay": "00:11:49""Shop Pay": "00:11:49""Claude Code": "00:50:05""Meta": "00:38:16"Books"The E-Myth by Michael E. Gerber": "00:00:56""Cash Flow": "00:49:36"Videos"Video Ads": "00:14:01"Notable Mentions / People"Skyhouse (Jason Kutasi's performan...

In this episode of the Inventory Genius Podcast, I'm serving up a major wake-up call for product-based business owners: revenue does not equal profit. If you've ever had a record-breaking sales month but still feel completely broke, or if you're making major business decisions based on a gut feeling rather than actual data, this episode is for you. I break down the massive misconception that growing your top-line revenue automatically means scaling your business. In fact, without a clear picture of your numbers, a product business can easily sell itself right out of business due to skyrocketing fulfillment costs and hidden inventory drains. I share the exact four-bucket framework I use with my clients to strip the emotion out of finances, stop the reactive discounting, and give you the ultimate roadmap to smart cash flow. Key Takeaways Feelings Are Not a Financial Strategy: Making reactive decisions based on emotion leads to overstocking, undercharging, and unnecessary discounting. Data gives you the confidence to say yes or no to hires, ad spend, and wholesale inquiries. The Revenue Trap: Product businesses can easily grow themselves out of business if their cost of goods sold (COGS) is too high or if inventory is mismanaged. Your Secret Weapon: Gross margin is the single most overlooked and underutilized number in a product business, but it serves as the absolute backbone of a sustainable brand. The 4 Buckets of Numbers To make your data easy to digest, I break down your business metrics into four distinct categories: Revenue & Sales: Total sales, sales by revenue stream (e-commerce, wholesale, brick-and-mortar), average order value (AOV), and units per transaction (UPT). Profitability: Gross margin per product, total COGS (materials, packaging, labor), and net profit/loss. This is where vanity metrics end and true scaling begins. Inventory & Cash Flow: The value of inventory on hand, inventory turn (what's moving vs. sitting), and cash in versus cash out. Customer Metrics: New vs. returning customer ratios, email list growth, and store/website conversion rates. These allow you to accurately predict future revenue trends. Your Financial Hygiene Rhythm Different numbers require a different review process. I recommend establishing a dedicated routine—like our signature Money Mondays—to check in on your business health. The Weekly Checklist - Total revenue (this week vs. last week)- Units sold by product category or brand- Average order value (AOV)- New email subscribers or customer acquisition numbers- Cash balance in your dedicated inventory checking account- Outstanding invoices or bills due- Top-selling products- Ad spend vs. revenue generated from ads The Monthly Checklist - Total revenue vs. the prior month and the same month last year- Breakdown of revenue by specific revenue stream- Gross margin by your top 5 products or brands (be ruthless here!)- Total cost of goods sold (COGS) for the month- Full financial review (Profit & Loss statement and Balance Sheet)- New vs. returning customer ratios- Total marketing spend vs. total revenue generated Work with Me - https://www.ciarastockeland.com/work-with-meVisit the Bookstore - https://www.ciarastockeland.com/bookstoreSign Up for Free Weekly Tips and Trainings - https://www.ciarastockeland.com/subscribe More About the Episode Sponsor:Simply Lynn's Creative (https://simplylynnscreative.com/) - With real retail roots and 225+ brands served since 2018, Simply Lynn's Creative partners with retailers and product-based businesses on branding, Shopify website design, and Klaviyo email marketing. They build the strategy, the systems, and the confidence to help you grow a brand that looks the part and sells to match! Use code CS15 at checkout, and save 15% off anything in the Resources Shop!

In this episode of the Inventory Genius Podcast, I'm serving up a major wake-up call for product-based business owners: revenue does not equal profit. If you've ever had a record-breaking sales month but still feel completely broke, or if you're making major business decisions based on a gut feeling rather than actual data, this episode is for you. I break down the massive misconception that growing your top-line revenue automatically means scaling your business. In fact, without a clear picture of your numbers, a product business can easily sell itself right out of business due to skyrocketing fulfillment costs and hidden inventory drains. I share the exact four-bucket framework I use with my clients to strip the emotion out of finances, stop the reactive discounting, and give you the ultimate roadmap to smart cash flow. Key Takeaways Feelings Are Not a Financial Strategy: Making reactive decisions based on emotion leads to overstocking, undercharging, and unnecessary discounting. Data gives you the confidence to say yes or no to hires, ad spend, and wholesale inquiries. The Revenue Trap: Product businesses can easily grow themselves out of business if their cost of goods sold (COGS) is too high or if inventory is mismanaged. Your Secret Weapon: Gross margin is the single most overlooked and underutilized number in a product business, but it serves as the absolute backbone of a sustainable brand. The 4 Buckets of Numbers To make your data easy to digest, I break down your business metrics into four distinct categories: Revenue & Sales: Total sales, sales by revenue stream (e-commerce, wholesale, brick-and-mortar), average order value (AOV), and units per transaction (UPT). Profitability: Gross margin per product, total COGS (materials, packaging, labor), and net profit/loss. This is where vanity metrics end and true scaling begins. Inventory & Cash Flow: The value of inventory on hand, inventory turn (what's moving vs. sitting), and cash in versus cash out. Customer Metrics: New vs. returning customer ratios, email list growth, and store/website conversion rates. These allow you to accurately predict future revenue trends. Your Financial Hygiene Rhythm Different numbers require a different review process. I recommend establishing a dedicated routine—like our signature Money Mondays—to check in on your business health. The Weekly Checklist - Total revenue (this week vs. last week)- Units sold by product category or brand- Average order value (AOV)- New email subscribers or customer acquisition numbers- Cash balance in your dedicated inventory checking account- Outstanding invoices or bills due- Top-selling products- Ad spend vs. revenue generated from ads The Monthly Checklist - Total revenue vs. the prior month and the same month last year- Breakdown of revenue by specific revenue stream- Gross margin by your top 5 products or brands (be ruthless here!)- Total cost of goods sold (COGS) for the month- Full financial review (Profit & Loss statement and Balance Sheet)- New vs. returning customer ratios- Total marketing spend vs. total revenue generated Work with Me - https://www.ciarastockeland.com/work-with-meVisit the Bookstore - https://www.ciarastockeland.com/bookstoreSign Up for Free Weekly Tips and Trainings - https://www.ciarastockeland.com/subscribe More About the Episode Sponsor:Simply Lynn's Creative (https://simplylynnscreative.com/) - With real retail roots and 225+ brands served since 2018, Simply Lynn's Creative partners with retailers and product-based businesses on branding, Shopify website design, and Klaviyo email marketing. They build the strategy, the systems, and the confidence to help you grow a brand that looks the part and sells to match! Use code CS15 at checkout, and save 15% off anything in the Resources Shop!

Send us Fan MailMost sports teams hire an agency to sell more tickets — then evaluate them on impressions, clicks, and CPM. In Episode 166, Jeremy Neisser breaks down why those vanity metrics are misleading, what an outside marketing partner can and can't control, and the conversion-focused metrics that actually tell you whether your agency is earning its fee. A practical episode for any marketing director, ticket sales leader, or revenue officer evaluating an outside partner this season.KEY TOPICS COVERED- Why most sports teams are scoring their agency on the wrong scoreboard — and what to use instead- The difference between vanity metrics (impressions, clicks, CPM, reach) and revenue-driving metrics (conversions, cost per buyer, attributed revenue)- Why huge website traffic with no buyers means the campaign didn't work- What marketing can fix — and what it can't (pricing, schedule, fan experience, ticketing UX)- "Marketing is multiplication, not magic": how a weak offer or broken product gets amplified, not solved- How to spot the silent killer of agency partnerships: chaos creation vs. chaos reduction- The exact KPIs to hold your agency accountable to: conversions, conversion rate, cost per purchase, cost per lead, repeat buyers, AOV, retargeting growth, attributed revenue- Why pattern recognition and platform speed are the real product you're paying for- How a great agency lets a marketing director get out of the "0-2 count" mindset and operate proactively- What separates a transactional vendor from a true strategic partner- The right questions to ask when reviewing your current agency's performanceTIMESTAMPS[00:00] – Why evaluating a sports marketing agency is harder than it looks[00:25] – The vanity-metric trap: why impressions and clicks mislead leadership[00:53] – Why heavy website traffic still produces flat ticket sales[01:22] – The metrics that actually drive growth and ROI[01:45] – What marketing can't fix: pricing, schedule, and operational issues[02:14] – Red flags: agencies that create chaos instead of reducing it[02:43] – Tactical work vs. strategic impact in agency evaluation[03:07] – Why attribution and proactive reporting separate good agencies from bad[03:35] – Building collaborative relationships, not vendor relationships[04:04] – Using your agency to actually understand fan behavior[04:32] – Where marketing hits a wall against broken business systems[05:01] – How the right agency brings clarity and reduces internal chaos[05:30] – Reactive vs. proactive communication: how to tell the difference[06:00] – Holding agencies accountable on sales and revenue, not activity[06:29] – Why strategic insight beats surface-level metrics every time[07:00] – How agency partnerships evolve from transactional to strategic[07:26] – Measuring agency success through conversions and audience growth[07:55] – The role of attribution and clear, honest reporting[08:16] – The daily firefight in sports marketing — and how an agency should ease it[08:46] – Pattern recognition, trend identification, and creative testing speed[09:13] – When an agency challenges assumptions and sparks new ideas[09:40] – Building a strategic partnership focused on tickets and fan growth[10:09] – The real value of proactive trend analysis and outside perspective[10:37] – Main takeaways: business impact over vanity metrics[11:04] – Why marketing amplifies — but doesn't solve — operational issues[11:33] – Clarity and strategic collaboration as the new standard[11:59] – How to honestly assess your current agency's reporting[12:21] – Free 30-minute consult: get a second opinion on your agency reports[12:48] – Final thoughts and how to share this with your teamCALL TO ACTIONIf you're working with an outside marketing partner and you're not sure whether the reporting you're getting actually proves they're moving the needle, Jeremy is offering a free 30-minute conversation to walk through it with you. No pitch, no strings — just clarity. Grab a slot at sportsmarketingmachine.com.RESOURCES & LINKSRevelocity Sports: https://revelocitysports.com/Jeremy Neisser on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/jeremyneisserFree 30-Minute Marketing Consultation: https://sportsmarketingmachine.com/QUOTE PULLSJeremy Neisser: "Clicks don't pay the bills. Impressions don't pay the bills. Conversions do."Jeremy Neisser: "Traffic without conversion is just noise."Jeremy Neisser: "Marketing is multiplication, not magic. If the underlying experience is broken, marketing just amplifies the problem."Jeremy Neisser: "A good agency should reduce chaos, not create it. If your agency creates more fires than they put out, that's a problem."Jeremy Neisser: "The best agencies don't just run ads and send reports. They become strategic partners — they challenge assumptions, bring ideas, and connect your marketing to revenue."Episode page - LINKSports Marketing Machine on LinkedInSports Marketing Machine on InstagramBook a call with Jeremy from Sports Marketing Machine

Stop losing revenue after the click! Let's find the leak before your next ad. Get your free CRO audit at: https://www.tiereleven.com/cro/service Are you optimizing your site based on what looks good or what actually converts? Most brands are bleeding revenue because their CRO strategy starts with design opinions instead of hard data. If you're copying competitor layouts or A/B testing button colors without first identifying your true 'metric on fire,' you're solving the wrong problem.In this episode, Tier 11's CRO lead, Ned MacPherson, is back for part two of our three-part series. Ned walks through a live data presentation covering engagement rates, funnel drop-off analysis, mobile vs. desktop conversion gaps, AOV benchmarks, and demographic distribution modeling. We also review a real-world case where a brand's mobile add-to-cart rate was nearly half that of desktop, despite a good landing page design. If your CRO audit isn't moving the needle, this episode will show you what you're missing and how to find the one metric that, if fixed, creates a disproportionate impact on your entire funnel. What you'll learn:- Why copying competitor designs is a dangerous CRO mistake - How to identify the single 'metric on fire' that's killing your conversion rate- Key engagement rate benchmarks e-commerce brands should measure against- Why a low mobile add-to-cart rate is often a content problem, not a design problem- How to use mobile vs. desktop funnel data to uncover hidden conversion gaps- The cart-to-checkout friction fix that boosts conversion rates on all devices - The urgency engineering tactic that converts abandoned checkout carts- Why AOV should always be equal on mobile and desktop- How demographic distribution modeling helps in audience segmentation- The step-by-step CRO loop and growth modelMentioned in the Episode:Previous Episode with Ned MacPherson: https://perpetualtraffic.com/podcast/episode-796-stop-redesigning-start-diagnosing-the-cro-method-that-actually-works/ Perpetual Traffic YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@perpetual_traffic?sub_confirmation=1 Listen to This Episode on Your Favorite Podcast Channel:Follow and listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/perpetual-traffic/id1022441491 Follow and listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/59lhtIWHw1XXsRmT5HBAuK Subscribe and watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@perpetual_traffic?sub_confirmation=1We Appreciate Your Support!Visit our website: https://perpetualtraffic.com/ Connect with Ned MacPherson:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nedmacpherson/ Connect with Ralph Burns: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralphburns Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ralphhburns/ Hire Tier11 - https://www.tiereleven.com/apply-now Mentioned in this episode:Apply for an ad spot on Perpetual Traffic for Q1 or Q2. Visit www.perpetualtraffic.com today to secure your spot!Apply for an ad spot on Perpetual Traffic for Q1 or Q2. Visit www.perpetualtraffic.com today to secure your spot!Apply for an ad spot on Perpetual Traffic for Q1 or Q2. Visit www.perpetualtraffic.com today to secure your spot!

Most brands underestimate how much personalized retention strategies can transform their growth — Zach Fromson, Co-Founder at Lilo Social, uncovers the overlooked levers brands must pull now to supercharge customer lifetime value and build a sustainable business.In this eye-opening episode, Zach, a top Klaviyo Elite partner and co-founder of the full-funnel agency Lilo Social, reveals how brands are leaving money on the table by sticking with linear, one-size-fits-all retention approaches. Instead, he dives into the nuanced science of journey mapping, channel-specific insights, and the strategic use of data — showing exactly how to craft experiences that foster loyalty, increase LTV, and outsmart rising CACs.You'll discover the real reasons most brands aren't fully leveraging their retention potential — from capacity gaps to a lack of education around journey mapping and automation. Zach shares concrete frameworks for understanding customer behavior across subscription, durable, and one-time purchase spaces, and how to build customized, context-driven workflows that move beyond generic promos. Learn how to measure success through metrics like time to repurchase, AOV, and cohort analysis, proving that a granular, tailored approach isn't just smart — it's essential in today's competitive landscape.We also break down emerging channels like SMS and innovative tools such as Google's RCS — and how early adoption can give you a crucial edge before saturation. Zach reveals how the most forward-thinking brands are integrating these new modalities to deepen engagement, gather richer data, and create immersive shopping experiences. Plus, get his take on the broad impact of AI on agency workflows and how to future-proof your team.If you're a founder, marketer, or e-commerce owner tired of playing it safe with generic strategies, this episode is your blueprint to unlocking exponential growth through smarter retention. Don't be the brand left behind in the noise; adapt, innovate, and thrive — Zach shows you exactly how.Want to learn how to make your retention efforts more personalized, simple, and surprisingly effective? This episode is your first step toward conversion mastery. Reach out to Zach at LiloSocial.com or connect on LinkedIn — your next big move starts here.

Subscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupFull Glass Wine Co.Neha Kumar joins the podcast to break down how Full Glass Wine Co. acquired 7 DTC wine companies, integrated them under one operating system, and scaled to a $200M platform in under two years.This wasn't a “buy brands and hope” strategy. Neha explains how COVID-era DTC brands overbought inventory, ignored unit economics, and optimized for growth over profitability — creating one of the biggest acquisition opportunities in modern ecommerce.For DTC founders scaling from $5M–$50M who want to improve retention, fix unit economics, and build operational leverage across brands.Inside the episode:Why subscription models quietly broke a lot of DTC wine businesses The exact operational changes Full Glass uses to make acquisitions profitable in 60–120 days How they centralized shipping, finance, SMS, and retention while preserving each brand's identity Why retention, not acquisition, became the core growth engine The hidden downside of emailing subscription customers too often How Wink's 7M-email quiz funnel became a massive acquisition asset Why customer segmentation matters more than product assortment in brand acquisitions The “three legs of the tripod” framework for building durable DTC companies: marketing, finance, and operations Neha's “Year of Yes” mindset shift inspired by Willy Wonka that changed how she built companies Who this is for:Operators, retention marketers, DTC founders, PE-backed ecommerce brands, acquisition entrepreneurs, and anyone trying to scale profitably after the cheap-CAC era ended.What to steal:Move from monthly shipments to higher-AOV quarterly bundles to fix shipping economics Centralize infrastructure, not brand voice Treat retention like the business engine, not an afterthought Timestamps:0:00 Intro to Full Glass Wine Co2:18 Why DTC wine brands struggled after COVID6:12 How Winc collapsed from inventory overload8:05 The 3-part formula for profitable DTC brands10:05 What Full Glass looks for in acquisitions13:05 Centralizing customer service across wine brands15:02 Building brands around customer identity17:42 The Willy Wonka “year of yes” mindset21:58 What happens after acquiring a company24:45 Why subscription models don't work for wine29:12 Storytelling vs transactional retention emails32:18 How Full Glass approaches retention marketing35:05 Managing inventory and cash flow in wine37:15 Trusting intuition as an operator40:18 How Full Glass is using AI internally42:05 Are the next generation of entrepreneurs ready?45:00 What's next for Full Glass Wine CoSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdvertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertiseWork with Pilothouse - https://dtcnews.link/pilothouseFollow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletterWatch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video

Drawing on over a decade of experience on the brand, HoldCo, and agency sides of DTC, Andrew Faris (Founder, AJF Growth) joins Connor MacDonald (CMO, Ridge) and Cody Plofker (CEO, Jones Road Beauty) to discuss what it takes to build and scale an ecommerce brand across every stage of growth. The conversation covers what advice from larger operators can get wrong for smaller brands and why AOV may be the most underrated metric in subscription businesses. They explore how to think about the atomic units of an offer, the real trade-offs between in-house and agency media buying, and why the message is the most underrated growth tactic in ecommerce today. This episode is brought to you by AppLovin. Get access to the Operators channel expansion playbook, online masterclass, and up to $5k in ad credits here: https://www.9operators.com/paid-growth Or, skip the waitlist and launch your Axon by AppLovin ads today with our Operators-exclusive link: https://axon.ai/en/9operators 

Most coaches scaling past $300K hit a ceiling and assume they need a higher-ticket offer. Maria Wendt did the opposite and built an 8-figure business selling $24 products. In this conversation, Natalie sits down with Maria Wendt — the founder behind an 8-figure business built on low-ticket products. Maria breaks down how she scaled to near-$1M/months working ~10 hours a week, the front-page checkout architecture that turns $1 orders into $100+ carts at a 60% take rate, why she walked away from the $1M/year coaching model after her daughter was born, and how she scaled to 100K YouTube subscribers in seven months with a webcam and no editor. If you've ever wondered whether low-ticket can actually scale past seven figures — without a higher-ticket offer, a bigger team, or longer hours — this episode is the full operating system. Time Stamps: 01:15  -The low-ticket 8-figure model 07:35 - Maria's first two years: $63 → $350 13:18 - The single-mom pivot to low-ticket 16:24 - Pricing, AOV, and lifetime value 21:00 - Checkout architecture and front-page bumps 31:40 - Content strategy: three types 38:25 - The $850K/month math 43:20 - Hiring strategy for mom-founders 49:00 - A typical day in the business Resources and Links:  Follow Maria: @maria.wendt on Instagram Free tutorials, free guides, and the full $24 product library lives at mariawendt.com. Pre-Order The Freedom-Based Business Method. Sign Up For Our Free Weekly Newsletter & Get Insights From Natalie Every Single Week On All Things Strategy, Motherhood, Business Growth + More.  Drop Us A Review On The Podcast + Send Us A Screenshot & We'll Send You Natalie's 7-Figure Operating System Completely FREE (value $1,997).

Most e-commerce founders see the fuel crisis in the news and think it's someone else's problem. But if you're shipping products right now, it's already showing up in your bills — and if you're still running last year's shipping model, you're bleeding margin without realising it. Here's the problem: this isn't one cost squeeze. It's three hitting at the same time — carrier rate hikes, fuel surcharges, and geopolitical disruption — and the effective rate increase for most e-com brands right now is sitting between 8 and 12%. In this episode, I walk you through the four moves I'd make right now to protect your margins, from rebuilding your AOV strategy around your new shipping threshold to the packaging audit most founders never think to run. Here's what you'll take away: The actual numbers: what USPS, UPS, FedEx, Amazon, and Australia Post surcharges mean for your cost per order right now How to use the threshold gap strategy to raise your free shipping threshold without killing conversion Why product bundling done right can lift AOV by 30 to 70% — and the real-world example of how a sleep tape brand is doing it with digital add-ons When to seriously consider switching to a 3PL — and the volume crossover point that makes it a no-brainer The dim weight formula and why most brands are literally paying to ship air Why nearly 50% of cart abandonment comes down to surprise shipping costs — and how radical transparency fixes it If you're absorbing these cost increases without a plan, this episode will show you exactly where to start — and how the brands that come out ahead during downturns are already thinking about this differently. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/operators⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

Scott Dancy is the founder and CEO of Azuna, a fast-growing challenger brand in at-home odor elimination. Since launching in 2019, Scott has scaled Azuna into a serious category disruptor. Prior to launching Azuna, Scott built, scaled, and sold several companies across cybersecurity, staffing, and energy - with curiosity as his fuel.  During the dot-com boom, Scott was the youngest member of the cybersecurity board, working directly with the Attorney General to navigate the rapidly changing early years of the internet. He is a graduate of the University of Rochester and resides in Buffalo, NY where Azuna is based.  In This Conversation We Discuss: [00:00] Intro [00:47] Tripling revenue by solving everyday problems  [03:00] Reinvesting profits to outlast competitions [05:25] Sponsor: Klaviyo [07:32] Learning from mistakes at every stage  [12:23] Sponsor: Intelligems [14:23] Building LTV when first orders barely profit [17:02] Grinding to millions without ever going viral [20:14] Sponsor: Electric Eye [21:22] Learning when to keep things in-house  [23:27] Calllouts [23:37] Building equity culture across your whole team  [23:05] Creating a team culture people refuse to leave  Resources: Subscribe to Honest Ecommerce on Youtube Naturally effective odor eliminators azunafresh.com/ Follow Scott Dancy linkedin.com/in/scott-dancy-189542200 Get your free demo klaviyo.com/honest Book a demo today at intelligems.io/ Schedule an intro call with one of our experts electriceye.io/connect If you're enjoying the show, we'd love it if you left Honest Ecommerce a review on Apple Podcasts. It makes a huge impact on the success of the podcast, and we love reading every one of your reviews!

Subscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signuphttp://coyuchi.comCoyuchi is a premium bedding brand with a long purchase cycle and high AOV. That changes how you approach growth, attribution, and retention.Vicki Williams-Grahan (Brand President) explains how they tested Meta's impact by turning it off, how they think about LTV in a low-frequency category, and why product selection inside ads matters as much as creative.For DTC operators scaling high-AOV brands with long purchase cycles who need to rethink CAC, LTV, and attribution.In this episode:What happened when they turned off Meta for 6 weeks Why Google Analytics 4 underreported performance vs platform data How segmentation (via Decile) changed acquisition Why entry-level products lowered overall performance How they use daily forecasting and contribution profit Who this is for:Operators in high-AOV categories (home, furniture, luxury, etc.)What to steal:Run incrementality tests (or dim market tests) Prioritize high-LTV acquisition, not just conversion rate Track contribution profit daily Timestamps00:00 Introduction and evolving customer profile02:00 Coyuchi brand overview and DTC shift04:30 Challenges of high AOV and long purchase cycles07:00 Customer segmentation and tools like Decile09:30 Meta ads experiment and going dark13:00 Attribution insights and incrementality testing15:00 Daily forecasting and contribution profit focus17:30 Product strategy and high LTV vs entry products21:30 Retention storytelling and non-sales emails25:00 Brand repositioning beyond sustainability32:00 Bringing paid social in-house and creative speed35:00 Using AI in marketing and creative testing36:30 Channel testing including podcasts and CTVSubscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signupAdvertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertiseWork with Pilothouse - https://dtcnews.link/pilothouseFollow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletterWatch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video

The Agentic Debate Series Lunch @ Shoptalk Las Vegas 2026, Presented by Logicbroker. Recorded live in Las Vegas on March 24, 2026. Rick Watson hosts an agentic commerce debate with three retail practitioners who aren't selling anything — just calling it like they see it.Chris Silver (CTO, JustFoodforDogs), Gina Lombardo (VP of Digital, Retrofête), and Dave Finnegan (Managing Director, BlackFinn Partners) go head-to-head on three questions the entire industry is dancing around:Will ads ever work inside AI agents — or does injecting ads into a trusted conversation destroy the whole model? Is agentic commerce actually going to drive incremental revenue, or is it a hype cycle with a nice deck? And the big one: are websites doomed when an AI agent can just buy for you?The answers are more nuanced — and more honest — than what you're hearing from the main stage. Topics include cost-per-action ad models, why "retail therapy" isn't going away, how luxury brands could use agents to increase AOV, the consumer trust crisis around hallucinations, and why your product data strategy matters more than your payments infrastructure right now.If you're a merchant trying to figure out what to actually do about agentic commerce in 2026, this is the conversation.The Agentic Debate Series Lunch @ Shoptalk Las Vegas 2026, Presented by Logicbroker, was sponsored by Logicbroker, Avalara, SCAYLE, and Fortier.Timestamps0:00 - Introduction01:45 - Rick Watson setting the scene/background05:10 - Panel members welcomed07:35 - Will ads ever work in a trusted medium?24:43 - Sponsor message from Logicbroker CEO Omar Qari24:13 - Agentic commerce: a nothingburger or incremental?49:38 - Sponsor message from SCAYLE Commerce Engine, Jake Wright52:07 - Are websites doomed?#watsonliveatshoptalk #agenticcommerce #nothingburger #advertising #website

Are you scaling ad spend but getting worse results? If your ROAS looks amazing while your growth stalls, you might be optimizing for the wrong thing, and it's costing you more than you think.In this episode, I sit down with Scott Desgrosseilliers from Wicked Reports to break down one of the best case studies we've ever run at Tier 11. After five consecutive missed forecasts, we made a bold move and achieved incredible results.We cut over 90% of Amazon spend and reallocated the budget to top-of-funnel channels. The result? Four straight quarters of growth, lower customer acquisition costs, and a massive increase in MER.We show you how we used multi-touch attribution, incrementality testing, and creative strategy to drive real business outcomes. If you've ever questioned whether your “best” channels are holding you back, this case study will help rethink and optimize your ad budget allocation.In This Episode:- Case study: Five missed forecasts and rising CAC- Meta's recycling loop explained- AOV and LTV of premium products- Why Google's nCAC is misleading- Decoding direct traffic on Google - Incrementality testing of Amazon and Google- Results of cutting Amazon spend by 91%- Analyzing the risks of budget reallocation - Scaling the top funnel mix- Wicked Reports breakdown- Organic lift and MER from paid ads- Action steps for brandsMentioned in the Episode:Partner with Tier 11's Marketing Experts: https://www.tiereleven.com/apply Tier 11's Data Suite https://www.tiereleven.com/what-we-do/data-suite Watch the Episode on YouTube: https://perpetualtraffic.com/youtube Listen to This Episode on Your Favorite Podcast Channel:Follow and listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/perpetual-traffic/id1022441491 Follow and listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/59lhtIWHw1XXsRmT5HBAuK Subscribe and watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@perpetual_traffic?sub_confirmation=1We Appreciate Your Support!Visit our website: https://perpetualtraffic.com/ Follow us on X: https://x.com/perpetualtraf Connect with Scott Desgrosseilliers: Website - https://www.wickedreports.com/ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottd71/ Connect with Ralph Burns: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralphburns Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ralphhburns/ Hire Tier11 - https://www.tiereleven.com/apply-now Mentioned in this episode:Apply for an ad spot on Perpetual Traffic for Q1 or Q2. Visit www.perpetualtraffic.com today to secure your spot!We're opening up sponsorship spots for Q1 and Q2! https://perpetualtraffic.com/advertise-with-us/https://perpetualtraffic.com/advertise-with-us/https://perpetualtraffic.com/advertise-with-us/

Today's conversation is a really good one, especially if craft shows, retail markets, or in-person events are on your radar for this year. The market is shifting, fees to exhibit are higher, competition to apply and get into shows is stronger, and buyers are showing up differently than they did even a few years ago.  At the same time, I keep seeing how valuable it is to get offline and to connect with our customers face-to-face. That human connection is hitting differently right now. And people are craving that in person connection. What I love about today's episode is that we are looking at this from both sides of the table. We have Lib Ramos, she runs Indie Craft Parade with her team. This is an incredibly well respected, longtime running show. And we also have Jessie Tyree Jenness, founder of Root and Branch and one of our Proof to Product community members who has exhibited at shows like this multiple times. In the episode we're digging into what organizers are actually looking for when you apply for these shows, how exhibitors can decide if a show is worth it, and how to also measure ROI following a show and then how to think about your strategy so that you're not just showing up for the shows, but you're showing up with true intention. Applications are now open for exhibiting at Indie Craft Parade, you can apply now through April 20th! If you are planning to exhibit at retail shows this year, I want to tell you about some resources we have inside of our LABS community so that you can do this more strategically.  We have checklists, tools, and things that will help you bring your booth plus to life, but also have community discussions about things like inventory, sales goals, and strategies for upping your AOV. If you want support as you plan for your in-person retail events, join us! REQUEST YOUR INVITATION You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/437  Quick Links: Free Wholesale Audio Series Free Resources Library Free Email Marketing for Product Makers PTP LABS Paper Camp

Check out host Bidemi Ologunde's new show: The Work Ethic Podcast, available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.Email: bidemiologunde@gmail.comIn this episode, host Bidemi Ologunde sits down with Krisztián Király, International Partnership Manager at OptiMonk, to explore how AI is reshaping conversion rate optimization, why the static website is dying, and what today's smartest e-commerce brands are doing instead. How can AI predict when a shopper is about to leave? What does a "living website" actually look like in practice? And for brands without big dev teams, what quick wins can boost conversions, AOV, and revenue per session in just 30 days? Krisztián also shares lessons from building his own agency, coaching agencies internationally, and creating global B2B SaaS partnerships that drive real growth.Sponsors and partners:Promeed: 100% mulberry silk pillowcases and bedding that feel incredibly soft, stay breathable, and are naturally gentle on hair and skin.SurviveX: professional-grade FSA/HSA eligible first aid and preparedness kits designed in Virginia, USA and produced in an FDA-registered facility.Alison US CA: Alison is the world's largest free online learning and skills-training platform, helping more than 50 million learners in 193+ countries build career-ready skills with 6,000+ free courses, certificates, and diplomas.eSign (iOS only): eSign is a clean, privacy-first document-signing app that works entirely on your device, letting you sign PDFs, DOCX files, images, and scans, edit and assemble pages, and export crisp 300 DPI PDFs in seconds, without accounts, cloud uploads, or compromising sensitive documents.Support the show

“The market will tell you your hero. You can't decide it.” How do you build a brand after you've seen the inside of 30 others? Connor Rolain and Cody Plofker sit down with Ari Murray, Chief Digital Officer at Salt & Stone, who spent four and a half years as Chief Growth Officer at Sharma Brands before going in-house. They dig into what it takes to lead growth for a single brand after years of running it for dozens at once. You'll learn when to hire an agency versus build in-house, and why the answer changes as a brand matures. Ari shares how Salt & Stone approaches acquisition without discounting, why discovery sets are central to their DTC funnel, and how she thinks about first-order AOV in a scent-driven category where customers can't smell the product before they buy.  They also discuss session growth as a daily obsession, the real cost of dabbling in new channels without enough commitment, and why the line between brand and performance is too often drawn in the wrong place. Powered ByMotion Creative Benchmarks 2026 https://motionapp.com/thumbstop-pulse/creative-benchmarks-2026?utm_campaign=marketing-operators&utm_medium=sponsor&utm_content=creative-benchmarks-2026&utm_source=marketing-operators-podcastAftersell https://9ops.co/4i3bb5Prescient AI https://www.prescientai.com/operatorsRichpanel https://9ops.co/richpanelOperators Newsletter https://9operators.com/

Most founders think if their company is profitable on paper, they're safe. But here's the truth I learned the hard way: businesses don't fail because they're unprofitable. They fail because they run out of cash. I had a really good run for about 6-7 years at Foundr before I ever faced a serious cash crunch. And when it hit, it was terrifying — that feeling when you don't know if you're going to make payroll is something I'll never forget. You can have strong revenue, good margins, be growing, and technically be profitable — but if the timing of when cash comes in and goes out isn't managed correctly, you can find yourself in serious trouble. In this episode, I break down why cash flow is the number one thing founders need to obsess over, and the practical moves you can make to manage it better before it becomes a crisis. Here's what you'll take away: • Why revenue is exciting but cash flow is what keeps your business alive — the timing gap can suffocate you • How e-commerce founders experience cash pressure differently: inventory upfront, ads before sales, seasonality cycles • Why scaling too aggressively with ads can grow your revenue while shrinking your bank balance • The unit economics you need to obsess over: contribution margin, payback periods, and CAC • Why subscription models and high-margin products (70-80%+) give you breathing room to scale profitably • Practical cash flow moves: negotiate payment terms, cut software bloat, increase AOV, optimize conversion rates • The cash buffer rule: maintain 2-3 months of operating costs in reserves and secure lines of credit before you need them • Why you should always plan for worst-case scenarios, not best-case forecasts If you've ever felt stressed even when your business looks healthy from the outside, or you're scaling fast but the bank balance tells a different story, this episode will show you how to build a sustainable business that doesn't just look good on paper. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend with the code FOUNDR50. Just head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://your.omnisend.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get started. HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

Josh started his career at American Airlines (AA) and spent 5 years in their MBA leadership development program. Josh's experience at AA further refined his leadership abilities and strategic decision making skills. While employed at AA Josh and his wife Becca started Hadley Designs. As the CEO of Hadley Designs, Josh led the business to gross $100,000+ in revenue within it's first year and in 2022 Hadley Designs crossed the eight figure mark, grossing over $10,000,000 in revenue.In the ever-evolving world of e-commerce, standing still means falling behind. In a recent episode of the Ecom Breakthrough Podcast, host and eight-figure brand owner Josh Hadley pulls back the curtain on the real struggles and breakthrough strategies that have propelled his business from the brink of collapse to new heights. This episode is a masterclass for e-commerce entrepreneurs looking to scale beyond seven figures, with a special focus on leveraging TikTok Shop, affiliate marketing, and integrated sales funnels across Amazon and Shopify.Highlight Bullets> Here's a glimpse of what you would learn…. Strategies for scaling e-commerce businesses on platforms like Amazon and TikTok Shop.Personal experiences of overcoming business challenges, including product failures and financial difficulties.The importance of targeted outreach and building relationships with creators for affiliate marketing.Utilizing TikTok Shop to generate significant gross merchandise volume (GMV) and create viral content.The role of effective sales funnel structures in improving conversion rates and average order value (AOV).Implementing subscription models to create recurring revenue streams.The integration of marketing efforts across TikTok, Shopify, and Amazon to enhance profitability.The significance of product differentiation and niche focus in e-commerce success.The challenges of maintaining profitability on Amazon and strategies to avoid market stagnation.The necessity of hard work and commitment in achieving success in the competitive e-commerce landscape.In this episode of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, host Josh Hadley shares his journey overcoming business setbacks and reveals his proven strategies for scaling e-commerce brands on Amazon, Shopify, and TikTok Shop. He details how he rebuilt his business using TikTok Shop affiliate marketing, building a network of creators, and optimizing sales funnels. Josh emphasizes the importance of creator partnerships, viral content, and subscription models, offering listeners a step-by-step blueprint for driving growth and profitability in today's competitive e-commerce landscape. He also provides actionable tips and resources for brands seeking to break through stagnation and achieve lasting success.Here are the 3 action items that Josh identified from this episode:Target Niche Creators with Email Collection Use tools like Yuka AI to reach out to creators in your specific niche (not spray-and-pray). Before approving samples, collect their email and phone number to build direct relationships off TikTok. Add them to an automated email flow that nurtures engagement and tracks content creation.Require 30 Videos + Usage Rights Upfront Send a creative brief before sample approval and have creators commit to producing 30 videos in 60 days with unlimited usage rights. This gives you permission to repurpose viral content (100K+ views) as Meta ads without asking, and weeds out freebie seekers while maximizing ROI per sample.Turn Amazon Products into High-AOV Shopify Funnels Take viral TikTok videos and run them as Meta ads driving to dedicated landing pages (not your homepage). Bundle products together, add digital exclusives Amazon can't match, include pre-checkout upsells, and offer a subscription club—turning $25 products into $85+ AOV while generating recurring revenue.Resources & Links SectionJosh Hadley on LinkedIneComm Breakthrough ConsultingeComm Breakthrough PodcastEmail Josh Hadley: Josh@eCommBreakthrough.comTikTok ShopAmazonShopifyChatGPTEuka AIKalodataStreakWooCommerce

Send a textAmazon listing optimization tips that increase conversion rate, improve product images, and raise average order value. We're talking about how to get more profitability and increase sales from your amazon product listing. Many sellers feel like they're just throwing money at ads without improving conversion rates, which is ineffective without a strong amazon listing. Learn how optimizing your amazon listing keyword optimization and improving your amazon seo ranking can make a real difference in your sales.If your Amazon listing is wasting ad spend and missing sales, get a full expert listing audit and find the exact fixes your product needs: https://bit.ly/4jMZtxu#AmazonListingOptimization #AmazonSellerTips #AmazonFBA #amazonmarketing --------------------------------------------------------------------------2026 Q1 Repeat Buyer Formula: https://bit.ly/47KJmOd2026 Amazon PPC Guide: https://bit.ly/4lF0OYXGrowth Email Marketing Strategies: https://hubs.ly/Q04457QF0Amazon Proft Margin Defense 2026: https://hubs.ly/Q042trRH0Amazon SEO Toolkit 2026: https://bit.ly/4oC2ClTAmazon Seller Strategy Report 2026: https://bit.ly/3YN1RME2026 Ecommerce Website & SEO Readiness Checklist: https://hubs.ly/Q040Jg0M0Amazon Crisis Kit: https://bit.ly/4maWHn0TIMESTAMPS00:00 Increasing profitability with listing optimization01:03 Why average order value matters for Amazon sellers02:17 AOV competitive gap audit explained04:00 Finding the right competitors to analyze04:51 Variation strategies to increase order value06:08 Real product examples using variation ladders09:05 Why increasing AOV changes your ad economics11:02 Understanding Amazon BSR and sales velocity12:05 Pricing ladder strategy using variations14:22 Parent child listings and variation structure18:04 Why basics matter more than shiny tactics20:47 What makes a strong Amazon main image23:42 Simple main image CTR strategy24:11 How secondary images improve conversions26:13 Example of poor listing design mistakes28:18 Showing product benefits clearly in images33:06 Getting main images approved on Amazon36:07 Using reviews to improve listing images40:04 Choosing the right secondary images by category43:00 Why video is becoming essential for listings45:24 Making wall art listings stand out48:37 How to schedule a listing audit call________________________________Follow us:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/28605816/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stevenpopemag/Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/myamazonguys/Twitter: https://twitter.com/myamazonguySubscribe to the My Amazon Guy podcast:My Amazon Guy podcast: https://podcast.myamazonguy.comApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/my-amazon-guy/id1501974229Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4A5ASHGGfr6s4wWNQIqyVwSupport the show

Do you have a product-based business? Are you selling products via an Etsy store, in a pop-up shop or a retail store? Are you selling one-off products online? Adding a subscription box to your existing business is a no-brainer and can offer you so many benefits!  Adding a subscription box provides:  A stable, predictable revenue stream - recurring payments benefit your business in so many ways, including stabilizing your cash flow.   Customer loyalty - subscribers have committed to regularly purchasing products from you.  Increased lifetime value (LTV) - do you know the LTV of your customers? My subscribers stay for an average of 18 months, generating thousands of dollars of revenue each.  Opportunities for cross-selling and upselling - pair your box items with additional one-off items from your shop.  Scalability - packing and shipping 500 of the same thing is much more efficient than 500 different orders.  Have I convinced you to add a subscription box to your business?  I have 5 simple steps to follow to make it happen.  Identify your best customers: Who are they?  How often do they shop with you?  Take a look at your top 20 customers and dial into who they are.  Identify your best-sellers: What categories are your best sellers?  What do people buy from you repeatedly?  What are people asking for more of?  Set your pricing structure: What is your average order value (AOV)? What is the AOV of your top 100 customers?  Price your subscription box in that range.  Create exclusivity and scarcity:  What are the benefits of being a subscriber?  Make items only available in the box.  Make them only available by subscription.  Create FOMO with your customer base - make them want to be part of something exclusive.   Create a great user experience:  Are your website and the checkout process clear and easy to follow?   Make it easy for people to update or cancel their subscriptions.  Provide a higher level of customer service - remember your subscribers are the VIPs of your business.  A bonus piece of advice, which is really the best piece of advice, is to talk about your subscription box a LOT. If you want to create a business that is 75% recurring revenue instead of depending on one-off sales, you've got to make it the main thing in your business. And that means talking about it… a lot!  Join me for this episode to learn how having a subscription box can change the game for your business. Predictable inventory, better cash flow, monthly recurring revenue, and more. Follow 5 simple steps to get started today!  Join me in all the places:  ⁠Facebook⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠Launch Your Box with Sarah Website⁠  Are you ready for ⁠Launch Your Box⁠? Our complete training program walks you step by step through how to start, launch, and grow your subscription box business. ⁠Join ⁠today!

Casey O'Quinn is the founder of Gravity Digital, a family-owned marketing agency that has served direct-to-consumer family businesses for 25 years. He works alongside multiple family members including his father, wife, sister, cousins, and in-laws across several ventures including the agency, healthcare, and real estate. Casey built his firm on a unique revenue-share model where his team only gets paid when clients grow, challenging the traditional agency retainer approach.SHOW SUMMARYIn this episode, Jonathan Goldhill is joined by Casey O'Quinn, founder of Gravity Digital, a family-owned agency serving family-owned DTC brands for 25 years, about marketing as capital allocation that can drain family wealth and strain relationships when spent on vague retainers without measurable return. Casey contrasts traditional hourly/retainer agency models with Gravity Digital's revenue-share approach, where the agency is paid only on growth above a baseline, aligning incentives and enabling investment in creative, websites, and testing. They discuss protecting “the family farm,” handling generational risk tolerance, patience and education around digital channels, and a “seven-figure blueprint” formula (customers × frequency × average order value) emphasizing ads for scalable acquisition, email/SMS for repeat purchases, and upsells for AOV. Key metrics include new customer acquisition cost, lifetime value, new vs returning customers, and cautious use of ROAS amid attribution limits, plus integrating marketing into EOS scorecards and quarterly testing.KEY TAKEAWAYSFamily before business: Make a commitment to walk away from the business before letting it damage family relationships—this principle forces better conflict resolutionRevenue share model: Align agency incentives with client outcomes by only getting paid when clients grow, rather than fixed retainers that don't ensure resultsMarketing as investment: View marketing spending through the lens of capital allocation and ROI, not just as an expense line itemNAC is critical: Understanding your New Customer Acquisition Cost and being willing to spend MORE than competitors (while staying profitable) is how you win at scaleSimple growth formula: Revenue = Customers × Frequency × Average Order Value. Focus on these three levers systematicallyTest before committing: Start with small tests and let data drive decisions rather than assumptions, especially when navigating generational disagreementsFailure is feedback: Marketing experiments that don't work aren't failures—they're learning opportunities to "fail forward"Patience + transparency: Success in family business marketing requires educating all generations, managing different risk appetites, and showing early wins to build trustQUOTES"We would walk away from the business before we let it come between us." — On family business priorities"He who is willing and able to spend the most to acquire a customer wins." — On competitive advantage in customer acquisition"Good marketing can't fix a bad product." — On fundamental business requirements"The cheapest customer you'll ever get is the one you already have." — On the value of repeat business and frequency"Marketing and innovation produce results. Everything else is just a cost." — Peter Drucker quote on business fundamentals"Protect the family farm—that's the family business." — On preserving generational wealth and avoiding capital drain"Failure is just feedback." — On reframing marketing experiments"Marketing is half art, half science, half left brain, half right brain." — On the dual nature of effective marketingConnect and learn more about Casey O'Quinn.https://www.linkedin.com/in/caseyoquinn/If you enjoyed today's episode, please subscribe, review, and share with a friend who would benefit from the message. If you're interested in picking up a copy of Jonathan Goldhill's book, Disruptive Successor, go to the website at www.DisruptiveSuccessor.com

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The Big Retail Shakeup: Stripe's PayPal Play & Walmart's High-Income TakeoverThe retail and fintech worlds are moving faster than a 150-day tariff cycle, and this week, Watson Weekly Weekend edition hosts Rick Watson and Jessica Lesesky break down the seismic shifts you can't afford to ignore. From "sharks in the water" at PayPal to Walmart's sneaky-good transformation into a tech-first powerhouse, we're unpacking the data behind the headlines.Is Stripe about to carve up the "Good Ship PayPal" to fuel its own world domination? And how has Walmart managed to win over the $100k+ crowd while automating its way to record margins? We're diving deep into the "tale of two cities" in consumer spending and why being "bold" is the only strategy for 2026.In this episode:The PayPal Pivot: Why Stripe might be circling Venmo and what it means for the future of Stablecoin.Tariff Redo: Navigating the Supreme Court's recent ruling and why your CFO shouldn't be the one making marketing decisions.Walmart's Trillion-Dollar Climb: How 72% grocery penetration and automated fulfillment are widening the gap with the competition.Agentic Commerce: Is "Sparky" the real deal or just a higher AOV glitter?.Stay Ahead of the CurveSubscribe to the Newsletter: Get the deep dives Rick and Jess mention at watsonweekly.com.Join the Conversation: Are you a "turtle shell" business or are you playing for growth this year? Let us know in the comments.Stay bold. Stay classy.Chapters:0:00 - Welcome to the Watson Weekly Weekend 1:00 - PayPal without a captain6:29 - Trump Tariff Redux10:06 - Walmart earnings10:10 - https://youtu.be/K-IPpyhtwMM#FintechNews #WalmartEarnings #Stripe #PayPal #EcommerceStrategy #WatsonWeekly #BusinessTrends2026 #SupplyChainInnovation #AgenticCommerce

Creative volume isn't the unlock. Better messaging is.In this episode of eCommerce Evolution, Brett sits down with Nate Lagos (CMO of Adapt Naturals, former Head of Growth at Original Grain) to break down how great storytelling drives real performance.From selling wooden watches through emotional positioning… to increasing AOV by reframing gift messaging… to building ads that scale without “fatigue” — this episode is a masterclass in understanding why customers actually buy.If you're a DTC founder, CMO, or operator tired of launching more ads without improving results, this conversation will recalibrate how you think about copy, positioning, and brand personality.—Sponsored by OMG Commerce - go to (https://www.omgcommerce.com/contact) and request your FREE strategy session today!—Chapters: (00:00) Intro(05:05) Nate's origin story, and why storytelling became a “performance lever”(07:40) Selling the story behind the materials (10:30) Customer motivation deep dive: status, identity, and gift-giving (15:05) Creative quantity vs quality(19:05) Finding the real “why”: research methods (23:10) Brand as “personality”(30:10) Testing surprises + valence/intensity framework(37:15) Practical frameworks: adjective formula—Connect With Brett: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thebrettcurry/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@omgcommerce Website: https://www.omgcommerce.com/ Request a Free Strategy Session: https://www.omgcommerce.com/contact Relevant Links:Nate's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagosAdapt Naturals: https://adaptnaturals.comOriginal Grain: https://www.originalgrain.com/Past guests on eCommerce Evolution include Ezra Firestone, Steve Chou, Drew Sanocki, Jacques Spitzer, Jeremy Horowitz, Ryan Moran, Sean Frank, Andrew Youderian, Ryan McKenzie, Joseph Wilkins, Cody Wittick, Miki Agrawal, Justin Brooke, Nish Samantray, Kurt Elster, John Parkes, Chris Mercer, Rabah Rahil, Bear Handlon, JC Hite, Frederick Vallaeys, Preston Rutherford, Anthony Mink, Bill D'Allessandro, Stephane Colleu, Jeff Oxford, Bryan Porter and more

Scott Dancy is the founder and CEO of Azuna, a fast-growing brand in the natural air freshener space. With a background in staffing, technology, and several entrepreneurial ventures, Scott started Azuna in Buffalo in 2019, scaling the business from hand-packaging orders to becoming the world's largest purchaser of tea tree oil and achieving significant success in both DTC and Amazon channels. In this episode of DTC Pod, Scott shares his journey of launching Azuna, from navigating supply chain challenges and product R&D to unlocking consistent growth and managing cash flow as order volumes soared. He covers the pivotal product decisions, strategies for boosting AOV, lessons from high-profile partnerships, and Azuna's approach to retail expansion. Scott also offers practical advice for founders on knowing their numbers, avoiding expensive mistakes, and building a team that's invested in the brand's success. Episode brought to you by Stord - 3PL for Commerce Episode brought to you by EMF Radar - Health Starts with EMF Safety in mind Interact with other DTC experts and access our monthly fireside chats with industry leaders on DTC Pod Slack. On this episode of DTC Pod, we cover: 1. Scott Dancy's entrepreneurial background and Azuna's origin story 2. Early-stage bootstrapping: packaging, fulfillment, and ad writing 3. Scaling operations: manufacturing, 3PLs, and hiring expert talent 4. Product and packaging strategy: sustainable materials, bundling, and raising AOV 5. Building a brand moat with proprietary tea tree oil sourcing 6. Subscription economics and customer retention strategies 7. Navigating cash flow, funding growth, and working with MCAs 8. Knowing key metrics: revenue, gross profit, AOV, and cash allocation 9. D2C vs Amazon vs retail channel strategy 10. In-house vs agency operations and pitfalls 11. Brand marketing and influencer partnerships 12. Lessons learned from sports and celebrity partnerships 13. Timing retail entry and optimizing product mix for channels 14. Importance of customer service and product quality 15. Entrepreneurial learnings: failures, details, and staying data-driven Timestamps 00:00 Scott Dancy's background and founding Azuna 03:05 The “aha moment”—tea tree oil product discovery 04:10 Early days of hand-packaging, first sales, COVID impact 05:36 Scaling up: building the team, manufacturing, growth in Buffalo 07:14 Transition to 3PL and challenges of scaling past $10M 08:10 Product development, bundling, and packaging strategy 10:05 Target audience and tea tree oil sourcing 13:41 Growth channels: Meta, Google, and influencer seeding 15:53 Subscription model economics and retention 19:03 Funding growth: inventory buys, cash flow, using Clearco 22:24 Data-driven decisions and knowing your numbers 26:25 Channel mix: Amazon, DTC, retail launch, pricing strategy 32:00 Learning from agency mistakes and shiny object syndrome 35:06 Retail timing, product mix, and learnings from entering stores 42:02 Brand partnerships: AKC, NFL, influencer marketing 46:44 Final lessons and what Scott would have done differently 47:50 Where to find Azuna and connect with Scott Show notes powered by Castmagic Past guests & brands on DTC Pod include Gilt, PopSugar, Glossier, MadeIN, Prose, Bala, P.volve, Ritual, Bite, Oura, Levels, General Mills, Mid Day Squares, Prose, Arrae, Olipop, Ghia, Rosaluna, Form, Uncle Studios & many more.   Additional episodes you might like: • #175 Ariel Vaisbort - How OLIPOP Runs Influencer, Community, & Affiliate Growth • #184 Jake Karls, Midday Squares - Turning Your Brand Into The Influencer With Content • #205 Kasey Stewart: Suckerz- - Powering Your Launch With 300 Million Organic Views • #219 JT Barnett: The TikTok Masterclass For Brands • #223 Lauren Kleinman: The PR & Affiliate Marketing Playbook • ​​​​#243 Kian Golzari - Source & Develop Products Like The World's Best Brands ----- Have any questions about the show or topics you'd like us to explore further? Shoot us a DM; we'd love to hear from you. Want the weekly TL;DR of tips delivered to your mailbox? Check out our newsletter here. Projects the DTC Pod team is working on:DTCetc - all our favorite brands on the internetOlivea - the extra virgin olive oil & hydroxytyrosol supplementCastmagic - AI Workspace for Content Follow us for content, clips, giveaways, & updates!DTCPod InstagramDTCPod TwitterDTCPod TikTok Scott Dancy - CEO & Founder of AzunaBlaine Bolus - Co-Founder of CastmagicRamon Berrios - Co-Founder of Castmagic

Most sellers use the same Amazon PPC strategy across all their products — and it's silently bleeding their budget.In this episode of That Amazon Ads Podcast, Stephen, Andrew and Carly break down the 5 category traits to determine your Amazon Ads strategy for any vertical you sell in.From contribution margin and customer LTV, to consideration windows, AOV, and brand loyalty — every category on Amazon plays by completely different rules.We'll show you why a 500% ACoS can actually be profitable, when DSP and Sponsored Brands are worth every penny, and how the right Amazon PPC strategy can transform your campaign performance by category.Whether you're a brand owner, freelancer, or agency, this is the framework you've been missing.

On this episode of Money Mondays, Dan Fleyshman brings the show's core theme—how to make more money, save more money, and invest more money—to life with Fanbasis founder/CEO Yash Daftery and Founders Club co-founders Chris Meade (CROSSNET) and Aaron Spivak (Hush). They dive into practical ways creators and internet entrepreneurs can turn audiences into real revenue through digital products, smarter payments, and higher AOV, plus what it really takes to build a high-trust founder network that unlocks better relationships, deals, and opportunities. You'll also hear Dan's takes on investing discipline, evaluating opportunities, and giving back in ways that create visible, meaningful impact.

Why do some TikTok Shops explode… and others die in 90 days? This episode breaks down the foundational moves most sellers skip and the fixes that change everything.   TikTok Shop isn't “Amazon with videos”—it's entertainment first, shopping second. In this TikTok Thursday episode, TikTok Shop strategist Michelle Barnum-Smith explains the non-negotiable foundations sellers need in 2026, whether you're launching from scratch or trying to scale what you already started. The big mindset shift: people open TikTok to scroll, not to search-find-and-buy, so your strategy has to be built for discovery and impulse, not intent-based shopping.   Michelle breaks down what actually wins on TikTok Shop: products that are instantly understandable, visually demonstrable, and ideally show a quick transformation or solve a clear pain point fast. She also calls out a costly structural mistake, having too many separate listings. Since most discovery happens through videos, every listing becomes its own content, affiliate, ads, and promo machine. Consolidating into a master listing with variants can protect momentum (especially when one variant goes out of stock) and make it easier to stack orders.   From there, it's all about converting scrolls into purchases with a simple offer stack: free shipping, product discounts (like flash sales), clickable coupons, and TikTok Shop campaigns that add visibility and “deal” badging. She also warns against manually lowering the listing price because you lose the visual cues that help shoppers feel urgency. Finally, she outlines the content and ads engine that feeds the algorithm, optimizes for thumb-stopping hooks, watch time, completion, rewatches, and engagement, then iterates at volume and is prepared for a pay-to-play reality where ads and budget can be the difference-maker. In episode 493 of the AM/PM Podcast, Bradley and Michelle discuss: 00:00 – Introduction 01:26 – What You Need To Start (Or Scale) On TikTok Shop 05:13 – The “Non-Negotiable Foundations” For Million-Dollar Shops 06:13 – Why People Use TikTok (And Why They Aren't There To Shop) 08:17 – What Makes A Product “TikTokable” (And What Doesn't) 10:17 – The #1 Listing Mistake: Too Many Separate Listings 11:37 – Built Bar Example: Master Listing & Variants Vs. Content Shutdown 14:03 – Turning Scrolls Into Impulse Buys: The Offer Stack 15:06 – Free Shipping: Expectations, AOV, And Losing Sales To Amazon 18:34 – Product Discounts: Flash Sales & “Lowest Price In 30 Days” Warning 20:53 – Clickable Coupons & TikTok Campaigns: Badges, Fine Print, Price Traps 26:00 – TikTok Thursday Q&A with Michelle Barnum-Smith

Most Etsy sellers are sitting on a goldmine of data… and have no idea how to use it. In this episode, we break down how Etsy shop owners can upload their order data into ChatGPT and ask the right questions to uncover what's actually driving sales, repeat customers, and higher order values. We're not talking about vague "AI magic." We're talking about specific prompts that reveal: Which products truly make you money (not just get clicks) What customers naturally buy together (hello bundles

If your customers are confused, you're leaving sales on the table. This episode will help you turn confused browsers into confident buyers. I'm sharing a coaching call with Caprice Ericson of Shop Pajama Mama, where I break down how to make it instantly obvious what you sell. We cover simple merchandising shifts that help customers see the value fast and say yes without needing a long explanation. You'll also learn how to set up your booth or display like a curated boutique, use visual cues that prevent “what is this?” confusion, and test what's working in real time so you can double down on the offers and displays that increase conversions. If you're ready to create an easier shopping experience that leads to more sales (in-person and online), press play.In This Episode, You'll Learn:00:40 The “you can't sell what they can't see” rule (and why premium products need extra clarity).01:45 Simple merchandising fixes to make your packaging work with you, not against you.03:00 The retail packaging trick Target uses when customers can't see the product.05:15 How to set up your booth like a boutique so shoppers understand your line instantly.07:30 Why customers buy the mannequin (and how to use that to increase conversions).10:00 Bundles that raise AOV, especially when sizing feels risky for gift buyers.12:45 How to test what sells in real time at markets before you scale.15:15 The mindset shift that will unlock your wholesale growth faster than you think.17:30 What retailers actually want to see (hint: not 300 prints).19:30 The easiest question to guide your next move: “How do I make it easy for them to say yes?”Resources + LinksReady to stop guessing and follow a proven system? Book your strategy call.Get business tips sent right to your inbox - join the newsletter!Watch on YouTubeFollowJacqueline on IG: @theproductbosstheproductboss.comShop Pajama Mama shop-pajama-mama.comIG: @shop_pajama_mama