An eCommerce Podcast Hosted by Brett Curry

Today I’m excited to welcome back my business partner and the co-founder of OMG Commerce – Chris Brewer.

Chris Brewer is a seasoned entrepreneur who’s successfully started and sold multiple businesses in the advertising and marketing space.  In 2010 he and I started OMG Commerce. Since then we’ve consulted with, partnered with and provided agency services for HUNDREDS of eCommerce stores.  We’ve seen nearly everything – the good, the bad, and the ugly of eCommerce.

In this episode, we break down the biggest X Factors of success from our perspective as we’ve observed a lot of winners and a lot of, um….not so much winners.  Hopefully, you have as much fun listening as we did recording this…

Here’s a quick look at what we cover:

• The importance of Lifetime Value of a Customer (LTV) and how to measure it and cultivate it.
• Why businesses that are too “romantic” about their own ideas are destined to struggle.
• How the best eCommerce stores think about and leverage Amazon
• Pop Quiz – Chris lays out his top eCommerce metrics and give you the ability to rate yourself on how well you know your core numbers.
• A big mistake eCommerce store owners make when looking for an agency
• How to start on a new traffic source
• Plus much more!

Mentioned in this Episode:
OMG Commerce

Connect with the Guest:
via Chris Brewer/OMG Commerce
via Linkedin

As always, we’d love your feedback on iTunes.

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I’ve been looking forward to this interview for months.  I met Bryant Garvin at Ezra Firestone’s Blue Ribbon Mastermind in Nashville back in January.  Hearing the details of how Bryant and team leveraged YouTube (as well as other channels) to achieve massive scale at incredible speed blew me away.  I knew immediately I wanted to have him on the podcast.

Purple Mattress has grown from obscurity to being one of the most popular mattress-in-a-box offerings in just a few short years.  In 2017 they posted annual revenues in excess of $187 million.   Purple Mattress was largely made famous because of a brilliant video made in partnership with the Harmon Brothers staring Goldilocks and featuring the “broken egg test.”  It’s an amazing example of demonstrating the uniqueness of a product in a fresh, creative way.

Here’s a quick look at what we cover on this episode…

• How to hook someone properly in the first 5 seconds of a YouTube video ad
• Surprising test results – even really smart people are wrong half the time or more.
• How to approach YouTube for prospecting…YT isn’t search ads, so stop treating them the same.
• Elements of a great video – learn Bryant’s formula for high performing video ads, plus the story behind the broken egg test.
• How to diversify and launch ads on new platforms.
• Plus a lot more!

Mentioned in the Episode:

Purple Mattress, OMGcommerce, StackedAds, Harmon Brothers

Connect with Bryant Garvin:

Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

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For most marketers, Facebook Messenger is the ultimate black box.  What is it really?  How are customers using it?  What’s a marketer to do with it?  These are a few of the many important questions that marketers may have a hard time answering.

The temptation for some marketers is to treat Messenger marketing like they would email marketing.  Big mistake.  It’s a very different platform at a very different stage of maturity compared to email.

Then there’s the question of chatbots…what are they?  How can we use them without being super creepy?

I had the perfect guest for this Episode – Dan Gamito of ManyChat.  ManyChat is leading the charge in a lot of ways when it comes to Messenger Marketing and the use of chatbots.  In this episode Dan does an amazing job of demystifying and educating.  Here’s a look at what we cover:

– Understanding tribal mentalities on Facebook and how that influences Messenger

– Understanding how consumers are using Messenger and, more importantly for this discussion, how they want to interact with brands on Messenger (and how they DON’T want to interact with brands).

– How a pregnancy brand used messenger to deliver the perfect message at the perfect stage of pregnancy to an interested audience.

– How a shoe company used messenger to reduce product returns by almost 30%

– Much more!

Mentioned in this Episode:

OMG Commerce

ManyChat

Connect with Guest:

Linkedin

Facebook

Instagram

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Even if you’re not a numbers person, you need to understand the math behind your marketing.  The good news is that this is not nearly as complex as it seems.

This does NOT mean you need to be a math wiz kid, or a coder, or a master of analytics.  But you do need to know the story your data is telling you.

Chris Mercer (known mostly as Mercer) is one of the smartest analytics guys I know.  But more than just understanding the technical side of analytics, Mercer knows how to find actionable data.   That’s what understanding the math behind your marketing is all about…finding what needs to be fixed or improved to help you grow.

In this episode we discuss:
– Go to Google Analytics with a specific question in mind.  This is important.  Most people pop open their Google Analytics account and just wander around.  You need to go to the data asking a specific question.
– Learn to ask good questions of your data.  Often you don’t take the right action, because you aren’t asking the right questions.
– Why averages are worthless, but segmentation is key
– Understand the usefulness behind Mercer’s Mantras “Find the truth in the trend” and “the power is in the pattern”.
– Why properly tagging your traffic may be the most important data cleanup step you take
– How Google Analytics, Data Studio, and Google Tag Manager fit together
– Plus more!

Check out these great resources from Mercer Here :

Mentioned in this Episode:
Traffic Tracker Tool
OMG Commerce
Measurement Marketing
Digital Marketer
Google Analytics Solutions

Connect with Guest:
Facebook/Seriously Simple Marketing
Facebook/Measurement Marketing
Twitter
Linkedin

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I know what you’re thinking…Ross and Rachel?!?  From Friends?  Well, no, but this is even better (for your business). It’s really Ross Johnson and Rachel Bell of Trill Media.

One of the topics that I’m super interested in is influencer marketing.  What was made popular by the Kardashians is actually something that’s been around forever – endorsements.  But with social influencers it’s a whole new ball game and one you can do and succeed at…and sometimes for as little as $100 paid to an influencer.

Along with influencer marketing we also lay a foundation for growth using Instagram.  Many of the fastest growing eComm brands I know are investing both time and money into Instagram.

Here are some of the growth tips we tackle in this episode:
– How to collaborate with influencers
– How to partner with complementary brands on Insta
– Tips for using giveaways to add engaged followers
– How to use Story Takeovers
– How to be transformational rather than transactional

Check out the episode here…

Mentioned in this Episode:
OMG Commerce
eCommerce Evolution by Brett Curry on iTunes
Trill Media
Trill Media Instagram
Bulletproof Instagram
Four Sigmatic Instagram
How do I add a story to my Story Highlights? – Instagram Help Center
Step Up Your Instagram Game with Swipe-Up Links – 9 Clouds

Connect with Ross & Rachel:
Ross Johnson
via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Instagram

Rachel Bell
via Linkedin
via Instagram
via Facebook

Rachel & Ross
via Facebook

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To scale an ecommerce business you can’t be a one-trick pony when it comes to traffic generation.  Pushing past 7 figures into 8 figures and beyond requires a focus on reaching customers at every stage of the shopping funnel.  Having a “hodge podge” mix of campaigns won’t cut it either. You need a team of campaigns that attract customers at different stages of the funnel and pulls them through to conversion.

Recently I spoke at a marketing conference in St. Louis on the topic of full funnel growth.  I outlined 7 keys for smart full funnel growth including:

Why You Need a Team of Campaigns – how getting your campaigns to work together is a lot like building a world-class basketball team.  

Better measurement – when you apply the wrong measurements to your campaigns you stifle growth.  Bad data leads to killing successful campaigns prematurely or running weak campaigns for too long.  

How Google Shopping, AdWords and YouTube work together – While Google Shopping is super competitive now, I remain extremely bullish on using it as a channel.  Add to that a powerful AdWords strategy and then a YouTube strategy built for eCommerce and look out! Big things can happen.  

Mentioned in this Episode:

OMG Commerce

Midwest Digital Marketing Conference (MDMC)

Traffic & Conversion Summit

Funnel Hacking Live 2019

The Ultimate Guide to Google Shopping – Shopify

Connect with Brett Curry:

via Linkedin

via Facebook

via Twitter

via Instagram

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Even if you’re on another platform you have to pay attention to what Shopify is up to. Now with over 500,000 stores using the platform, when Shopify makes a shift the whole industry feels it.

I wanted to know the latest and greatest from Shopify so I invited on the King of Shopify himself, Kurt Elster on to the podcast.

In this episode we dig into some new releases and how they impact you including:

• How Shopify Stacks up in the ecommerce platform ecosystem
• Shopify myths that need to be busted – such as “Shopify is bad for SEO.”
• Dynamic check out – Now that Amazon’s one click checkout patent has expired Shopify has built their own version…and it’s awesome.
• Now Fraud protection is built in and available for those who use Shopify pay.
• Want to get all of your marketing app data in one place?  You can with Shopify’s new Marketing dashboard.
• Kit how you can have a legitimate automated “bot” employee
• Thinking of replatforming?  What questions should you ask before you do?
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:
OMG Commerce
Shopify Unite 2018 – Shopify Partner & Developer Conference
Ethercycle
Showing Dynamic Checkout Buttons – Shopify Help Center
Fraud Prevention – Payments – Shopify Help Center

Connect with Guest:
Kurt Elster
via Linkedin:
via Facebook:
via Twitter:
via Instagram:

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Tracey Wallace has a unique perspective on eCommerce.  As Editor-in-Chief at BigCommerce she has the distinct privilege of rubbing shoulders with the top eCommerce brands on the BigCommerce platform.  And the BigCommerce is home to some pretty impressive eCommerce stores such as Skullcandy, Cargill, Sharp, Camelbak and more….

In this podcast we talk about some key eCommerce success factors and how some of the best and brightest store owners on BigCommerce are winning.  We dive into important topics such as:

• Why you need to spend time perfecting your Product Detail Pages (PDPs).  As a reference see what companies likeBliss World Cosmetics, Kelty and Solo store have created amazing PDPs.  
• How to build community by leveraging micro influencers and by creating amazing content.
• Payments! How understanding Amazon Pay, Apple Pay and Consumer Financing can help you improve checkout and increase conversion rates.  
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:

OmgCommerce:
BigCommerce
Doris Sleep

Connect with Guest:

BigCommerce Blog
TraceyWallace.net
Linkedin
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

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If you aren’t using YouTube at least for remarketing – you’re missing out.  With over 1 Billion monthly users and average session durations of over 40 min. (longer than what most people spend on Facebook in a day) YouTube has the attention of your prospects and customers.  

Not only does YouTube have your prospects and customers eyes and ears, they also have a really attractive advertising offering – TrueView.  With the TrueView pre-roll (aka “before” videos) you as the advertiser only pays if someone actually watches your video or clicks through to your site. If someone skips before the :30 mark, you pay nothing.  Pretty cool.

Throw some really advanced audience targeting features on top of that and you have all kinds of options for both top and bottom of the funnel marketing on YouTube.  

This episode is a recording of a talk I gave in San Diego at Social Media Marketing World.  In it I cover the following:

• How your prospects are using YouTube and how that should influence your strategy
• The best audiences to target with your ads
• 5 Tips to creating great video ads that hook prospects and get them to take action
• YouTube for Top of Funnel – the bulk of this talk is about remarketing, but YouTube has some great benefits for Top of Funnel which I outline here.  
• Targeting options – If you go Top of Funnel what kind of targeting options should you consider.
• Plus more!

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While exit pops, lead magnets, page takeovers are not necessarily new, I love the approach that Lindsey and her team at Hello Bar take to improve online conversions.

I met Lindsey through a good friend of mine and was immediately impressed with her approach. She’s strategic in her use of conversion tools.  Many merchants just sort of throw tools together and hope that something works. Anyone who’s listened to this podcast for any length of time knows that I’m a huge fan of good data and letting data speak.  Lindsey takes a data driven approach to creating better use of conversion tools and lead magnets.

Here’s a quick look at what we dive into on this call:

• Why customers actually prefer page takeovers to other exit pops (and the numbers back it up)
• Headline tips from marketing masters and why your current headlines might suck
• How Neil Patel gets more conversions on his properties
• Headline formulas to get more clicks, signups and sales
• Lead magnet ideas that drive conversion vs. lead magnets that lead to eye rolls.
• Plus more conversion optimization gold

Want a free 30-day trial of hellobar? Check it out here.

Connect with Guest:

via Facebook

via Linkedin

via Instagram

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When I first met Charlie Youakim the CEO and co-founder or Sezzle I was surprised by a few things he told me:

– Millennials prefer to pay with debit cards

– Only 1 in 3 millennials have credit cards

– Not having credit cards impacts the way millennials shop online and most don’t like the hassle of applying for a card.

Some regulations put into place after the recession in 2008 like prohibiting credit card companies from marketing on college campuses and raising the legal age to sign up for a credit card to 21 instead of 18 have all played into this.

Sezzle has put together an interesting product that allows both merchants and customers to get what they want.  The interesting thing is that Sezzle didn’t start with their current offering. As a long-time entrepreneur I was fascinated to hear how Sezzle pivoted from their original idea (which just didn’t take off) to its current offering with great success.

• How outerwear company 686 raised AOVs by 22% and increased total sales by 5% by offering payment plans
• How athleisure store Inflow Style raised AOVs by 40% and increased totals sales by 8% by offering payment plans
• How and when to pivot as an entrepreneur
• The 3 ways to grow a business and how payment plans can help with all 3.
• Plus the history of credit cards (call me a nerd, but this was interesting to me)…

Mentioned in this Episode:

OMG Commerce
Sezzle

Connect with Guest:

Via Linkedin
Via Facebook
Via Twitter
Via Instagram

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While I’ve spent most of my marketing career focused on driving traffic that converts, I know the importance of a good landing page and sales funnel.  A few months ago I met The Lady Boss. Kaelin Poulin and her husband Brandon when I spoke at an event in Atlanta.

I was struck by how good they’ve been at building funnels, building community, and selling products.  First a little about Brandon, then an overview of our discussion.

Brandon Poulin is CEO and Co-Founder of LadyBoss, the first global weight loss system and support community for women. With the help of his rockstar wife Kaelin and their leadership team, he has helped transform the lives of over 140,000 customers across the world. With its 4 unique product lines having accumulated tens of millions in revenue, Brandon and his team at LadyBoss are disrupting the weight loss industry by simply focusing on helping women lose weight while loving themselves again.

What we cover in this episode:

• How to approach building a new funnel?
• Keys to a successful funnel
• Diagnosing and improving struggling funnels
• Building a community and a following like a Boss
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:

OMGCommerce
Lady Boss
Via Facebook

Connect with Guest:

via Facebook
via Linkedin
via Twitter
via Instagram

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The company with the best data feeds wins.  That’s maybe not the kind of comment you hear too often and it’s not going to be the headline for any motivational posters.  But, there is some truth to it.

On this episode my guest is Brian Roizen, Co-Founder and Chief Architect for Feedonomics, a full-service product feed platform.  While it’s not always true that the company with the best data feed wins, I do believe that your marketing efforts can only be as good as the data that feeds them.
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In this episode we get slightly nerdy, but also really practical.
Here’s a look at what we cover.

– Why it’s worth the time to build a good feed.  In a saturated environment you have to differentiate.  A good data feed is one way to help your products stand out.  

– How the perfect feed + perfect campaign structure is where you can really gain a competitive edge in Google Shopping and other channels.  

– Top feed mistakes to avoid  

– Amazon feed tips for world-class Amazon product listings

– How to automate Amazon repricing for competitive niches

– Benefits of Amazon Brand Registry

– Facebook feed tips

– How Walmart is growing ecommerce through acquisition and how to profit from their marketplace.  

– Google Manufacturer Center why and when you should take control of it

– Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:

Feedonomics – The #1 Full-Service Product Feed Platform

Manufacturer Center – Google

Amazon Brand Registry – Help Protect Your Brand on Amazon

Facebook Dynamic Ads – Remarketing Your Website Products

eCommerce Evolution Podcast edited by Jonny Reese at STudio JRS

Connect with Brian Roizen:

via Email

via Linkedin

via Facebook

via Instagram

Feedonomics Facebook

Feedonomics Twitter

Feedonomics  Linkedin

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Whether you’re planning to sell your eCommerce business in 1 year or 3 years or never, the information in this podcast is pure eCommerce gold. Regardless of your exit plans, it’s important to know how to make your business more valuable now.  

My guest for this episode is Joe Valley, Director of Brokerage Services at Quiet Light.  Joe is a seasoned eComm expert and a former business owner. As a broker of eCommerce businesses his perspective is unique and insightful.  Here’s a look at what we discuss:

• What is my eComm business worth?  Everyone wants to know this. Joe lays out some quick guidelines to keep in mind.  
• The 4 Pillars of a sellable company.  The beauty of these pillars is that they also will help you run a better business NOW!
• Biggest mistakes people make when they decide to sell?
• Biggest success story of someone who sold?
• Most important financial metrics to determine value?

• The story of profitability and why cash flow isn’t the whole story
• Trend analysis and how it impacts value
• How long does it take to sell an eCommerce business
• How does a company being on Amazon vs. not being on Amazon impact value?
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:

eCommerce Evolution Podcast by Brett Curry
via Facebook
via iTunes
via Stitcher

Quiet Light
SDE – Sellers Discretionary Earnings – What Exactly is it?
How to Calculate The Value of Your Online Business
The Four Pillars That Make Up a Valuable Website
4 Ways to Increase Your Business’s Transferability To a New Owner
Learn the Top Tips & Tactics For Hiring VAs & Putting SOPs In Place To Manage Them

eCommerce Evolution Podcast edited by Jonny Reese at Studio JRS

Connect with Guest:

via Linkedin
via Twitter
via Instagram
Quiet Light

I’m convinced that the most successful eCommerce companies in the years to come will be those who build a brand.  

Building a community, telling a brand story that resonates, building products that people are passionate about, differentiating from the competition – all are part of what it asked to build a successful brand.

Companies that just learn a few tricks and tactics to sell more on Amazon, or those that rely on just a few google traffic hacks, or those who only sell products that are available from other sellers are in a much weaker position than those who build a brand. That’s why I was super excited to bring on the show a brand building powerhouse like Rick Cesari. Rick has been involved with some pretty stellar brands over the years including the George Foreman Grill, GoPro Cameras, Sonicare Toothbrush, Oxiclean and others. He knows what it takes to position and market a product to make turn it into a massive winner.  

Here’s a look at what we cover:

• Using direct response ads principles and building a brand at the same time.
• Tips to building a great brand including feedback loops, crafting a USP, getting to the benefit and more.  Learn how Rick helped the Juiceman brand go head-to-head with Krups and Braun and generate $75 million in sales in just 4 years.
• How to differentiate.  We both love Sally Hogshead’s quote “Different is better than better.”
• Tips for great videos.  One of our favorite topics and an area that Rick is an expert in.  We talk about what makes for a great video.
• Using Ricks brand-building and marketing tips on Amazon.
• Plus more

Connect with Rick Cesari:
via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter
via Intagram

Mentioned in this Episode:

Dan Kennedy (Direct Response Marketing Strategist at No B.S. Inner Circle)
David Ogilvy (Founder of Ogilvy & Mather)
“Ogilvy on Advertising” book by David Ogilvy – Amazon
David Ogilvy
“Building a StoryBrand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen” book by Donald Miller – Amazon
Donald Miller (CEO at StoryBrand)
    via Facebook
    via Twitter
via Instagram
Sally Hogshead (New York Times Bestselling Author, Hall of Fame Speaker & CEO of How to Fascinate)
via LinkedIn
via Facebook
  via Facebook/How to Fascinate
via Twitter
  via Instagram
“Fascinate: Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation” book (2010) by Sally Hogshead – Amazon
“Fascinate, Revised and Updated: How to Make Your Brand Impossible to Resist” book (2016) by Sally Hogshead – Amazon

Brands Mentioned

Juiceman – The Best Citrus Juicers, Extractors & Blender
Trillium Health Care Product
Peloton Bike – Indoor Exercise Bake with Online Streaming Classes
SousVide Supreme
Wanderer Bracelets – Hand Crafted in Bali
George Foreman Grill – Welcome to George Foreman Cooking – Shop Indoor Electric Grills
GoPro – Cameras
Sonicare Toothbrushes
OxiClean

Connect with Brett Curry (CEO of OMG Commerce):

via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter
via Instagram

eCommerce Evolution podcast edited by Jonny Reese at Studio JRS

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There are two critical ways Patent Law impacts online merchants:

1. Making sure you protect your unique products and intellectual property (IP)
2. Making sure you don’t infringe on someone else’s patents

My guest for this episode is Patent Attorney, Rich Goldstein.  Rich is a wealth of knowledge on patent law and has carved out a niche in the eCommerce space.  I am NOT a legal expert, to say the least, so I was really excited to dive into this topic and learn more myself.

Here’s a look at what we covered:

• When should you consider a patent and how much do they cost?
• What’s the number 1 reason for a patent?
• What are the 2 factors to see if a product is patentable?
• Talk about the different enough test?
• 2 Types of patents and when to consider each type
• How to protect against knock off and specifically protecting yourself on Amazon.
• How do you avoid patent infringement?
• Top resources and guides for patents and IP.  

Mentioned in This Episode:

OMG Commerce
via Facebook
via Linkedin
via Twitter
via Instagram

Brett Curry
via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter
via Instagram

The ABA Consumer Guide to Obtaining a Patent” book by Richard W. Goldstein – Amazon
Google Patents

Connect with Guest:
Rich Goldstein
via Linkedin
via Twitter
via Instagram

Goldstein Patent Law
via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter

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This episode is a treat both in terms of topic and guest.  I have my long-time business partner Chris Brewer on to talk about the most important topic of the year for most eCommerce companies – Holiday Sales.  

For most eComm companies the Holiday season will determine whether you have a good year or a not so good year.  For some companies every day of holiday sales is the equivalent of a week or two the rest of the year. Having a great holiday season requires planning, attention to detail and some creativity.  

I see things lining up for most eCommerce companies to break sales records this Holiday.  Will you be one of them?

Here’s a look at what we cover:

• Getting Your Google Ad Campaigns Ready – getting your search, shopping and brand campaigns ready to “make hay” this holiday season.  
• Getting Your YouTube Ads Ready – Do you have remarketing in place?  Are you capitalizing on your competition? Do you have a unique holiday message?  All of this and more is important to maximize YouTube results.
• Getting Your Amazon Ads Ready – Amazon is poised to CRUSH IT this holiday season.  Are your ad campaigns ready?
• Getting Your Email Marketing in Place – Email marketing could be your x-factor this holiday.  Remember to segment and remember the rule of 3!
• Planning your promotions – Get your promo calendar finished now!
• Staying on Top of Everything – We talk about ways to stay on top of everything and make sure nothing is missed this holiday season.  

Here’s to making Holiday 2018 your best ever…

Mentioned in this Episode:

Google Trends
Measuring Brand Awareness – Google Ads Help – Google Support
Google Trends – All Categories Top Charts
Google Trends – New Products Top Chart 2017
Google Merchant Center
2018 Shopping Product Feed Specification Update – Google Merchant Center – Google Support
About Remarketing – Google Ads Help – Google Support
About Remarketing Lists – Google Ads Help – Google Support
Google Analytics
About Product Ratings – Google Merchant Center Help – Google Support

Connect with Guest:

Chris Brewer
via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter
via Instagram

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In recent years SEO has lost its luster as a “hot” traffic source. Panda and Penguin updates have made it all but impossible to “game the system” and trick Google into ranking your site.  That said, organic traffic can still be insanely powerful for your brand.  SEO can help drive relevant traffic at nearly every stage of the shopping funnel – helping your build a following and sell more stuff.

While there are no viable SEO tricks now, there are proven strategies that will help you rank well and rank relatively quickly.  

While I’ve been an SEO practitioner since the early 2000s and even though OMG Commerce offers SEO services for eCommerce – I still wanted to have Dale Bertrand on to talk SEO.  Dale is the Owner and Digital Strategist for fireandspark.com and he knows his SEO.

Here’s a look at the SEO topics we cover in this episode.  

• Link building that works in 2018 and beyond. Quality backlinks are still one of the most powerful ranking signals in Google’s algorithm.  The catch is that Google is better than ever at sniffing out and ignoring or penalizing spammy backlinks.  In this episode we discuss the right way to approach link building.
• Building content without being a writer.  My guess is that creating content isn’t your favorite activity.  But good content is CRUCIAL for effective SEO strategies. We discuss how to generate content without the pain of writing.  
• How to make category and product detail pages rank.  Category and product detail pages are your money makers, but getting them to rank can be a challenge.  We discuss how.
• The value of “pillar content” and how to create it.  Without “pillar content” your SEO will be at a disadvantage.  We discuss what it is and how to go about creating it.
• Technical structure for a solid page.  We nerd out a little bit on technical SEO, but not too much.
• Plus more!

Mentioned in This Episode:

FireandSpark – eCommerce Marketing – Boston Expert SEO and PPC
via Linkedin
via Twitter
Holiday Season SEO – FireandSpark

Connect with Guest:

via Twitter

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The best eCommerce companies I know are on a quest to constantly improve conversion rates.  Every lift in conversion rates means more money for product development, or traffic to grow your brand or just more money for your pocket.  

On this episode I interview Jon MacDonald, CEO of the Good.  Jon and team have worked on Conversion rate optimization projects for companies like Nike, Xerox, Adobe and the Economist as well as many other ecommerce companies.  

Jon’s perspective and approach are unique and I’m confident you’ll pick up several CRO nuggets including:

• The 4 types of data that should influence your conversion rate optimization
• What data to ignore vs. what’s critical and actionable
• Must have elements for UX
• Product detail page essentials
• Making the complex simple and bringing products to life on your site
• Great eCommerce examples for UX to pay attention to
• Plus more

Connect with Guest:
via Linkedin
via Twitter
via Instagram

Mentioned in this Episode:
The Good – eCommerce Conversion Rate Optimization
via Linkedin
via Twitter
The Good – Insights
The Good – Free Landing Page Assessment
Google Analytics
Hotjar – Heatmaps, Visitor Recordings, Conversion Funnels and More
Hotjar – 8 Heatmap Test That Reveal Visitor Behavior
Crazy Egg – Visualize Where Your Visitors Click
UserTesting – Customer Experience & UX Research Platform
What Users Do – Usability and User Testing
Slides

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If you want an inside look at Amazon you’d be hard pressed to find a better person to talk to than James Thomson co-founder of Buy Box Experts and the wildly popular Prosper Show.

In this episode we get into the details of what sellers on Amazon should be thinking and doing right now on a variety of important topics including:

• Sales Tax! This can be some scary stuff.  We talk about the Wayfair Supreme Court decision, the recent ruling in California and what it all means to you.  Not the sexiest of topics, but one that could kill your business if you’re not taking action now.
• Brand equity.  There’s never been a better time to build a brand on Amazon.  We’ll talk about what it means to build and try to hold on to brand equity on Amazon.
• 1p vs. 3p vs. Hybrid – what’s best and why.
• Most common mistakes sellers are making right now and how to avoid them
• How Amazon approaches their private label game and when are they coming for your category.
• Prosper Show 2019 details
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:

“The Amazon Marketplace Dilemma” by James Thomson and Joseph Hansen
Prosper Show – Conference for Amazon Sellers
Buy Box Experts – Amazon Account Management and Branding Strategy Consulting

Connect with Guest:

Via email:
Via Linkedin/James Thomson:
Via Linkedin/Buy Box Experts:
Via Facebook:
Via Twitter:

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Interested in better email campaigns, more persuasive product detail pages and more irresistible videos?  Maybe you need to start incorporating a little humor.  

By now we’ve all seen a Harmon Brother’s video (Think Poo Pourri and Squatty Potty) and we’ve seen the magical effect those videos can have when launching a product….Or maybe you recall the simple, Dollar Shave Club video that launched an empire that Unilever bought for $1 Billion.  But…we’ve also seen some funny ads that did zero selling. Sometimes we can’t even remember what product the ad was for after we saw it, but it did make us laugh.

So what’s the difference? How can you use humor to actually sell?

A few months ago I was speaking at a Blue Ribbon Mastermind event run by Ezra Firestone and I heard another speaker and immediately fell in love with her topic – using humor to sell more.

Lianna Patch is the Founder of Punchline Copy.  She has a wealth of experience as a standup comedian, and improv actor, and a copywriter for eCommerce brands.  In this episode we dive into the following:

• How to blend humor with persuasion for better conversion rates
• Where you should use humor first
• What ecommerce companies properly use humor
• How a jewelry store leverage humor for double digit improvements in conversion rates
• How to use humor in emails even if (or especially if) your product category is “boring” or even “B2B”.
• What eCommerce companies get humor right.
• Plus more

Check it out!

Mentioned in This Episode:

2-Minute Crash Course on YouTube & TrueView Ads, with Brett Curry – Smart Marketer

How to Use YouTube to Scale eCommerce Ads – Smart Marketer

Harmon Brothers – The Marketers Behind Squatty Potty, Poo~Pourri, and More

How Saving Money with Jet.com Works from Kumail Nanjiani! – YouTube

Connect with Guest:

Lianna Patch – Owner & Conversion Copywriter at Punchline Conversion Copywriting
via Linkedin:
via Facebook:
via Twitter:

Punchline Conversion Copywriting
via Facebook:
via Instagram:

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Recently I had a chance to catch up with my friend and fellow entrepreneur, Dave Woodward.  Dave is the Chief Business Development Officer at ClickFunnels. He’s a motivator, a marketing mastermind, and an all around awesome guy.

I first met Dave in 2009 or so when my business partner, Chris Brewer, and I were partnering with Russell Brunson (Co-Found of ClickFunnels) on a project.

It’s been amazing watching click funnel scale from just an idea to a $200million + per year software as a service (SaaS) company in just a few years.  

So how do you achieve that kind of growth?  That’s what I wanted to hear from Dave. Here’s a look at what we covered.  I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I did!

• Philosophy and mindset that allow for meteoric growth
• How the founders of Click Funnels got the team side of things right in order to scale
• How ClickFunnels acquired customers at a profit or breakeven when approximately zero SaaS companies have achieved that mark
• Marketing channels that are the most important to the growth of ClickFunnels
• What makes for a great eCommerce funnel
• What’s next for ClickFunnels
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:
Click Funnels – Marketing Made Easy
Funnel Hacker Radio
Russell Brunson

Connect with Guest:
via Email
via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter
via Instagram

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If you’re like me then you’re not overly familiar with affiliate marketing.  It is a bit of a mystery for a lot of us marketers and ecomm entrepreneurs.

However it does have some huge positives:

Scalable: Once you attract the right affiliates and have the right offer, you can go from 0 to thousands of orders in no time.  

Predictable – As you know, I’m a PPC guy.  I’ll always love PPC, but there are variables there.  With Affiliate marketing you pay the same cost per acquisition every time giving you some predictability.  

My guest on this episode is Nate Lind.  Nate is an eCommerce entrepreneur, a marketer and the founder of the Online Seller’s Summit.  He’s also a guy who knows a thing or two about affiliate marketing. Nate’s best single day using affiliate marketing was $4.6 million in sales.  He now has a student doing up to $1million in sales per day from affiliate marketing. Not only has Nate built multiple businesses off the profits from affiliate marketing, he also built a tool to better manage affiliate marketing called Offer Profit.  This tool was so successful – he sold to Limelight.

On the podcast we discuss what it takes to succeed with affiliate marketing:

• Keys to a good offer
• Making the math work – how to structure your affiliate offers to both motivate affiliates and maximize your growth.
• Customer lifetime value and Nate’s favorite marketing mantra
• The best businesses for affiliate marketing
• How Nate lives a 4 hour workweek
• Why getting punched in the mouth is OK
• Plus more!

Mentioned in this Episode:
Medium Article

Russell Brunson – Owner at ClickFunnels

Cutco Cutlery & Kitchen Knives – Vector Marketing

Affiliate Summit

Affiliate World Conferences

Prosper Show – Conference for Amazon Sellers

CapCon 2019 – Capitalism Conference

Dan Kennedy

Michael Masterson – The Pen Name that Started It All – American Writers & Artists Institute

David Ogilvy – Wikipedia

“Ogilvy on Advertising” by David Ogilvy – Amazon

Jay Abraham

LimeLight – Powering Subscription Businesses

Shopify

The Blog of Author Tim Farriss – Tim Ferriss’s 4-Hour Workweek

2-Minute Crash Course on YouTube & TrueView Ads, with Brett Curry – Smart Marketer

How to Use YouTube to Scale eCommerce Ads – Smart Marketer

Connect with Guest

Nate Lind – Founder and CEO of ADSUM (Online Retail Trade Show for $1m – $100m Companies)

via LinkedIn

via Facebook

via Instagram

ADSUM – Online Sellers Summit

via Facebook  

via Instagram

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The Cyber Five (Thanksgiving – Cyber Monday) this year broke all kinds of records and was an interesting departure from years past in several ways.  In this episode I welcome back to the podcast my business partner, Chris Brewer. We look at this holiday shopping season from a few different perspectives.  We talk in general terms about how our clients who are mostly in the $5 to $50 Million per year in sales did during the Cyber 5 and after. We also looked at trends and data from the largest ecomm companies.  

By the numbers….a Look at the Industry as a Whole.  

Here are just a few of the highlights we look at in this episode.

• Thanksgiving weekend was up 23% – total spend was $24.2 billion.  Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday.
• Mobile spend was $10 billion of that (approaching half) and that’s up 44% from last year.  So doubling the growth rate of the holiday trend as a whole.
• Main Drivers of online sales
• Email at 26% – up 2% YoY
• Paid Search at 22% – up 6% YoY
• Social – minimal impact 1.3% of sales….(remember this stat is from the big guys, not mid-sized companies).

Surprises from our clients:

• Black Friday was our clients biggest day by a long shot with Cyber Monday finishing 2nd.
• Social continues to be a big investment for our clients but getting the same results as last year has been difficult mainly due to rising ad costs.
• YouTube big as well – one of the top 3 channels for several of our clients.

Winning Formula:

We talk about what our most successful clients did well so you can properly plan for next year.  We look at several winning tactics including:

• Email – build, cultivate and prime your email list for Cyber 5.  Multiple email reminders – often 3 per day.
• Start early – Wednesday even.  We found our most successful clients started sales or at least started promoting sales early. Consumers have finite dollars to spend, get their attention early and you’ll have a better chance to grab your share of wallet.
• Build your retargeting audiences early – our clients who had the most success had large lists of people who’ve visited their site in the past or viewed a YouTube video who we could then retarget.  

Mentioned in this Episode:

Wendell August Forge
Askinosie Chocolate
Holiday E-Commerce 2018 Data Analysis in 10 Charts
Dynamic Checkout Buttons
Ezra Firestone Official – Smart Marketer
2-Minute Crash Course on YouTube & TrueView Ads, with Brett Curry – Smart Marketer
How to Use YouTube to Scale eCommerce Ads – Smart Marketer

Connect with Guest:

Chris Brewer – Digital & eCommerce Entrepreneur and Co-Founder of OMG Commerce

via Linkedin
via Facebook
via Twitter
via Instagram

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