The way you position your company in the eyes of your customers is the most make-or-break decision you can make. Who are you selling to? What problem are you solving for them? Why should a customer buy from you? All these questions need answers, and if they aren’t the right answers, it’s going to be a pretty rocky road. 

So when you hear about a humidifier that’s being positioned as a beauty product, what do you think? Good idea or bad? Well, for the guys at Canopy, it turned out to be a great idea and we got into it on this special in-person roundtable episode of Up Next in Commerce. 

Joining me in-studio here in Austin, Texas was Eric Neher, CMO at Canopy, Justin Seidenfeld, CEO at Doris Dev and Co-Founder of Canopy, and Lucas Lappe, Head of Product and Co-Founder at Doris Dev. We talked all things Canopy, but we also dove into Doris Dev, a product development agency that has helped scale companies like Blueland, Magic Spoon, BioLite, Supply, Lalo, and many more. During this epic chat, we touched on a little bit of everything -- from branding and logistical issues to product design and marketing, and beyond. I hope you have as much fun listening as I had hanging out with this lively trio.

Main Takeaways:

• An Obvious Way In: When you are thinking about using a subscription model, you should have an obvious reason to get in touch with your customer or a product that they need to replace or replenish that is the basis of your subscription. When you force goods on customers that they don’t need or even necessarily want via a subscription, you spoil the relationship you have built with them. 
• Trendspotting: One of the most recent trends, particularly in the world of beauty, is blending innovative, creative experiences with products that are created with sustainable materials. Today’s customers have higher expectations than ever before and they are looking to support brands that rise to the occasion in every way.
• The Need For Newness: Bringing new products, experiences, and opportunities to customers is one of the best ways to keep them engaged. But in creating new things — even if it’s just an updated version of something that exists — you are constantly struggling to make sure that what you build works, does what you want, does what the customer needs, and never takes away from the brand or the experience. But those are challenges you need to face in order to not pigeonhole your business by relying on one or two products forever.

For an in-depth look at this episode, check out the full transcript below. Quotes have been edited for clarity and length.

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For a full transcript of this interview, click here.