DTC Podcast

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Weekly discussions between disruptive direct to consumer ecommerce brands and our amazing team about marketing, funnels, and everything scaling related. Subscribe to our newsletter for highlights and ... more

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FAQs about DTC Podcast:

How many episodes does DTC Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 93 episodes available.

DTC Podcast episodes:

January 09, 2026DTC Podcast | Ep 575: The Angle Audit: How to Break Out of the $5M “Vibes Plateau”| AKNF x Ad-Venturous
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Listen now: https://www.pilothouse.co/
This week on the DTC Podcast, we’re re-airing a must-listen from our sister podcast Adventurous, hosted by Avery Valerio.
Avery’s diving deep into one of the most overlooked levers in DTC growth: angles — the emotional and strategic hooks that turn browsers into buyers. If you’ve been leaning on “vibes” and lifestyle content to carry your creative… this is your wake-up call.
For creative strategists, performance marketers, and founders stuck at the “vibes plateau.”
Tactical takeaways:
Why most brands stall at $3–5M without real angle development
How to build angles that scale across top and bottom funnel
The difference between product features and product benefits — and why that matters
Why “vibe-first” brands eventually need strategy to survive
How Avery maps personas to angles using a tool she built (linked on her LinkedIn/TikTok)
Who this is for:
Creative leads, ad buyers, or anyone building brand strategy from the ground up.
What to steal:
The “steak vs. sizzle” framework for angle testing
A mindset shift: Treat angles like campaign assets, not just captions
How to tell when you’re out of angles — and how to fix it fast
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro to Ad-venturous Angles
02:00 Why most DTC brands stall on vibes
04:00 The need for real creative strategy
06:00 What an angle really is
08:00 Features vs benefits in ad angles
10:00 The Got Milk example
12:00 How angles create emotional connection
14:00 The upside-down triangle framework
16:00 Why modern angles must be agile
18:00 Using research and reviews to build angles
20:00 Personas and segmentation for scale
22:00 The three layers of the triangle
24:00 Top of funnel angle development
26:00 Middle of funnel curiosity
28:00 Bottom of funnel community content
30:00 Why angles must work everywhere
32:00 Testing and iterating angles
34:00 Final takeaways on creative strategy
Hashtags:
#DTCMarketing #AdCreative #MarketingAngles #PerformanceCreative #EcommerceMarketing #BrandStrategy #CreativeTesting #FunnelMarketing #DigitalAdvertising #ContentStrategy #Pilothouse #DTCNewsletter #AdVenturousPodcast #MarketingPodcast
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF575
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
Watch this interview on YouTube – https://dtcnews.link/video
...more
36min
January 05, 2026DTC Podcast | Ep 574: How Pretty Litter Scaled to $300M+ With Only 12 Employees
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Daniel Rotman built Pretty Litter into a $300M+ revenue juggernaut by doing something most founders won’t: going all-in on an unsexy product. In this episode, he breaks down how a single innovation in kitty litter unlocked a billion-dollar outcome—with just $1M raised and a 12-person team.
For DTC founders scaling from 7 to 9 figures…
How to win in overlooked categories (and why sexy products attract deadly competition)
Why kitty litter was the perfect subscription product
The secret to high-margin DTC logistics (and how silica unlocked DTC viability)
Daniel’s media buying strategy in year 1 that drove $750K solo
How Pretty Litter used smart ops, lean hiring, and brand positioning to build a moat
Who this is for: Founders, growth leads, and marketers looking to scale profitably and avoid the DTC hype traps
What to steal:
The underdog category playbook
Retention-driven brand building
The ops strategy behind $300M revenue and 12 employees
#DTCGrowth #SubscriptionBusiness #RetentionMarketing #BootstrapStartup #EcommerceStrategy #ConsumerBrands #FoundersJourney #LeanStartup #ProductInnovation #BrandBuilding #UnsexyProducts #ScalingUp #StartupExit #PetCareIndustry #MarketingTactics
00:00 – Introduction: The Power of Unsexy Products
04:41 – The Loss That Sparked Pretty Litter
16:41 – The Health Monitoring Breakthrough
20:25 – From Idea to Launch in 6 Months
23:44 – $750K Year One, Solo Founder
25:33 – Why Daniel Said No to VC
30:20 – Year-by-Year Revenue Growth to $300M+
36:00 – How Unsexy Built a Moat and Killed the Copycats
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://dtcnews.link/pilothouse
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
...more
57min
January 02, 2026DTC Podcast | Ep 573: Where Should That Click Go? Landing Pages, Homepages, and PDPs (TWBERP)
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Most brands obsess over ads and ignore the moment that matters most: where the click lands.
In this episode, Jordan Gordon and Pilothouse strategist Taylor Cain break down how to decide whether traffic should go to your homepage, a PDP, a collection, or a dedicated landing page—plus how to diagnose when conversion rate issues aren’t about your ad at all.
You’ll learn:
When a landing page outperforms your homepage (and when it doesn’t)
How consideration level, pricing, and message clarity determine the ideal click-through path
Why “anchoring” and UX sequencing can dramatically change conversion rates
How testing new PDP structures (including delaying price) can increase results
How to build fast, scrappy landing pages that plug cleanly into Shopify
What heatmaps, scroll behavior, and section-level engagement reveal about friction
Why iteration beats theory — and how to develop a testing mindset that actually finds signal
#EmailMarketing #RetentionMarketing #CRO #LandingPages #EcommerceStrategy #DTCMarketing #ShopifyBrands
00:00 — Introduction
01:00 — When a Landing Page Beats Your Homepage
03:00 — How Disrupted Traffic Changes Your Funnel
06:00 — Rising Prices, Rising Consideration
10:00 — PDP vs Landing Page: Which One Converts Better?
14:00 — Why Testing Beats Theory Every Time
20:00 — The Underrated Power of Email Capture on Landers
29:00 — Inside a High-Performing Landing Page Build
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF573
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
...more
39min
December 31, 2025DTC Podcast | Bonus: How to Blend Your Omnichannel Marketing with Dean Krowitz from Blend.AI
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
On this episode of the DTC Podcast, Eric sits down with Dean Krowitz, Co-Founder of Blend‑AI, to unpack what happens when you stop managing channels in silos and start automating your entire media mix. If Meta’s efficiency is dropping and your cross-channel budget is vibes-based… this is your fix.
blend-ai.com
What You’ll Learn:
Why composite funnels matter more than platform-specific attribution
How Blend automates budget shifts based on live conversion data
Why humans shouldn’t manage five channels manually anymore
What most brands get wrong with creative distribution
How underused channels (like Microsoft) quietly drive results
How to launch campaigns in October — not November — for peak BFCM gains
Sync audiences across channels to reduce over-saturation
Analyze top, middle, and bottom funnel cross-platform, not in silos
If you’re a media buyer, growth lead, or a DTC founder trying to scale performance without losing your mind, this episode is your new best friend.
Hashtags:
#ecommerce #dtc #mediabuying #performancemarketing #paidmedia #digitalmarketing #aimarketing #martech #adtech #marketingautomation #omnichannel #fullfunnel #growthmarketing #customeracquisition #conversionrateoptimization #cro #marketingmix #crosschannel #attribution #metaads #googleads #tiktokads #youtubeads #shopify #ecommercegrowth #d2cpodcast
Timestamps:
00:00 – Introduction. Why overspending on one channel kills growth
04:22 – The “who, what, where” framework behind Blend’s composite funnel
10:00 – How AI launches full-funnel ads across every major platform
15:18 – Why Microsoft Ads is the most ignored growth channel
21:40 – Why Meta’s algorithm starves most of your creative
29:15 – How one brand tripled revenue with 20% less ad spend
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://dtcnews.link/pilothouse
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
...more
38min
December 29, 2025DTC Podcast | EP 572: The $200 AOV DTC Brand Built on Pockets, Partnerships, and Purpose
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
When Amy joined Wildfang, she was running a storefront in Portland. 10 years later, she’s the President of a vertically-integrated DTC brand pulling $200 AOVs, 25% of revenue from extended sizing, and partnerships that drive CAC down by 50%.
She also made a major paid media pivot — bringing on Pilothouse to reset their entire growth engine.
For DTC founders scaling from $5–50M who are thinking about verticalization, performance marketing, or brand-led growth.
Inside this episode:
How going vertical changed everything — from cashflow to creative
Why extended sizing drives 25% of Wildfang’s revenue (and what it took to get there)
The “90/10” Meta strategy that crushed Black Friday with Pilothouse
The ROI of Debbie Harry and Taco Bell collabs (hint: it wasn’t just vibes)
How to restructure ops, finance, and paid when profitability becomes the priority
Who this is for:
Brand founders, VP Growths, operators, and marketers building modern DTC brands
What to steal:
Pilothouse’s ad architecture playbook: reuse, reframe, retest
A partnership model that blends licensing, NIL, and white-labeling
How to spot “overthink” in your performance strategy — and simplify for scale
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://dtcnews.link/pilothouse
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
...more
53min
December 26, 2025DTC Podcast | Ep 571: How Pilothouse Cut BFCM CPMs With Smarter Creative (2025 Recap)
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
In this BFCM 2025 breakdown, Eric chats with Pilothouse’s Head of Ecom Grayson Rudzki and Lead Strategist Abby to unpack what actually worked, what flopped, and how smarter strategy beat brute-force ad spend.
For DTC marketers running paid, creative, or lifecycle retention
How Pilothouse beat Meta’s creative fatigue warnings
What “targeting with creative” really means in 2025
Why retention—not acquisition—won this year
Tactics for using AI without generating slop
Real BFCM ads that moved the needle (with examples)
Who this is for: Founders, brand-side marketers, and media buyers looking to de-risk spend and boost lifetime value
What to steal:
The “persona-led Christmas card ad” concept that crushed
How to diversify creative for open targeting without burning out
Simple Rebuy tweaks that doubled items per order
Timestamps
00:00 AI reshaping BFCM strategy and creative testing
02:00 Record BFCM performance numbers and key takeaways
04:00 Why retention, baseline revenue, and loyalty mattered most
06:00 Real examples of AI workflows that saved teams time
08:00 Outdated playbooks vs the need for real strategists
10:00 Meta Andromeda, creative fatigue, and targeting with creative
12:00 Persona-driven creative example that drove conversions
14:00 Humor, culture, and relevance in winning ad creative
16:00 Diversified creative performance and lowered CPMs
18:00 The new state of UGC and authenticity on Meta
20:00 Post-click strategy, bundles, and conversion wins
22:00 2026 resolutions: intuition, creativity, and human strategy
24:00 Hero apps of the year: Rebuy, Triple Whale, and results
Hashtags
#BFCM #Ecommerce #EcommerceMarketing #DTC #MetaAds #FacebookAds #PerformanceMarketing #AIinMarketing #BlackFriday #CyberMonday #MarketingStrategy #CreativeStrategy #AdBuying #TripleWhale #Rebuy
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF571
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
Watch this interview on YouTube – https://dtcnews.link/video
...more
26min
December 22, 2025DTC Podcast | Ep 570: Inside the Dragon’s Den with Santevia and How they 2Xed Amazon Revenue by Taking Back Control
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Matthew Gohl took over the family business, Santevia, and turned it into a DTC powerhouse. In this episode, he breaks down how they scaled Amazon 2X, rebuilt their Meta ads strategy from the ground up, and landed a killer deal on Dragon’s Den.
For DTC operators scaling beyond $5M and navigating Meta + Amazon growth channels:
Why switching from Vendor Central to Seller Central was worth the 16-month headache
How a $25 hero product failed on Meta, and why their $320 glass system now crushes
The role of creative strategy in hitting $100K+ weekly spend without tanking ROAS
How they prepped their brand for Dragon’s Den—and doubled baseline sales after
The case for launching refillable, eco-focused SKUs in 2026
Who this is for: DTC operators, marketers, and founders looking to scale with lean teams and high-margin SKUs.
What to steal:
Creative briefing process that reduces wasted ad spend
Why Meta sees “different creators” as “same ad” (and how to fix it)
How to make a high-ticket product actually work in cold acquisition
Timestamps:
00:00 Why creative diversity (not campaign complexity) is the real Meta unlock
03:05 Buying the family business and shifting from retail-first to DTC
06:48 Revenue dips, imposter syndrome, and trusting the long-term strategy
09:15 From 1 video every 2 weeks to 60 creatives by Friday (creative velocity shift)
13:02 Why hero products with higher AOV unlock profitable Meta spend
16:19 Meta’s Andromeda explained: aggregation + creative volume wins
30:34 Dragon’s Den moment: “I own that one” and why endorsements change everything
Hashtags:
#DTC #Ecommerce #MetaAds #CreativeStrategy #BrandBuilding #PerformanceMarketing #DirectToConsumer #PaidSocial #AdCreative #MarketingPodcast #EcommerceGrowth #ScalingBrands #FounderStory #Dragon’sDen #BFCM #RetailStrategy
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://dtcnews.link/pilothouse
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
...more
40min
December 19, 2025DTC Podcast | Ep 569: How Pilothouse 3x’d Buddha Board with a Year-Long BFCM Strategy and Hyper-Vigilant Milkshake Drinking
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
This one’s for the Amazon operators. Eric’s joined by Pilothouse’s Amazon leads Tyler and Takai for a tactical BFCM debrief: how one brand 3x’d in November, and the optimizations that separated the winners from the stalled-out.
For Amazon brands prepping for deal season 2026…
Why adjusting bids every few hours on BFCM isn’t overkill, it’s table stakes
How Buddha Board used Q1 seasonal keyword campaigns to dominate Q4
Why not discounting your hero product can kill your momentum—and rank
What to watch: Buy Box battles, billing failures, and inventory stockouts
Who this is for: Brands selling on Amazon, agencies running client accounts, operators trying to scale beyond ad-only growth
What to steal:
Search Query Performance Report: find keywords you’re under-targeting with high conversion potential
Deal discount strategy: 20% minimum, monitor competitor offers in real time
Build keyword rank 6–12 months out from your key season
Timestamps
00:00 Amazon BFCM optimization mindset
02:10 Why frequent bid and budget changes matter
04:00 How aggressive Amazon bid adjustments get during BFCM
07:00 Building Amazon keyword ranking before Q4
11:00 Buddha Board case study and seasonal keyword strategy
15:00 How early planning led to 3x November growth
17:00 Amazon buy box explained and reseller risks
23:30 Common BFCM pitfalls: billing, inventory, hero SKUs
28:00 What actually worked in Amazon BFCM 2025
29:50 The discount levels that moved buyers
Hashtags
#AmazonFBA #AmazonAdvertising #BFCMRecap #BlackFridayStrategy #CyberMonday #AmazonPPC #EcommerceMarketing #DTCBrands #AmazonBuyBox #AmazonGrowth #EcommercePodcast #Q4Strategy #AmazonCaseStudy #RetailMedia #Pilothouse
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF569
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
Watch this interview on YouTube – https://dtcnews.link/video
...more
32min
December 17, 2025DTC Podcast | Bonus: How an AI CMO Can Jump Your Revenue 25%
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
In this episode of the DTC Podcast, we have Josip Begic, CEO and Co-Founder of Lebesgue, to answer the one question every DTC CEO asks: what’s actually working right now? With $4B in ad data and insights from 25,000+ brands, Henry AI cuts through the noise to pinpoint the exact levers that drive revenue up (or down).
Get started with Henri AI inside Lebesgue–plans start at $79/month.
This episode breaks down:
Why conversion tanked 25% after a “small” discount code tweak
How AI visibility (e.g. ChatGPT referrals) is becoming the new SEO
Where Meta’s AI (Andromeda) really works—and where it doesn’t
The biggest mistake DTCs are making with email segmentation
Why attribution models need game theory (yes, really)
If you’re a DTC founder scaling from $5M–20M, brand owner, growth lead, or a marketer who wants a smarter way to spot performance issues, this episode is a must listen.
Timestamps
00:00 Lebesgue’s AI approach to ecommerce analytics
02:05 Why better measurement changes marketing decisions
04:00 How AI uncovered a hidden conversion rate issue
06:10 Correlation vs causation in attribution modeling
08:00 ChatGPT as a high-converting traffic source
10:05 Optimizing ecommerce sites for AI discovery
13:00 Why fundamentals still matter more than advanced AI
18:30 Common email marketing mistakes during peak periods
21:00 Using competitor data to find growth gaps
23:30 What CEOs see first when using Henry AI
27:00 Where AI agents and ecommerce are heading
31:00 AI visibility as the next growth battleground
33:00 Getting started with Lebesgue and pricing
Hashtags
#DTC #Ecommerce #AIinMarketing #MarketingAnalytics #Attribution #ChatGPT #AIDiscovery #MetaAds #GoogleAds #EmailMarketing #ConversionOptimization #FounderInsights #MarTech
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://dtcnews.link/pilothouse
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
Watch this interview on YouTube – https://dtcnews.link/video
...more
35min
December 15, 2025DTC Podcast | Ep 568: How Kulfi Beauty Grew from a $5K Launch to 720 Sephora Stores with Zero Paid Ads
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Priyanka Ganjoo didn’t see herself in beauty, so she built the brand she always needed. Kulfi Beauty was born from a cultural gap in representation and a product gap in shades that actually worked for South Asian skin tones. Four years later? They’re in every Sephora in the US and Canada.
For DTC founders scaling from organic roots into omnichannel retail…
Why Priyanka started with zero ads and leaned all-in on community and cultural storytelling
What she learned launching in Sephora (hint: velocity is everything)
The unexpected go-to-market power of a $500 Central Park picnic
How DTC creates halo effect on retail shelves (and vice versa)
Why Kulfi still handpicks every creator they work with
Who this is for: Founders navigating retail, community-led brands, and anyone building for an underrepresented audience
What to steal:
Use FB groups and 1:1 convos to validate early product ideas
Build an ambassador program that turns into your model roster
Don’t try to script creators—let their authentic POV fuel your ads
Timestamps:
00:00 Why Community Is the Real Growth Engine
02:16 Why Priyanka Built Kulfi Beauty
03:40 The Product and Emotional Gap in South Asian Beauty
09:14 Building Community Before Spending on Ads
14:11 How Kulfi Got Discovered and Scaled With Sephora
18:46 Velocity Is the Only Retail Metric That Matters
21:58 Why UGC Powers Almost All of Their Meta Ads
Hashtags:
#DTC #DTCPodcast #BeautyBrands #BeautyFounders #Sephora #UGCMarketing #CreatorEconomy #MetaAds #TikTokForBrands #RetailStrategy #FounderStory #SouthAsianFounders
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter – https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC – https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse – https://dtcnews.link/pilothouse
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter – @dtcnewsletter
...more
40min

FAQs about DTC Podcast:

How many episodes does DTC Podcast have?

The podcast currently has 93 episodes available.