Ecommerce Braintrust

In this episode of The Ecommerce Braintrust, Kiri Masters is joined by Lauren Livak, lead at the Digital Shelf Institute, and Mike Black, the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Profitero, a global commerce acceleration company. In this podcast, they're discussing the new Digital Shelf Institute and Profitero report "Defining Content Effectiveness". Here you can register to join them in the webinar in February.

In today's episode, we delve into the ever-evolving world of content effectiveness in digital retail. Kiri, Lauren, and Mike unpack the intricacies of creating impactful content that resonates with consumers and drives conversion. Drawing from their new report which involved interviewing over twelve digital leaders, they explore the duality of art and science when it comes to defining what effective content truly means for different brands.

If you're looking for comprehensive insights on improving your ecommerce content strategy, you won't want to miss this enlightening conversation. Are you ready to transition from merely sufficient content to truly effective communication with your consumer base? Make sure you tune in!

More about the guests:

Mike Black

Mike joined Profitero in 2017 as Vice President of Marketing and has been instrumental in the company's growth after joining Publicis Group, grew the company's offerings beyond digital shelf analytics to include predictive analytics, retail media, and content activation solutions. Before joining Profitero, Mike held marketing roles at Nielsen and Staples

Lauren Livak

Lauren leads the Digital Shelf Institute in defining the strategy to create a global commerce community that supports brands, retailers, and future leaders in the complex world of digital. Across her roles, she has worked with hundreds of brand manufacturers helping them to develop an overall commerce strategy and vision for their commerce journey leveraging her work at Johnson & Johnson where she was the owner of the Digital Shelf for the Consumer family of products for North America. She launched a new approach for the way the Consumer North America business went to digital retail both in pure play & omni-channel streams covering multiple platforms such as OTC, Beauty, Oral Care, Baby Care & Wound Care with accountability for 40+ retailers and 33+ brands.

In this episode Kiri, Lauren and Mike discuss:

- The five core pillars of content effectiveness: people, data and systems, process, measurement, and retailer collaboration.

- The importance of understanding shopper behavior and using that knowledge to drive engagement with content.

- How content impacts organic search and can be utilized to educate leadership teams on its importance.

- Using retailer conversion data and measurement tools to understand content effectiveness in terms of emotional and brand impact.

- The necessity for organizations to go through a maturity curve to fully understand and define content effectiveness.

- The significance of internal processes and avoiding siloed teams to maximize content impact.

- The potential of advanced tools, such as AI, once the content effectiveness fundamentals are well-established.

- Upcoming webinar announcement and the availability of the content effectiveness report at digitalshelfinstitute.org.

- The debate around whether content is being managed for mere sufficiency or optimized for effectiveness.

- The essential role of communicating the value of content to leadership, particularly in the absence of clear-cut metrics.

- The value of search-optimized content and transitioning to content that both builds a brand and drives conversion.

- The need for resources that can harness consumer insights, and processes that ensure content reaches the right channels.

- Surprising variations in content effectiveness definitions among digital leaders, indicating a lack of a one-size-fits-all approach.

- Importance of content integration with product launches, and how some brands succeed while others fall short.

- The balance between the creative and methodical aspects of measuring content effectiveness and return on investment.

In this episode of The Ecommerce Braintrust, Kiri Masters shares a special replay from "Unpacking the Digital Shelf" webinar, presented by our friends over at the Digital Shelf Institute, Peter Crosby and Lauren Livak.

They are discussing 'The Walmart Marketplace: Copy and Paste is a Waste!" and are navigating the intricacies of the Walmart Marketplace and why it's not just another Amazon. Guests were Tom Spaven, VP of Marketing at Goodwipes at the time of the recording, and industry expert Lauren Livak on board to discuss the unique challenges and opportunities on this emerging platform.

Whether you're a seasoned seller or new to the ecommerce space, this session is packed with insights on how to tailor your strategy for success in the Walmart sphere.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

In today's episode, Peter, Lauren, Kiri and Tom discuss:

- Walmart's specific product title guidelines and the importance of keyword research and content optimization.

- Behavioral differences between Walmart and Amazon consumers, resulting in the need for platform-specific strategies.

- The valuable yet underutilized newer tools on Walmart, such as videos and feature sets.

- The challenges of updating product pages and the competitive advantage of using tools like Acadia.

- Walmart's immersive shopping experience that promotes browsing through collection pages.

- The difficulties and significance of obtaining product reviews on Walmart.

- The contrast between self-serve ad platforms on Amazon and Walmart.

- The disparities between Amazon and Walmart in terms of assortment, basket size, and purchase frequency.

- Content quality scores and their impact on Walmart's algorithm.

- The necessity for lower-priced products, seller performance, and content quality for better visibility on Walmart.

- Attribution and metadata differences critical for Walmart optimization, as opposed to Amazon.

- Updates on content quality, attribution weighting, and the importance of strategic cell sheet updates.

- Tom Spaven's challenges in syndicating reviews and Lauren Livak's insights into review challenges across retailers.

- Kiri Masters delved into advertising on Walmart, including its limitations and opportunities.

- The prioritization of data improvement for Walmart Connect and the call for transparency from the platform.

- Allocation of resources across omnichannel brands and the distinct growth avenues on Walmart's marketplace.

- The cost difference in accessing data from Amazon versus Walmart's Luminate platform.

- The advantages of being a one p brand versus a three p brand at Walmart and the online presence implications.

- The criticalness of online optimization for retail strategy, highlighted by consumer preferences and the synergy of in-store and online shopping.

- The discussion on the increased focus on retail media, its influence on consumer consideration and conversion, and the need for modernizing marketing strategies with a consumer-centric approach.

- The potential and challenges of Walmart's grocery focus and Walmart Luminate's data-sharing capabilities.

In today's episode, Kiri speaks with Jamie Roller, Associate Director of Growth Channels at Dr. Squatch. They speak about growth through the DTC channel, the channels Dr. Squatch is selling on, Amazon DSP, retail media networks, and more.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

Jamie is the Associate Director of Growth Channels at Dr. Squatch, a men's natural personal care brand. In this role, she is responsible for driving strategy, growth, and management of Dr. Squatch's Growth/Marketplace Channels including Amazon and Walmart.com. She has spent the last 10 years in global strategy consulting and working at several market-leading, high-growth eCommerce companies. She is obsessed with everything eCommerce and is also a productivity geek.

In today's episode, Kiri and Jamie discuss:

• Jamie's career and how she got into e-commerce.

• About Jamie's position as Associate Director, Growth Channels at Dr. Squatch, and which sales & marketing channels fall under her preview.

• Org structure of the company

• Historical growth through the DTC channel, so the org setup supports that model

• Marketplaces/ growth reports to the marketing team

• Retail operations have been a more recent division, and B&M has become more important recently.

• "We need to be where the customer shops"

• From the outside, Dr. Squatch is doing a lot of experimentation with Amazon advertising and other marketing channels. Yours was one of the ads I first noticed with the TNF, for example. Tell us about how your company thinks of Amazon within its marketing and sales mix.

• Historically viewed Amazon as a BOFU acquisition channel

• Lots of ads outside of Amazon drive high-intent purchases to Amazon (branded search). They get more branded traffic to listings to listings than there is category traffic.

• While they would like more customers to be shopping DTC, the reality is there are some customers who prefer to shop on Amazon.

• The TNF campaign was TOFU obviously, they saw a nice uptick of sales on the DTC site, but not so much on Amazon. Performance-oriented

• Testing DSP - didn't see a huge lift in sales. Customers are already coming to Amazon with high intent. They don't want to be spending to gain awareness twice.

• Similarly, they will see a bump in AMZ sales when they run ads on Facebook

• Many brands consider Amazon a distribution channel rather than a marketing channel. What do you know to be true that these other brands may not?

• Tell us about how you address the marketing funnel/ shopper journey with various Amazon marketing products (e.g. top-of-funnel with DSP, Amazon live, BOFU with sponsored products, etc?)

• View AMZ as primarily a BOFU channel, ROAS on branded search is super high

• Brought on a new agency in August 2022, did a low-spend test with specific re-targeting and remarketing, didn't see a lift, and couldn't attribute ROAS

• How do you think about all the retail media networks out there (seems like a new one every 2 weeks!) and choose where to focus time and budget?

• Amazon is still a huge channel for them - every minute she puts in a new channel, that's a minute she has taken away from their huge AMZ business

• It's a brand that's very performance oriented. What they are spending time on will drive performance in 6-12 mths

• 4 RMNs being actively managed

In this episode of The Ecommerce Braintrust, Kiri Masters, Head of Retail Marketplace Strategy at Acadia, dives deep into the nuances of navigating industry conferences and events with expert precision. Kiri delivers an insightful look into maximizing the value of attending conferences, based on personal experiences, fruitful strategies, and networking best practices.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

In today's episode, Kiri talks about:

- Her growth trajectory as a manager and practitioner, and the importance of leveraging events for continuous learning.

- Strategies for connecting with professionals across various companies to expand perspectives and foster potential collaborations.

- Implementing event-learned knowledge into business practices to secure the ROI on travel and conference expenses.

- Tips on sharing insights on LinkedIn after events, including creating listicles, and the use of engaging visuals such as mind maps.

- Understanding the true essence of networking and the significance of stepping out of one's comfort zone for long-term career advantages.

- Handling interactions with exhibitors, including learning from Richard Kestenbaum, asking pertinent questions, and extracting meaningful insights.

- Best practices for securing speaking opportunities and maximizing post-event follow-up routines.

- An overview of the value-packed conferences Kiri is set to participate in during the first half of 2024, such as Etail West and Retail Media Summit among others.

- Insights into devising a strategic approach to select and benefit from various industry events, especially when under budgetary constraints.

- Kiri's six golden tips for effective networking and creating authentic relationships by avoiding trivial small talk using her innovative AVH conversation formula.

- Guidance on how to engage with fellow attendees and vendors pre-event, during, and post-conference for enhancing networking opportunities and building lasting connections.

- Navigating the exhibition floor with confidence, dispelling the awkwardness, and transforming it into a treasure trove of industry knowledge and trends.

Events at which Kiri is speaking this year:

• Etail West

• ANA media conference

• DSI event

• Acadia - Retail Media Summit

In this podcast episode, Kiri speaks with Acadia's co-founder and CEO Jared Belsky. They discuss the various options available to brand-side marketers and sales leaders for retail marketplace management. They delve into the pros and cons of four options, including in-house investment, agency support, technology companies, and resellers, providing valuable insights for ecommerce professionals as they strategize for growth in 2024.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

In today's episode, Kiri and Jared discuss:

- Identifying the options available for brand-side marketers to seek help in achieving growth goals in the face of various challenges

- The need for clarity in understanding the differences between in-house investment, agency support, technology companies, and resellers

- Considerations for beefing up in-house investment, including justifying headcount and focusing on specialization

- The significance of understanding the economics and aligning with the business requirements when considering agency support

- Exploring the complexities and risks involved in engaging with resellers in the context of offloading operations and maintaining control over distribution, pricing, and inventory

- Evaluating scenarios when it may not be ideal to engage an agency, such as the need for specialized expertise, economic considerations, and the importance of effective client sponsorship

- The collaborative role of the client in nurturing a successful relationship with an agency and making informed decisions amidst the pressures of ecommerce growth goals for 2024

In this episode of "The Ecommerce Braintrust" podcast, Kiri Masters and guest Armin Alispahic delve into the major changes coming to FBA fees in 2024. They discuss the intricacies of these changes and explore how they will impact sellers on Amazon's platform.

Armin is a Retail Team Lead at Acadia. He's been at the company for almost 7 years. Internally he's known as Armin.com for his encyclopedic knowledge of Amazon. Over the years, he has gained great experience in working directly with Amazon representatives to support brands in scaling up on Amazon and achieving their goals.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

In this episode, Kiri and Armin discuss:

• Introduction of the inbound placement service fee to cover the cost of transporting shipments.

• Amazon's shift from national fulfillment to interconnected regional fulfillment networks and the resulting impact on sellers.

• The impact of the inbound placement service fee on different types of brands and products.

• Changes in FBA fees and the impact on sellers' costs and savings.

• Introduction of the low-level inventory fee and its implications for sellers.

• The ship in product packaging program and its potential to create savings for sellers.

• Reduced referral fees for apparel products priced below $20.

In this episode of The Ecommerce Braintrust, Kiri Masters, Head of Retail Marketplace Strategy at Acadia, and Damiano Ciarrocchi, Retail Media Manager at Acadia, talk about the newly launched Kroger precision marketing retail media network (KPM).

They delve into the unique features and capabilities of the self-serve ad platform, as well as the interesting aspects of Kroger's advertising platform. From the reduction in fees for brands to the potential integration of a demand-side platform (DSP), Kiri and Damiano explore the possibilities and predictions for the future of Kroger's advertising offerings.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

Kiri and Damiano discuss:

• Launch of Kroger's advertising platform and reduced fees for advertisers.

• Contextual targeting within categories and subcategories for audience targeting capabilities.

• Ad placement options and store selection for targeted advertising.

• Precise and modifiable creative capabilities for sponsored brand ads on Kroger's platform.

• Predictions for Kroger and the retail media space, including potential integration of in-store advertising and the impact of potential mergers with Albertsons.

In this episode of The Ecommerce Braintrust, Kiri Masters is joined by Tsege Gebreyohannes, Sr. Manager of Digital & Experience from Nature's Way Canada. They talk about how Nature's Way battles random factory brands on Amazon. Tsege shares her experience of noticing the emergence of factory direct brands and the impact they had on Nature's Way's business. The episode provides insights into the strategies employed to combat these new competitors and how the organization adapted its approach to tackle the challenge.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

As the Sr. Manager of Digital & Experience, Tsege manages both the Ecommerce side of the business as well as overall digital strategy and execution for the organization. She now manages a varied team made up of ecommerce salespeople, digital content including social media, and our customer service experience, her background has been in traditional CPG brand marketing, and before that she came from an advertising agency background. Tsege has been with Nature's Way Canada now for almost 8 years.

In today's episode, Kiri, and Tsege discuss:

• Impact of factory direct brands on traditional CPG brands

• Underestimation of smaller brands in the ecommerce space

• Adapting content, advertising, and messaging to counter the competition

• Evaluating competitive strategies across different sales channels

• The importance of understanding the retail ecosystem and the role of Amazon

• Lessons learned and advice for brands facing similar challenges

In this episode of The Ecommerce Braintrust, Kiri Masters is joined by Emily Peterson, Team Lead at Acadia, and Damiano Ciarrocchi, head of Retail Strategy at Acadia. Kiri, Emily, and Damiano share insights on the trends and performance of the Black Friday/Cyber Monday event this year, including the significant increase in online spending and the observations made on Black Friday versus Cyber Monday sales.

The conversation covers early promotions, advertising strategies, client outcomes, and lessons learned, providing valuable takeaways for navigating the peak selling period through the end of the year.

Make sure you tune in to find out more!

In today's episode, Kiri, Emily and Damiano discuss:

- Black Friday/Cyber Monday event predictions and figures, Adobe predicted that the spend would be $12 billion on Cyber Monday and nearly $10 billion on Black Friday.

- Observations that Friday saw more action than Monday on retail marketplaces like Amazon, despite traditional data showing Monday as the bigger volume day.

- The trend of earlier and earlier sales and promotional activities by DTC brands and retail marketplaces, with brands launching holiday sales as early as November 1.

- Strategies and outcomes for clients during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday period, including a client in the apparel category doubling down on promotional activities in early October and achieving a 36% increase from the previous year's sales.

- The impact of proactive ramp-up periods on organic ranking and ad performance, resulting in more sustainable outcomes and less expensive advertising.

- Observations of Black Friday as the standout day in terms of sales, with Saturday being the largest decline in sales and Cyber Monday being comparatively lackluster.

- A minor operational issue with setting up Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals on Amazon where a specific checkbox had to be selected for the deals badge to appear on the product page.

- Insights into ad spend allocation and impressions during Black Friday, including a slight decrease in ad spend compared to other events, but a higher ratio of impressions to cost.

- Observations about trends and peak sales times during the event, as well as strategies for budget management and proactive budget adjustments based on hourly peaks.

- The reminder that every day until December 21 is a peak selling day and the importance of maintaining momentum and managing budgets for continued success throughout the holiday period.

In today's short episode announcement, Kiri Masters informs the listeners that this week's episode, covering the recap of Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the entire November holiday selling season, will be available on Wednesday, November 29.

Considering the 24-hour timeframe needed for episode production, your understanding is appreciated as we strive to deliver valuable insights. This slight delay is intended to ensure that each episode remains actionable and beneficial to you as a listener.

Thank you for your patience, and stay tuned for the new episode tomorrow.