Ecommerce Playbook: Numbers, Struggles & Growth

Most brands rush into new ad platforms before they’re ready. In this episode, Richard and Tony break down why channel expansion is less about “good or bad” and more about timing and fuel.

They revisit the core sequence—master Meta, then Google—before adding channels like Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, or Pinterest. And they go deep on why CTC is bullish on AppLovin, the mobile gaming ad platform that’s driving genuinely incremental growth for select brands.

You’ll learn:

• The prerequisites for channel expansion (creative system + incrementality measurement)

• How AppLovin differs from Meta & Google—and why it’s working now

• The scale opportunity CTC sees as the platform opens up Oct 1

• Why CTC approaches channels as investments, not experiments
  

If you’ve nailed your core channels and want to know when (and how) to expand, this episode is your playbook.

Show Notes:

• Ready to solve your influencer strategy? Book Your Strategy Demo at https://www.getsaral.com/demo

• Explore the Prophit System: https://www.prophitsystem.com

• The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at [email protected] to ask us any questions you might have about the world of eCom

As Q4 approaches, creative demand becomes one of the biggest challenges for brands looking to scale efficiently. In this episode, Richard Gaffin (Director of Digital Product Strategy at CTC) sits down with Luke Austin (VP of E-Commerce Strategy) to unpack CTC’s new Creative Demand Model—a framework that quantifies exactly how much creative output brands need in order to hit their revenue and spend goals.

They walk through real examples from CTC’s dataset, breaking down what separates the highest creative scores from the lowest, and why top brands are still producing hundreds of ads each month to sustain growth.

You’ll learn:

• The five key metrics behind the Creative Demand Score (zero spend rate, ad concentration, ROAS degradation, spend degradation, and evergreen share).

• How creative volume directly ties into forecasting models like spend and MER.

• Why troubleshooting CTR or hook rate in isolation often misses the bigger picture.

• Practical recommendations for balancing evergreen content, rapid testing, and scaling winning ads.

• How creator-driven content and AI-enabled creative are making high-volume production more cost-effective.
  

If you’ve ever wondered whether your brand needs 20 ads—or 200—to compete in Q4, this episode provides the clarity and direction to plan with confidence.

Show Notes:

Ready to stop gambling on unreliable contractors? 

Check out AllStars and Book Your Strategy Call:

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Explore the Prophit System:

https://www.prophitsystem.com

Explore our Creator Content Packages: https://www.commonthreadco.com/pages/creative-production

The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at [email protected] to ask us any questions you might have about the world of eCom.

In this week’s episode of the Ecommerce Playbook Podcast, Luke Austin (VP of Ecommerce Strategy at CTC) sits down with Mike McVerry, SVP of Ecommerce & International Sales at Urban Armor Gear (UAG) to unpack how the brand unlocked 40% YoY revenue growth and 43% contribution margin growth in 2025 … despite a shrinking market.

Together, they break down:

• Why “spend more to grow more” wasn’t working for UAG
• - How the Profit System bridged the gap between finance and marketing- The role of contribution margin in setting smarter media budgets
• - Scaling creative volume nearly 4x year over year- How to break through a “glass ceiling” of growth with financial clarity
• - Lessons on inventory, marketing calendars, and collaboration that fueled profitabilityThis is a real-world case study in building sustainable DTC growth by aligning finance, marketing, and creative execution.

Show Notes:

• Ready to solve your influencer strategy?

Book Your Strategy Demo at:

https://www.getsaral.com

• Explore the Prophit System:

https://www.prophitsystem.com

The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at [email protected] to ask us any questions you might have about the world of ecomm

In this special episode of the Ecommerce Playbook Podcast, Luke Austin takes the reins and brings in two of CTC’s top-performing growth strategists—Lacie Geary and Brian Sakansky—for a deep dive into what it takes to build and execute a forecast with precision.

You’ll get a rare look under the hood at CTC’s Profit System, including how we:

• Set and execute daily client-level forecasts for revenue, spend, and contribution margin

• Think about tradeoffs between efficiency vs. volume

• Use planning tools like the Spend aMER Model, Day-of-Week Effect, and Creative Demand Model

• Track forecast accuracy by strategist, with Lacie and Brian leading the way

• Identify and respond to signals in real-time that influence media allocation

• Use product-level reporting to guide decisions at the SKU and creative level

You’ll hear specific client examples from the home goods and apparel space, plus commentary on how inventory, product mix, and creator content factor into hitting (and sometimes beating) forecasted targets.

Show Notes:

• Ready to earn trust, convert shoppers, and inspire customer loyalty? Check out Yotpo:

  https://www.yotpo.com/?utm_source=CommonThreadCollective&utm_medium=comarketing&utm_term=podcast

• Explore the Prophit System: https://prophitsystem.com

• Have a question for the podcast?Email us at [email protected]

When should you really be spending more? Which days of the week drive the most revenue—for your brand?

In this episode, Richard is joined by Luke Austin (VP of Growth at Common Thread Collective) to walk through real client data and uncover just how different day-of-week and month-over-month effects can be across brands, even within the same vertical.

You’ll learn:

• Why blindly scaling spend in Q4 might be a mistake

• How day-of-week effects can swing revenue potential by over 30%

• Why trying to “fix” bad days isn’t always worth it

• What most brands miss when planning their BFCM budget

• How to think like a portfolio manager when allocating ad spend
  

Whether you’re a home goods brand, fitness apparel company, or in personal care, Luke shows how the Spend <> aMER model can give you a quantifiable edge in media buying and forecasting.

Plus, learn why Fridays might be gold—or garbage—depending on your category.

Show Notes:

• Ready to earn trust, convert shoppers, and inspire customer loyalty? Check out Yotpo: https://www.yotpo.com/?utm_source=CommonThreadCollective&utm_medium=comarketing&utm_term=podcast

  
  

• Explore the Prophit System: https://prophitsystem.com

  
  

• Have a question for the podcast?

  Email us at [email protected]

In this episode of The Ecommerce Playbook Podcast, Richard Gaffin and Taylor Holiday dig deeper into the Spending Power Model—breaking down why the next dollar you spend doesn’t always produce the same return.

They explore concepts like the marginal frontier (the moment your next dollar becomes unprofitable), spending power, and how to balance short-term profitability with long-term growth. Taylor shows how to evaluate whether to optimize for revenue, contribution margin, or lifetime contribution—and why these decisions always tie back to your financial goals.

You’ll learn:

• What the “marginal frontier” really means for your ad spend

• Why not all dollars in create the same dollars out

• How to use spending power as a scale metric for your brand

• The tradeoffs between maximizing revenue vs. profitability

• How this framework helps align boardroom strategy with media buying decisions

Show Notes:

• Ready to earn trust, convert shoppers, and inspire customer loyalty? Check out Yotpo: https://www.yotpo.com/?utm_source=Com...

In place of this week’s Tuesday ECPP episode, we’re featuring CTC’s newest podcast: The DTC Hotline.

In this week’s episode, Richard Gaffin is joined by Tony “The Chopper” Chopp (VP of Paid Media) and Luke “The Weatherman” Austin (VP of eCommerce Strategy) to field real questions from operators and listeners—offering hot takes, cold truths, and unfiltered answers.

They tackle:

• What to do when your historically strong Meta campaign suddenly stops working
• The “3 Ps” framework—payment, policy, pixel—when diagnosing sharp performance drops
• How to push back when brand standards block creative diversity
• Whether top-of-funnel campaigns (like add-to-cart optimization) really work
• The products and niches they’d actually pursue—or avoid—if starting an eComm brand today

This is where your eCommerce questions get answered—practical, direct, and straight from the operators’ desk.

Call or text us your question: 866-DTC-2263

Ready to earn trust, convert shoppers, and inspire customer loyalty? Check out Yotpo

Explore the Prophit System

In this episode of the Ecommerce Playbook Podcast, Richard Gaffin and Taylor Holiday dive deep into the practical use cases of Spend & aMER forecasting models—powerful tools that help brands set budgets with clarity, not guesswork.

Taylor walks through real examples, showing how these models adjust for changing costs (like tariffs) and how gross margin shifts ripple through your entire P&L, media plan, and growth strategy. They also unpack why Black Friday/Cyber Monday cohorts often underperform long-term, and how understanding lifetime value can help you spend smarter, not harder.

You’ll learn:

• Why changing gross margins completely alter your revenue potential

• How to reset budgets when tariffs or duties impact COGS

• The surprising long-term weakness of Black Friday customer cohorts

• How to model incremental spend and know when every new dollar turns negative

• Why forecasting isn’t about prediction—it’s about clarity and action

Show Notes:

In this episode of the Ecommerce Playbook Podcast, Richard Gaffin and Taylor Holiday unpack the critical connection between forecasting models and creative production. Forecasting isn’t just about predicting numbers … it’s about building a marketing and creative plan that can actually deliver them.Taylor explains why most forecasts fail: brands treat them like predictions instead of action plans. The team breaks down how to bridge that gap by tying financial models to the marketing calendar, identifying offer opportunities, and planning campaigns with excess creative capacity so you’re never scrambling when results fall short.You’ll learn:- Why every forecast depends on your creative pipeline- How to identify bottlenecks that kill forecasting accuracy- The role of growth strategists vs. creative strategists in building clarity- Why true diversity in creative comes from multiple production sources, not one overworked designer- How UGC and creator networks unlock scale and resilienceThe conversation closes with a segment featuring Yosh Chavan of Saral, who explains how to build predictable influencer systems that fuel the creative diversity today’s ad ecosystem demands.Show Notes:- Ready to solve your influencer strategy? Book Your Strategy Demo at https://getsaral.com- Explore our Creator Content Packages: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/creative-production- The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at [email protected] to ask us any questions you might have about the world of ecomm

In this episode of The Ecommerce Playbook Podcast, Richard Gaffin and Taylor Holiday unpack why forecasting isn’t just about models—it’s about execution. They explore how the best brands combine data, marketing calendars, and disciplined ownership to create forecasts that actually hold up in the real world.

Drawing from billions in client data, Taylor explains why finance-driven forecasts often fall short—and how integrating qualitative planning and real-time execution makes all the difference. Together, they lay out the framework that separates accurate, actionable forecasts from guesswork.

You’ll learn:

• Why finance-only forecasting fails in eCommerce

• The three-part framework for accurate forecasting (Quantitative, Qualitative, Execution)

• How to tie marketing calendars directly to financial models

• Tactical steps to make your forecasts more reliable before Q4

Show Notes:

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Explore the Prophit System: ⁠https://www.prophitsystem.com⁠

The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at [email protected] to ask us any questions you might have about the world of ecomm