The Ecommerce Influence Podcast

Thinking about starting a software company? This week's guest is giving you a behind-the-scenes look at exactly what to expect.

Michael Facchin is the ultimate bootstrapper. His digital marketing career started in freelance, then he built an agency, Search Scientists, but soon came to a daunting realization: His business wasn't future proof.

With the rise of AI and Facebook Ads becoming more intuitive, he knew manually pulling the levers for his clients' ad spend wasn't going to last forever. Thus, Ad Badger - a software tool designed to optimize Amazon PPC - was born.

It's been over two years since Michael was last on the show and I'm so excited to have him back. Not only is Michael one of my closest friends, but he's an expert at PPC and in today's episode he's sharing the ins and outs of starting a software company, the pros & cons of bootstrapping vs joining an accelerator, having VC funding, and a few key insights he's learned on his entrepreneurial journey.

If you've ever considered starting a software company, this episode is for you.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 5:38 Mike's journey from biology teacher to ads agency owner
• 8:03 Growing a business as a result of the rise of AI
• 12:11 Why Amazon has the best ad platform for direct response marketing
• 15:12 A bootstrappers mentality vs the accelerator mentality
• 18:45 How to determine if an accelerator is a good idea for you
• 21:05 The metrics Michael focuses on most to move his business forward
• 23:23 Mike's unique perspective on retirement
• 26:19 How Michael is evolving his workhorse mentality and detangling himself from entrepreneurship
• 31:27 The motivation behind diving into entrepreneurship
• 34:55 The hardest part about starting a software company
• 41:01 How Michael and his team use the scrum methodology and why they are moving away from Slack
• 46:27 What Michael wishes he could tell his younger self
• 48:28 The number 1 thing every entrepreneur should have on their entrepreneurial journey
• 50:54 Michael's favorite book on entrepreneurship that changed his leadership style for the better
• 53:14 Is Ad Badger right for you?

Links and Resources:

• Michael Facchin on LinkedIn
• Ad Badger
• Search Scientists
• PPC Den Podcast
• Ad Badger on YouTube
• Reboot by Jerry Colonna
• TechCrunch
• Crunchbase
• Podcast 115: How Retargeting Will Improve Your Business' Results
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• Brand Growth Experts
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

If you primarily rely on pixels or cookies for conversion tracking, you need to know about Facebook's new Conversions API, or else you'll be facing some serious data tracking challenges every soon.

With the increasing pressure to provide more privacy to consumers, businesses like Apple are making strides to limit consumer information and Google has announced they'll be removing the ability to use 3rd party browser cookies by 2022. This means that eCommerce business owners who rely on pixels for conversion tracking are going to need to find new ways to stay ahead.

In today's episode, Andrew Foxwell and I talk about Facebook's new Conversions API, why you need to install it on your site, how it's been shown to increase conversion reporting by 30% and what you can do with that new information.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 3:09 Why you need to install Facebook's Conversions API on your Shopify site
• 6:23 Common mistakes that prevent pixels from properly tracking
• 7:32 The impact of tracking all conversion events
• 10:39 What a 30% increase in conversion reporting can do for your business
• 13:49 The direction of conversion tracking and customer information
• 17:15 How to implement Facebook's Conversion API onto your site

Links and Resources:

• Foxwell Digital Blog: Facebook's Conversions API (CAPI) and How to implement it with your Shopify site
• The Social Dilemma
• Brand Growth Experts
• The Coalition
• Foxwell Digital
• [email protected]
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• @andrewfoxwell on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

Feeling discouraged by a slow start to your business? Mister Jones Health was in the same boat until they unlocked explosive growth that grew the business by 800% in one year.

Jason Daemar spent ten years climbing the corporate ladder only to realize one day that he had enough. Since then, Jason and his wife created Mister Jones Health - an ecommerce brand that has hit an astonishing inflection point over the last year even after having a not-so-glamorous start.

In this episode, Jason talks about finding their first 1,000 customers, a few marketing and Facebook advertising secrets you should know about, being a customer-centric business, and building a team.

If you're an ecommerce business owner or work in the marketing space, you are going to get a lot out of this episode.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 6:08 The idea behind Mister Jones Health
• 12:32 Experimenting with marketing channels to find their first 1,000 customers
• 14:28 The #1 overlooked thing by Facebook advertisers
• 16:29 Mindsets for having a customer-centric business and building empathy
• 20:28 The insight Jason unlocked to grow Mister Jones Health by 800% in one year
• 24:49 Two mindset shifts for continued growth and a strong culture
• 26:27 Why you should spend time learning the language of your industry
• 30:02 The problem with a founder being in the present
• 31:22 Jason's resources for becoming a leader in your organization
• 33:29 Mister Jones Health is hiring!
• 37:00 One thing Jason wishes he knew prior to starting his business and his advice to new entrepreneurs

Links and Resources:

• Mister Jones Health
• Mister Jones Health on Instagram
• Careers at Mister Jones Health
• Traction by Gino Wickman
• The Lean Startup by Eric Ries
• The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
• The E-Myth Revisted by Michael E. Gerber
• Brand Growth Experts
• The Coalition
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

The reality is most entrepreneurs won't reach the singular exit that retires them for life. So why is their strategy to build wealth rooted 100% in their business?

It's common for entrepreneurs to feel the urge to go all in and invest 100% in their business. But spoiler alert: Running a business is hard and selling your business for enough to spend your retirement at the Four Seasons with a pina colada in hand is even harder.

In today's episode, Andrew Foxwell and I talk about how entrepreneurs can build wealth outside of their business by focusing on three different buckets of investments, why a diversification strategy is something to consider, and how we are preparing for looming financial issues that are on many people's minds.

Episode Highlights

• 6:27 Establishing what financial freedom looks like for you
• 9:27 The three buckets of investments
• 10:38 How Austin and his wife got into real estate investing
• 16:08 Austin and Andrew's stock market strategy to build wealth
• 19:18 Protecting yourself from an inflation event
• 22:09 Views on cryptocurrency and how to create a hedge for yourself
• 24:12 Austin's business strategy to build wealth
• 2840 How to build a $100M asset without having a $100M business
• 30:48 Leveraging the skills you have to create outsized returns
• 34:04 The importance of having a net worth progress tracking system

Links and Resources:

• Allegra's Website Factora Wealth
• Wealthfront
• I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi
• Brand Growth Experts
• The Coalition
• Foxwell Digital
• [email protected]
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• @andrewfoxwell on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

Who is truly at the center of your business, your customers or your profits?

Tim O'Brien's supplement company, Find Your Healthy Place, is relentless in its pursuit of customer-centricity. After in-store sales started to tank during the onset of COVID-19, Tim knew that making their customer's online experience just as personalized and memorable as the one they had in store would be critical to their survival. Today, Tim's online sales are up from 3% to 26%, and the pivots they continue to make are remarkable.

Tune into this episode to learn why Tim feels a customer first strategy works best for his business, how to create personalized experiences online and the key metrics he focuses on as his business continues to grow.

Episode Highlights

• 5:07 How Tim got started in the wellness industry
• 10:00 The effects COVID has had on Tim's brick-and-mortar and Ecommerce sales
• 14:19 How Tim is applying his customer first strategy online
• 18:55 Building your competitive advantage into your onboarding process
• 21:59 Choosing to double down on what works
• 23:31 The most powerful metric Tim's team focuses on
• 25:44 Hard lessons Tim has learned about himself in his entrepreneurial journey
• 28:47 A perspective on what to do when you make the wrong hire
• 30:36 Tim's approach on local and digital advertising
• 35:31 The email marketing strategy that is generating thousands of dollars in sales every week
• 38:32 What Tim is most excited about in business right now
• 40:01 How you can get in touch with Tim

Links and Resources:

• Find Your Healthy Place (Use discount code "influence" for 10% off)
• Wild Theory (Use discount code "influence" for 10% off)
• Get Found Madison
• Podcast 243: How To Improve Your Ecommerce SEO
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

Many Ecommerce business owners are wondering how to reclaim their Facebook ad performance to finish on top.

Ecommerce entrepreneurs saw some of their best months this spring with consumer's response to the onset of COVID-19. However, as buying patterns started to shift, summer and fall have been incredibly challenging.

In this episode, Andrew Foxwell gives us some insight into what he's learned working with a variety of clients. We dive into how user behavior has changed, what businesses across the globe are experiencing, and leave you with several tactics you can use to increase your Facebook ad performance this year.

Episode Highlights

• 6:27 How user behavior is impacting the current state of Facebook
• 10:36 A global overview of Facebook ad performance
• 13:59 What the Shaq Stack is and how to use it
• 17:12 Using bid overrides to manage volatile Facebook ad performance
• 19:35 User-generated content and dynamic creative testing
• 22:49 The All-In-One Campaign Budget Optimization when nothing else is working
• 24:48 Finding your unique performance formula
• 27:36 How long you need to run campaigns to maximize Facebook ad performance
• 30:30 When to ramp up your Facebook ad budget
• 33:13 The top 3 things working for US-based advertisers
• 35:23 Andrew's Q4 prediction on Facebook ad performance

Links and Resources:

• Podcast 272: 20 Facebook Advertising Strategies You Need To Try Right Now
• Canva
• Kapwing
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital
• [email protected]
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• @andrewfoxwell on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

Ever Feel Like A Million Bucks After A $20 Haircut? Today's Guest Knew That Feeling, And It Led Him To Create A Product That Hit More Than $1MM In Sales In Just 12 Months.

Calvin Quallis is the Founder of Scotch Porter – a 7-figure New Jersey-based men's grooming brand now on the shelves of major retailers like Walmart and Target.

The brand's early beginnings trace back to his mom's barbershop where Calvin noticed men couldn't help but walk out with an entirely new pep in their step. Since then, Calvin has been on a mission to help men feel their best.

Calvin joins us on this episode to talk about what building Scotch Porter has been like, the struggles and challenges they've faced, marketing strategies that have worked for them, and so much more.

If you're an ecommerce entrepreneur interested in going into retail, this episode is for you.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 6:34 The power of a $20 haircut: What inspired the Scotch Porter brand
• 10:19 Creating a mission you can get behind
• 12:17 Laying the groundwork for Scotch Porter
• 15:29 The key characteristic you need to solve your startup problems
• 17:27 What Calvin wishes he knew before signing major retail contracts
• 21:29 Two things Calvin would approach differently if given another chance
• 23:15 The lengthy process of landing inside Playboy magazine
• 25:35 Scotch Porter's marketing strategies to gain traction
• 27:55 How Calvin would launch a second brand with what he knows now
• 30:23 4 invaluable resources Calvin recommends for your entrepreneurial journey
• 32:26 Why Calvin will hop on a call with any entrepreneur 34:39 The benefits of bootstrapping vs being funded
• 36:29 How you can get in touch with Calvin and learn more about Scotch Porter

Links and Resources:

• Scotch Porter Website
• Scotch Porter on Instagram
• Scotch Porter on Facebook
• Calvin Quallis on LinkedIn
• [email protected]
• The Tim Ferriss Show
• The BoF Podcast
• Glossy Podcast
• Masters of Scale Podcast
• How I Built This Podcast
• Brand Growth Experts
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

If you're one of the few people who hasn't been impacted by the recent turmoil around Facebook ads, consider yourself lucky. For everyone else, this episode is for you.

If you're an ecommerce business owner or agency who primarily drives traffic through Facebook advertising, you're aware of the recent challenges. Between price increases, instability on the platform, and movies like The Social Dilemma that are going to bring even more transparency and scrutiny on advertising through Facebook, it's a difficult time to grow your business using paid social.

Andrew Foxwell and I recorded two episodes back in February of 2019 where Andrew talks about 20 questions he likes to ask clients that are feeling stuck with their Facebook ads. It's still unbelievably relevant today. If you're having challenges or are seeing a performance drop, these are the questions and strategies that you can revisit to bring new life to your ads.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 7:29 Integrating user-generated content into your creative
• 8:43 Leveraging reviews and social proof in ad copy
• 10:16 Using square video link posts
• 11:56 Performance differences between lifestyle photos vs product images
• 13:50 The problem with unanswered comments on your paid social ad
• 17:50 How to give first-time customers a reason to try your product
• 19:19 Bringing new life to an old ad set
• 20:36 Utilizing dynamic pixel actions to introduce new prospecting audiences
• 22:29 Testing broad match dynamic product ads layered with interests
• 23:26 Splitting dynamic product ad time windows to give your customers the best treatment
• 24:24 Analyzing your audience overlap to help scale your ads
• 27:16 Using value bidding to increase your average order value
• 30:23 Bid overrides, the bully method and getting exposure in a competitive space
• 34:58 The importance of advertising to previous customers
• 37:32 Trying product bundling to bring up your AOV
• 42:02 Remarketing to engaged users
• 43:24 Reading your age report breakdown and how to find it
• 46:22 What your Add to Cart to Purchase ratio can tell you
• 48:08 How to try campaign budget optimization
• 49:45 The importance of getting a naming convention installed

Links and Resources:

• Podcast 173: The 5 Step Process to Optimize Your Facebook Ad Account
• The Social Dilemma
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital
• [email protected]
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• @andrewfoxwell on Twitter
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

Building an offshore business is often thought to be risky, or even illegal. However, it's now becoming a very common, and legal way, to lower your global tax rate -- as much as 42%.

"Go where you're treated best," is Andrew Henderson's famous tagline.

A US ex-pat and founder of Nomad Capitalist, Andrew has legally lowered his global tax rate from 43% to 1%. Now he helps entrepreneurs keep more of their own money, live freely around the world, and create wealth faster through offshore strategies.

I found Andrew when searching for a way to diversify my citizenship. I quickly discovered that he's a wealth of knowledge on ways to reduce your tax burden and I'm excited for you to listen to the show.

In this episode, we talk about common misconceptions about building an offshore business, what it's really like living a nomadic lifestyle, and the benefits it can offer to both you and your family.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 4:47 Andrew's philosophy of viewing the world as your buffet
• 6:57 The history behind flag theory
• 9:48 Why you should be harnessing difficult countries for different benefits
• 13:02 The biggest misconceptions about offshore business
• 19:26 A case for investing in international real estate
• 22:46 Challenges associated with frontier markets
• 26:05 How families are taking advantage of global citizenship
• 30:21 The differences between a tax-friendly state and a tax-friendly country
• 33:51 What it's like living a nomadic lifestyle
• 37:35 Andrew's hypothesis on the future state of taxes
• 42:02 How to approach getting a second passport
• 47:42 Questions to ask yourself when deciding if an offshore business is right for you
• 52:03 Where you can get in touch with Andrew

Links and Resources:

• Andrew's Website
• Andrew's YouTube Channel
• Nomad Capitalist on Facebook
• Nomad Capitalist on Instagram
• Nomad Capitalist on Twitter
• Nomad Capitalist Book
• The Golden Visa
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• Brand Growth Experts
• Review or subscribe on iTunes

Perfect Keto started off as a side project and then experienced massive growth -- making $100MM in just 19 months.

Dr. Anthony Gustin cofounded Perfect Keto as a side project in November of 2016. He had one goal in mind: making keto easy. Within 4 hours of launching, the company made $20,000 and took off like a rocketship since. Little did he know, the creation of Perfect Keto was at the rise of one of the largest diet crazes of the past 50 years.

Anthony joins us to talk about Perfect Keto's growth, his business beliefs, and why retail is a last resort. We also discuss his experience of burnout and how entrepreneurs can best avoid it.

Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 4:58 The problem with copying someone else's formula for success
• 7:15 Starting a multimillion-dollar company by accident
• 12:52 What it's like riding the wave of one of the largest diet crazes
• 16:02 How to solve nearly all of the problems in your business
• 20:00 Perfect Keto's science experiment approach to business
• 22:03 Anthony's experience with burnout
• 28:31 What Anthony wishes he knew before launching Perfect Keto
• 32:00 Anthony's new approach to building teams and building a solid business foundation
• 34:02 The next health problem Anthony is looking to solve
• 36:42 What business owner's need to know about entering retail
• 39:25 Advice for entrepreneurs working long hours and going off the grid
• 44:41 A mindset shift for entrepreneurs to start enjoying the process
• 50:17 How you can connect with Anthony

Links and Resources:

• Anthony's Website
• Anthony's Newsletter
• Anthony on Twitter
• Perfect Keto
• Equip Foods
• Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
• Indistractable by Nir Eyal
• @a_brawn on Twitter
• Brand Growth Experts
• Review or subscribe on iTunes