The Ecommerce Influence Podcast

Are you an ecommerce business owner using Shopify? Then this episode is a must-listen.

Kurt Elster is a master at helping Shopify businesses uncover hidden profits from their stores and increase their conversion rates. The Ethercycle founder joins us today to share his expert tips on where to look for profits you may be missing out on, the design mistakes people consistently make, and the #1 thing that will give you the biggest competitive advantage over Amazon. Plus, he talks about the test you should do today to see how your customers are really engaging with your site. Enjoy!

Episode Highlights:

• 7:26 The 30,000-foot-view-quick win when it comes to optimizing your Shopify site.
• 9:48 The things top brands are getting right with website optimization.
• 12:37 The maximum number of apps your Shopify site should be running and why they maybe slowing you down, even if you've uninstalled them.
• 14:13 How simply improving your website's messaging can increase your conversions overnight.
• 15:01 Don't over complicate the landing page and why a "quickie" product page could end up being your best landing page
• 18:15 The things you can do to make your cart and checkout page more seamless and more user friendly.
• 19:46 Why if you're not using "order notes" for something meaningful you should have them turned off
• 25:45 The post checkout optimizations you should be making to increase your AOV.
• 29:46 The two misconceptions Kurt regularly sees when it comes to CRO.

Links and Resources:

• KurtElster.com
• Ethercycle
• The Unofficial Shopify Podcast
• The Unofficial Shopify Podcast Facebook Group
• Key Smart
• Tactical Baby Gear

Membership

Doors are now open for the Brand Growth Experts Membership, a community of top ecommerce business owners and marketers who I coach one-on-one to help scale up their businesses. Together we'll create a plan that will help you scale up your business, and then I'll help you execute it.

The Membership is open for a limited time only, and doors close at midnight CST on Tuesday, July 24. If you want to join, make sure you don't miss your chance. Click here to learn more.

Sponsors:

Klaviyo

This episode is brought to you by Klaviyo. If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyo and you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

Sezzle

Looking for an easy and effective way to increase your e-commerce site's conversion rate while also providing your customers a simple and convenient way to pay? Then Sezzle is the payment app you've been looking for.

Sezzle allows your customers to buy now and pay in monthly installments. Sezzle settles up directly with the merchant through the purchase process and handles all verification and repayments directly with the customer so you never have to worry about dealing with missed payments. On average Sezzle customers saw a 6.5% increase in sales and a 55% growth of their average order value. Learn more at http://www.sezzle.com/influence.

Here's the deal with Dynamic Product Ads or "DPAs" as you might know them. Everyone is using them and they work well. But as you'll learn in today's episode, the effectiveness of DPAs can create some unique problems for ad buyers.

WFor example, you might have a DPA with a high return on ad spend and a low relevance score. Meaning it's driving sales but people are indicating they don't want to see it. How confusing is that!?

In this episode, you'll learn how to tweak your DPAs for top performance. We'll talk about managing frequency, bidding, copywriting, and why you need to be thinking about your prospecting traffic. It's a bit technical but if you're running these ads (or want to) you'll get a ton out of this episode. Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 6:10 The biggest error in how most brands are structuring their dynamic product ads (DPAs).
• 8:05 Why turning up the spend on your successful DPA may actually be killing your audience.
• 9:25 How to structure your DPA budgets so you're ad frequencies don't skyrocket.
• 11:06 Why you need to watch your DPAs over time and the key things you should be watching for.
• 12:12 How changing copy of even top performing DPAs on a weekly basis can increase your results.
• 14:00 The step by step process you should take to improving your DPAs.

Links and Resources

• Facebook Dynamic Product Ads
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital

Sponsor: Klaviyo

If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyoand you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

Sponsor: Sezzle

Looking for an easy and effective way to increase your e-commerce site's conversion rate while also providing your customers a simple and convenient way to pay? Then Sezzle is the payment app you've been looking for.

Sezzleallows your customers to buy now and pay in monthly installments. Sezzle settles up directly with the merchant through the purchase process and handles all verification and repayments directly with the customer so you never have to worry about dealing with missed payments. On average Sezzle customers saw a 6.5% increase in sales and a 55% growth of their average order value. Learn more at http://www.sezzle.com/influence.

Today, I have a special episode for you. For our American listeners, July 2nd is two days before the 4th of July holiday. From here on out it will also be known as the day Custom Audience terms got updated! This is huge stuff right before the holiday.

We're talking about this because after Cambridge Analytica, Facebook has decided to evaluate their process and in my opinion cover their own ass. If you're delivering ads to custom audiences (you should be) you're going to need to accept new terms and start specifying exactly where your list came from. These changes will have a direct impact on how you'll be able to advertise. In this episode, we'll share what you need to know and how to stay above board. Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 4:15 Why Facebook is changing up their custom audience terms
• 6:00 What you will be required acknowledge when uploading a new custom audience
• 7:55 How consumers will now be able to see more info on why they are being served ads
• 8:58 Why you may just have to validate current audiences vs. uploading them all over again
• 10:10 Here is what you will have to do if you are sharing custom audiences as an agency/with clients
• 13:04 The importance of reading the new custom audience terms and conditions

Links and Resources

• Facebook Custom Audience Terms
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital

Sponsors

This episode is brought to you by Klaviyo. If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyoand you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

Looking for an easy and effective way to help your ecommence site increase it's conversion rate while also providing your customers an easy and convenient way to pay? Then Sezzleis the payment app you've been looking for. Sezzle allows your customers to buy now and pay in monthly installments. Sezzle settles up directly with the merchant through the purchase process and handles all verification and repayments directly with the customer, so you never have to worry about dealing with missed payments. On average Sezzle customers saw a 6.5% increase in sales and a 55% growth of their average order value. Learn more on how Sezzle can help your bottom line today at: http://www.sezzle.com/influence

Earlier this week, we dropped part one of our incredible interview with NYT best-selling author Greg Mckeown. We had a ton of fun chopping it up with Greg about how to improve your life by doing less. If you haven't listened to that episode, I'd recommend starting there.

Greg's book Essentialism has had a profound impact on both Andrew's life and my own. If you feel like you're spending time on trivial tasks and you want to remove the "trivial many" and focus on the essential few, this episode is for you. Enjoy part 2!

Episode Highlights

• 4:15 How the criteria you use to set goals will dictate where you plateau.
• 6:00 The closet metaphor you should be using to dial in your success.
• 8:39 When it comes to the essentials have you asked yourself this one question?
• 10:14 The 4 key questions you should be asking of yourself and your brand.
• 12:19 The Southwest Airlines moto that can help you find your perfect customer and what happened to Continental Airlines when they tried to copy Southwest.
• 19:10 How Greg McKeown personally wraps up his week, month, year and retreats
• 25:37 The 100,000 foot view that Greg uses to help him understand the essential vs. nonessential.
• 26:41 How Greg thinks every business owner/executive should be making decisions for their business.

Links and Resources

• Greg McKeown - Essentialism Book
• Twitter.com/Greg McKeown
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital

Sponsor

This episode is brought to you by Klaviyo. If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyoand you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

About 2 years ago I purchased and then subsequently devoured the book Essentialism. At the time, I was stretched thin and had too many irons in the fire. The wisdom of Greg Mckeown helped me refocus on what really mattered. Today, I have the tremendous privilege of welcoming Greg on the show.

Have you ever felt the urge to declutter your work life? Do you simultaneously feel overworked and underutilized? The remedy is rarely to "get more done" and almost always to "do the right things." In today's episode, we explore what stops otherwise outstanding people from breaking through to the next level, and dive into why most people struggle to define what's important in their life. Enjoy!

Episode Highlights

• 5:22 The meaning of being an essentialist as defined by author Greg Mckeown himself.
• 8:26 How contribution may be keeping you from getting to the next level.
• 12:23 Why it's impossible to have multiple priorities and still be successful.
• 14:08 How to train your brain to focus on the most important thing you should be doing right now.
• 17:30 How scheduling free thought time can keep you from mimicking others and help you get ahead of the competition.
• 20:22 The 4 things you should focus on when planning your day and the one thing you may realize as you develop this habit.
• 25:11 Why you shouldn't feel guilty saying "no" when the work doesn't fit with your internal goals.
• 30:18 The 3 stages of essentialism and how to use them when interacting with colleagues and clients.

Links and Resources

• Greg McKeown - Essentialism Book
• Twitter.com/Greg Mckeown
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital

Sponsor

This episode is brought to you by Klaviyo. If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyoand you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

The number one question I get from ecommerce business owners, whether they're just starting out or making $4MM a year, is: how do I scale? If you're asking yourself that question, this episode is for you.

In today's Flash Episode I'll walk through the big picture strategy that will help guide you on the path to 8 figures. We'll talk about the three phases of growth, from $0 to $10MM, and what you should be doing at each phase in order to grow your business. I'll talk about how your role as business owner will evolve as your company scales, and the three levers you should focus on to scale your business. And, I'll share my #1 piece of advice for what you can do today to kickstart your growth.

Episode Highlights

• 4:03 (Phase 1) The importance of finding a marketing channel that works for you, learning it well and doubling down on it.
• 5:36 (Phase 2) Now that you've mastered the channel, here's why you need to remove yourself to continue growing.
• 7:41 Once you've found your replacement, its time to focus on increasing these key metrics.
• 8:47 How email is still king when it comes to increasing buyer frequency.
• 11:25 (Phase 3) If 8 figures is in sight, it might be time to step out of the way and develop a team to take over
• 13:59 How developing a hiring plan can increase your growth to 8 figures
• 14:55 This is the one thing you should never expect when hiring someone to replace you in a role.

Links and Resources

• EP 131: Productivity Hacks with Sebastian Marshall
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital

Sponsor

This episode is brought to you by Klaviyo. If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyoand you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

Did you know that messenger bots have the highest engagement rates at the lowest cost per lead? Did you know that messenger subscribers can be 5-10 times more valuable than email subscribers? If you're ready to grow your business with personalized, highly targeted communications, then this episode is for you.

Mikael Yang, CEO and Co-Founder of ManyChat, joins us today to talk about messenger bots. Messenger has bypassed social networks to become the number one channel people are using to communicate with each other, and with brands. Yang shares the opportunities ecommerce businesses have with messenger bots to reach their customers in this highly intimate and engaging channel. Only 1% of marketers are using messenger, which is anticipated to become the main communication channel for B2C in the near future, and Yang talks about why now is the time you should start.

Episode Highlights:

• 6:53 Why Messenger is the future of B2C communication.
• 7:46 The Chinese ecommerce bot strategy that the West may not be ready for.
• 10:39 The one mistake Mikael sees most ecomm businesses making when it comes to bots.
• 11:59 How messenger bots may be the final nail in e-mail's coffin.
• 12:43 The reason why bots will elevate the level of messaging over what we currently see with email.
• 15:52 How the structure of email encourages marketers to spam their audience and what Facebook is doing to ensure relevance to its users with bots.
• 20:39 The ways Mikael sees Facebook controlling costs and rewarding businesses for positive messenger engagement.
• 22:52 What's really working for brands using messenger bots right now.
• 28:02 The 3 actions you should take with messenger bots.
• 33:40 How to develop a conversation with your audience through messenger bots to understand what they really want from you.
• 38:28 New to messenger bots and looking for the "quick win"? This is what Mikael suggests.

Links and Resources:

• ManyChat
• ManyChat Facebook Community
• Free Messenger Marketing Course (ManyChat)

This episode is brought to you by Klaviyo. If you're running an ecommerce business and sending emails to your customers, you should be using Klaviyo. It will help you find out who your best customers are and target them one-to-one to make more money.

I've been using Klaviyo since they were just two employees. Now they have a team of 150 and are rolling out new features almost weekly. If you aren't already a customer, head over to www.ecommerceinfluence.com/klaviyo and you'll get a free trial + priority on-boarding.

Are your CPAs on Facebook or Instagram rising? If so, you're not alone. As more advertisers pour into the channel the cost of advertising is going up! Today, we've got a special "Flash Episode" for you. We share why your acquisition costs always increase as you spend more and we go step-by-step through a process that will help you advertise more effectively and profitably.

This is a technical episode and one you might need to listen to a couple of times. But if you're struggling to scale up your ad spend, it could be the ladder you need to take it to the next level. Andrew and I go super deep into the FB weeds and talk about audience building, refreshing ads, horizontal scaling, etc. Paid social advertisers...enjoy!

Episode Highlights:

• 4:30 The super tool that Facebook has given advertisers and you're likely not even using it.
• 6:08 How to find the "First Time Impression Ratio" for your ads to make sure you are reaching new users.
• 10:23 Red Alert: Your CPA's are rising: Here are the 5 levers you can pull to see overall improvements
• 14:23 If you haven't tried Instagram placement in over a year or even the last 6 months, you should be trying and testing Instagram placements
• 16:06 How you can correct a failing ad set with just 5 minutes and a pen and some paper.
• 16:20 The advice Molly Pittman shared with Andrew as it relates to scaling your business on Facebook.
• 17:24 Austin's key takeaway from his recent read: Scientific Advertising

Links and Resources:

• Delivery Insights
• Scientific Advertising
• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital

Are you ready to scale your business and ship internationally, but feel intimidated by the complexities involved? Are you currently shipping abroad, but struggling with all of the different contracts, customs, and taxes? If so, we've got a fantastic episode for you today.

Shipping outside of the United States can be a huge component of scaling your business, but there are many challenges related to finding the best courier in every country, understanding different regulations, and having proper documentation. EasyShip is a shipping platform that takes care of all of these issues and helps ecommerce businesses ship all over the world.

Tommaso Tamburnotti, co-founder of EasyShip, joins us this week to talk about international shipping for ecommerce. We discuss the process of moving from domestic to international shipping, common inventory issues, and how to stop leaving money on the table by not taking advantage of the international market.

Episode Highlights:

• 7:21 Understanding how Easy Ship came to be and how they've helped many ecommerce brands go international.
• 14:21 How to identify international markets and scale your business.
• 19:25 Why the language barrier shouldn't keep you from testing international sales.
• 21:53 The international markets you should be considering.
• 23:15 The 5 main steps you need to take to start shipping internationally and how Easy Ship simplifies the process.
• 30:53 How to overcome the customer service nightmare of getting a product stuck in customs.
• 33:53 Why there is currently a huge opportunity for US brands to start selling internationally.
• 32:23 The two main problems that Tommaso sees with US brands when they sell internationally.

Links and Resources:

• Get $20 added to your account when you sign up for Easy Ship with this link.

Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed with all the information out there about how to grow your business? I know I do, it's a freaking jungle out there.

There is so much noise out there telling you to build this, optimize that, or to invest in some new shiny marketing channel it's difficult to choose where to direct your attention..

It's easy to get distracted from the simple fundamentals of how to grow your business. If you're feeling stuck and are looking for inspiration on how to jumpstart growth, this episode is for you.

This week we share the three levers you should focus on in order to grow your business, the simplest and least expensive way. These include: number of customers, average order value and frequency. We talk about how to calculate each of these, and how, as well as how much, you need to increase them by to double your business over the next year.

Episode Highlights:

• 4:42 Lever #1: Reviewing your product pages to identify opportunities for increasing the number of customers.
• 6:05 How the creation of a "best-sellers" page can ensure you are not leaving money on the table.
• 7:28 Lever # 2: Increasing your Average Order Value.
• 10:28 The data is in and this is the minimum AOV you should be targeting for to see success with Facebook and Instagram advertising.
• 13:37 Lever #3: Increasing your purchase frequency.
• 17:20 Here is Austin's formula for figuring out purchase frequency and how to scale it up over the next year.

Links and Resources:

• Brand Growth Experts
• Foxwell Digital
• Cart Hook
• One Click Upsell