The Exchange

Connect with John:

Linkedin

Resources we Discuss in This Episode:

Baseballism on building a brand around your passion
The Returns Benchmark Report

Brands John Looks to for Inspiration:

Brooklinen
Any brand he shops at :)

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• John shares a bit about what Baseballism is all about 
• We talk about how a return is where you get the best feedback to improve 
• John talks about how returns fit into website and customer service experiences
• We go over how all of these pieces fit together
• John gives us a look into how returns were handled in the past 
• We cover why the old way was such a poor experience (pre-paid labels and excel docs)
• Why returns were taking 10mins per return
• Using Loop has allowed Baseballism to see how returns play into the bigger picture
• The pitfalls of manually tracking 
• The data that John is looking at 
• How he uses individual comments to find the next place to improve
• The benefits of turning refunds into exchanges 
• Tips for discovering you have a return problem

Articles Referenced:

How Canadians Feel About Cross-Border Commerce
Solving Cross Border Returns

Show Notes:

• Barb explains that she runs a bed and breakfast 
• We talk about her first purchases online 
• We discuss what she likes and dislikes about online shopping 
• We go over what my mom thinks these terms mean (ROAS, Re-targeting, 3PL, and LTV) 
• My mom explains how she is being tracked and bombarded by ads 
• We talk about some of my stupid purchases as a kid
• My mom explains that she does not know how to unsubscribe and is inflating your email metrics 

Connect with David:

Twitter
Linkedin

Fanocracy site

Brands David mentions as examples:

MeUndies
Duracell
HubSpot

Here's this shows TL;DR:

• David explains what a Fanocracy is
• We go over the destructive nature of Facebook and other social tools
• We talk about how the book came to be and why his daughter was the co-author
• Answer why brands should be building fandoms
• David and Alex discuss what they are fans of and the communities around that
• Even businesses you think would have zero benefits from fans like hospitals actually do 
• David explains what it means to "listen to humanize" 
• We go over the science behind feeling a sense of belonging 
• David explains how stock images and jargon kill your brand 
• We discuss how MeUndies is a great example of listening to humanize
• We talk about the difference between influencer vs advocate and why influencers are not as great as you think
• David explains what is meant by "give more than you need to" with an example from Duracell
• We go over why you need to build your employees to be fans as well 

Connect with Ben:

[email protected]
Linkedin

EcoCart on Instagram
EcoCart on Twitter

Learning that Dane referenced:

UN Sustainability Goals
EcoCart Blog

Brands Dane mentions as great examples:

Clean Cult
Patagonia
Worn Wear

Here's this shows TL;DR:

• Dane explains what EcoCart is all about 
• We hear the story of how the company started as a rental company believing in a sharing economy 
• Dane explains why sustainability has a greater spotlight on it than ever before 
• Consumer preferences and education levels are changing 
• Brands are under pressure from conscious consumers and government regulations
• Dane explains the value of transparency and how you can leverage it
• How EcoCart decides what projects to support and how you can use a similar process
• Dane give his tips and tricks for brands to start with sustainability  

Connect with Ben:

Linkedin

Videos we Discuss in This Episode:

Sexy Dad Campaign Video
Commuter Campaign Video

Brands Ben Looks to for Inspiration:

Patagonia
Allbirds
Chubbies

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• Ben shares where the inspiration for &Collar came from 
• We go over the definition of buyer and user personas
• Ben shares how he sees himself as the user persona and how that has helped with decisions 
• We go over who &Collars buyer persona is and how they discovered that 
• Ben explains what has changed about the site experience since making that discovery
• We talk about the creative the &Collar team created to speak to their buyer persona instead of just the user 
• Ben shares why a good mix of both user and buyer content leads to the best results
• Start looking for the difference NOW you don't need Nielsen to do the research

Connect with Audrey:

Linkedin
Medium
M&G Podcast - Nothing to Hide
M&G Instagram

Brands Audrey Looks to for Inspiration:

Jenni Kayne
Everlane
Whitney Stoddard Art

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• Audrey tells us about Moore & Giles and the development of their ecommerce business 
• We discuss the role of product in ecommerce and why it took so long for ecom to adopt the discipline
• Audrey tells us how she finds the next product idea 
• We go over how to curate your product catalog and what to do before you cut something 
• Multiple people and teams should be involved in product development and launch, Audrey describes who 
• We go over how the sprint methodology has made product development easier
• Audrey explains how the pandemic lead to new innovation
• We go over when product and marketing need to coordinate handoffs
• Audrey tells us how Moore and Giles uses pre-sales to create added demand 
• Audrey tells us the brands she looks to for inspiration 

Other Helpful Resources:

Return Benchmarks by Vertical

Connect with Lisa:

Instagram
Linkedin

Brands Lisa Looks to for Inspiration:

Apparis
Fashion-forward brands
Home goods space

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• Lisa tells us a bit about what Walkee Paws is and how the idea came to be 
• We talk about who is the most intimidating shark to pitch in front of 
• Lisa explains the process of getting on the show and how she lucked out a bit 
• The goals you should have in mind when you go to pitch 
• The value of doing your research on each shark
• We talk about the doors that open after your show airs (retail, sponsorships, endorsements) 
• Lisa shares how her sales were impacted in the week after (up over 500%) 
• We talk about some inventory issues and how Walkee Paws worked though that 
• Lisa shares her tips for making sure that you own the pitch and get to talk about what you want 
• We go over the best tips for brands to survive life after Shark Tank

Other Helpful Resources:

3 Strategies Walkee Paws Used to Transform Their Returns Page
Return Benchmarks For Each Vertical

Connect with Baboon:

Instagram
Twitter

Brands Kush Looks to for Inspiration:

Benetton
Diesel
Nike
Patagonia
Urban Outfitters
Leon Dore

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• Kush makes Alex and Tim guess what the name of the brand means
• Alex and Tim butcher it and Kush doesn't bail us out :) 
• Kush explains how the ideas for some of their graphics come together
• We go over the importance of a mood board 
• The importance of defining what you are not as well as what you are 
• Where to turn for inspiration so that you don't look and feel like everyone else 
• The correct checkpoints to get feedback on creativity
• We talk about how most things are a remix, you need to build your own that's unique 
• Kush explains some of the places he looks to so he can break away from the "bag market" 
• We talk about some of Kush's favorite brands and what we can learn from them 
• Don't shock just to shock you need to build everything into your purpose

Connect with Benjamin:

Linkedin
Twitter

Tool's Benjamin References:

UN Sustainability Goals
B Corporation Certification

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• A brief overview of Kotn 
• Benjamin defines what social responsibility means to Kotn
• We go deeper on how Kotn integrates social responsibility into everything they do 
• Difference between a vicious and virtuous cycle
• Benjamin explains what he most proud of accomplishing so far 
• We go over the best place to start 
• Value of choosing a single sustainability goal from the UN's list to get started 
• How to avoid seeming disingenuous
• The appropriate time to start marketing your social responsibility efforts 
• Value of being a B Corporation
• Commerce and ethics need to be in harmony 
• Being ethical does not mean you can avoid an amazing quality product
• Best time to start is at brand creation the second best time is right NOW

Connect with Stephanie:

Linkedin

Manly Bands Video:

Finding Your Band That Doesn't Suck

Brands Stephanie Looks to for Inspiration:

MANSCAPED
Squatty Potty
Purple Mattress

Tool for Finding Brands Doing Sweepstakes:

DOJOMOJO

Here's This Shows TL;DR:

• Stephanie explains the value of a strong brand partnership 
• We discuss how to find the right partner 
• Stephanie shares her experiences partnering with Jack Daniels 
• We go over the value of starting with a smaller partnership before investing too heavily 
• Tips for getting partnerships with brands much bigger than you
• MLB partnership discussion (Tim goes obnoxious Boston sports fan 😏)
• Do you want a partnership with a bigger brand?
• Should you partner in a similar industry?
• How to find the right contact at the brand you want to partner with 
• The collaboration that needs to happen between your internal teams