The Unofficial TikTok Shop Podcast with Jordan West

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Ep 476: Everything we knew about CRO was wrong! 

The impact of User Interface/User Experience design on conversion rates is further explored, with user feedback and first impressions being key influencers. The holistic approach to website design, encompassing messaging and overall aesthetics, is emphasized as crucial for improving conversion rates.

In this episode, Jordan West interviews Arsh Sanwarwala, from ThrillX Designs to dive into the world of user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design. Arsh discusses the importance of building websites with intuitive UI and UX, highlighting the impact it has on conversion rate optimization (CRO) and making products more attractive to consumers. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• UX and UI design has a role in website experience and brand quality
• User feedback's effect on conversion rates and importance of first impressions and messaging
• Building trust with customers is important for social proof
• We tend to rely on peer recommendations and actions when making purchasing decisions
•  Focus on benefits rather than features
• Best practices not always guaranteeing high conversion rates
• The core principle for high converting websites: social proof, building trust, and considering visitor behavior
•  Focusing on CRO and human interaction with websites, acknowledging limitations of data alone
• Remove unnecessary content and avoid industry jargon on websites
• Understanding customer barriers through surveys and user tests
• Data-driven strategies, such as surveys and user tests, supplementing best practices for optimal results.

Recommended Book:

Building a Story Brand

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/35183794

Recommended Audio Book:

Jason Swenk

https://jasonswenk.com/blog/

Recommended Tool:

Hotjar

https://www.hotjar.com/

Recommended Link:

Free Website Audit

https://thrillxdesign.com/free-website-review/

Today’s Guest:

Arsh Sanwarwala is the founder of ThrillX, a UX/UI design and conversion rate optimization firm located in Toronto, Canada. Throughout his experience, he observed a common trend among these companies' websites - they were not designed to their full potential. Arsh noticed that decisions were often made based on guesswork rather than data-driven strategies.

Connect and learn more about Arsh and ThrillX here: 

Website: https://thrillxdesign.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arsh-sanwarwala/

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now.

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The critical issue of trust leakage. We're all guilty of focusing too much on acquiring new customers but neglecting customer retention. Providing clear delivery promises to your customers during the buying process is so important.

In this episode, Jordan West sits down with guest Avi Moskowitz to discuss the challenges of building trust and improving customer experience in the e-commerce industry. Avi shares his insights and experiences in utilizing the PDQ platform to address these issues. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

• Supporting teams and giving them autonomy
• Data-driven delivery promises and their impact on brands
• Lack of clear delivery promises leads customers to abandon purchases and turn to platforms like Amazon. 
• Opportunities to improve trust and create a positive customer experience
• The Pareto principle and its consistency in business
• AI learning and its similarity to human intelligence
•  Addressing the challenge of building trust in e-commerce
• The importance of quick delivery and increasing repeat purchases
• The focus on the "leaky bucket" phenomenon
• The inefficiency and lost resources in acquiring and losing customers
• PDQ's focus on operational efficiency and delivery promises
• Shopify offers features and integration with shipping methods and carriers to provide data-driven delivery promises.
• Trust is crucial in business and should not be skipped over.
• Focusing on the checkout process can significantly impact profitability and customer retention.

Recommended Tool:

Fireflies

https://app.fireflies.ai/

ChatGPT

https://chat.openai.com/

Pretty Damn Quick

https://www.prettydamnquick.com/

Recommended Book:

Good to Great

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/76865.Good_to_Great

 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

https://ati.dae.gov.in/ati12052021_1.pdf

Today’s Guest:

Avi Moskowitz, is the founder of a website development company that specializes in bringing an Amazon-like experience to independent brands. In 2020, Avi and his team launched their own website on Shopify, but faced unexpected success due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in hundreds and sometimes thousands of orders per day. This overwhelmed the team, leading Avi to spend most of his time writing apology notes for delayed deliveries. Determined to find a better solution, Avi and his co-founder, Leron, developed a platform that aimed to recreate the trust and customer experience found in physical retail stores. They understood that independent brands often lacked the resources to build trust and convey professionalism online, unlike e-commerce giant Amazon. Avi's company seeks to bridge this gap by providing a comprehensive and trustworthy online shopping experience for independent brands.

Connect and learn more about Avi and Pretty Damn Quick here: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/moskowitzavi/

Website: https://www.prettydamnquick.com/

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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The conversation highlights the need for brands to understand the true impact of their efforts, while also advocating for skepticism in marketing measurement.We also have valuable tips on optimizing channels through testing and relying on a brilliant team for successful scaling.

In this episode, Jordan West interviews Michael Kaminsky who shares his insights on measuring incrementality in branded search spending, conducting geo holdout tests, and the importance of building a testing muscle to inform marketing strategies. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

Key Takeaways from this episode

• Post checkout surveys provide directional indication, but are not a definitive measure of incrementality.
• Going dark tests, where advertising spend is temporarily turned off, can be used to measure incrementality.
• Decreasing ad spend by a certain percentage for a period of time can also provide insights into incrementality.
• Branded search spending and its incrementality are difficult to determine, but tests and experiments can help measure effectiveness.
• Running geo holdout tests, by turning off branded search spend in certain areas, can help determine the impact on sales.
• Analyzing data and learning from unexpected experiments or outcomes is crucial for understanding marketing effectiveness.
• Advanced statistical techniques, like marketing mix modeling, can be used to measure the impact of marketing spend on different channels.
• Understanding the ROI and conversions from selling on channels like Amazon is important for data analysis and decision-making.
• Attribution and incrementality are different concepts in D2C e-commerce marketing, with incrementality focusing on additional revenue and ROI.
• Continuous testing, evidence gathering, and triangulating data from different sources are key to understanding incrementality and scaling a business.

Recommended Podcast:
Acquired:
https://www.acquired.fm/episodes

Lenny’s Podcast:

https://www.lennyspodcast.com/episodes/

Recommended Tool:

Things 3:

https://culturedcode.com

Today’s Guest:

Michael Kaminsky is the co-founder of Recast. He is a trained econometrician with a background in healthcare and environmental economics. He previously built the marketing science team at men’s grooming brand Harry’s before co-founding Recast.

Connect and learn more about Michael and Recast here: 

Website: http://www.getrecast.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-the-data-guy-kaminsky

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Mike_Kaminsky

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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We often underestimate the impact of automated emails. However, these unsung heroes play a crucial role in customer engagement and retention. In fact, they have the potential to be the game-changer in your eCommerce journey.

In this episode, Jordan West discusses the essential email flows you need for your DTC business. He highlights the importance of automated emails in boosting customer engagement and driving sales. Jordan also emphasizes the significance of setting a robust welcome flow for new customers and using customer service data to address common questions through various platforms. Plus, he reveals the power of effective promotional strategies and highlights the key features of an optimal email service provider. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Utilize personalized AI videos to thank customers and recover abandoned carts, such as Maverick AI’s.
• Set up automated email flows, including a welcome flow for new customers with at least five emails sent within a short timeframe.
• Use customer service data to identify common questions and answer them through various platforms like TikTok, reels, emails, SMS, and blog posts to improve SEO.
• Promote best-selling products, curate top picks, and utilize seasonal promotions to increase sales and engagement.
• Ask questions in plain text emails to engage readers and encourage them to take the next step in the customer journey.
• Consider using gift guides, style guides, and educational content to provide value and move customers toward making a purchase.
• Use Shopify email marketing and set up essential email flows to generate passive income.
• Celebrate milestones and share them with customers to engage and make them feel valued.

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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Marketing and advertising are crucial components of any successful business. It is important to remember that every action taken in these areas should be aimed at promoting growth and ensuring long-term sustainability.

In this episode, Charley T is back with more nuggets you need to know. Jordan West and Charey T discuss the biggest myths about Facebook Media ad buying. Charley shares the right strategies you should focus on in your business.  

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• Charley T defines his success by the joy and independence he brings to the people he helps.
• Charley chooses to be the one who is called out but is known to provide a lot of value to people.
• There are challenges with the current approach to Facebook advertising, such as higher frequency and worse results from showing the same ads to the same people.
• Reassess your Facebook advertising approach.
• The traditional methods of using cost caps and restricted placements may limit the effectiveness of your data-driven strategy. 
• Let Facebook spend freely and evaluate the results to focus on areas that generate more revenue.
• Focus on growth metrics and investment portfolio.
• Instead of chasing the perfect ad, identify what works and do more of it, but better
• Increasing spending incrementally and consistently reinvesting profits can lead to significant growth in the long run.
• Remember, it's about consistently producing more profit and reinvesting it into your business.

Today’s Guest:

Charley T is the founder of Disrupter School, a renowned digital advertising and entrepreneurship expert. With over ten years of experience in the field, Charley has achieved tremendous success. Charley has consistently driven eight and nine-figure revenues for various businesses. Whether as an operator, a member of the growth team, or an advisory board member, he has helped scale and exit numerous companies.

Connect and learn more about Charley T here: 

Website: https://www.disrupterschool.com/FacebookDisrupter 

Other Socials: https://www.fbdisrupter.kartra.com/page/links 

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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Automation is the future, but it is already starting now. eCommerce brands like you should utilize AI tools now to get ahead of the game.

In this episode, Jordan West dives into the world of AI tools that are revolutionizing the eCommerce industry. He shares 5 AI tools that will be a great help for businesses.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

AI Tools You Should Check Out Today:

1. Shopify Sidekick  https://apps.shopify.com/sidekick-ai

• Shopify Sidekick is an assistant that can answer any question about a user's Shopify store. It gathers information and statistics from the user's website and provides guidance and support.
• Shopify Sidekick can keep track of your inventory, manage your orders, and create discounts and promotions for your brand.

2. Bard https://bard.google.com/

• You can ask Bard AI to help you find stores in an area you want to connect with and give all their contact information available.

3. Chat GPT Plus https://openai.com/

• Try asking ChatGPT Plus for whatever information you need in your business. You can even make it analyze your Profit and Loss Statement.

4. Eleven Labs https://elevenlabs.io/

• Eleven Labs help you create different variations of video ads with voiceovers. You can also record a few minutes of your voice and let it generate a voiceover using your voice.

5. Maverick https://www.trymaverick.com/

• Use Maverick to create personalized emails with videos for your customers.

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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Price increases are essential to sustain businesses. However, one wrong way of communicating changes with customers, especially with pricing, can break their trust. 

In this episode, Jordan West talks about the importance of effectively communicating price increases to your customers. He also shares some tips to communicate changes to your customers.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• Communicating price increases effectively is crucial for e-commerce brands.
• Proper communication is essential when implementing price increases, especially in a difficult economic situation.
• Charging higher prices can help companies afford a talented team and provide better results for clients.
• Gradually increasing prices on certain items over the years can be a viable strategy.
• Add value to the product or service to help justify a price increase to customers.
• Explain the changes in the product that justify the price increase to help customers understand and accept it.
• Inform customers in advance about an upcoming price increase.
• Offer the current price until the increase takes effect to generate sales and minimize customer pushback.
• The nickel and diming approach or pricing features separately is generally disliked by customers.
• Bundling all features together in one pricing package is often preferred by customers.
• Add premium features to differentiate and justify higher prices.

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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Surprising and delighting customers is essential for generating word-of-mouth marketing. By going beyond great products and improving order fulfillment, brands can enhance the customer experience and create loyal customers. These customers will then go out there and talk about your brand to others.

In this episode, Jordan West discusses the importance of surprising and delighting your customers and some unique ways to do them. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

• Shopify is an inspiration when it comes to surprising and delighting customers.
• Shopify recently gave out gifts and letters to brands that reached a certain amount of sales. These brands posted them online and became brilliant marketing for Shopify.
• Figure out the unique ways to connect more with your customers beyond the usual, tried, and tested methods you’re already doing.
• Handwrytten: You can use their online handwritten note service to give out personalized notes to your customers.  https://www.handwrytten.com/
• You can also send out an excess inventory to your customers to let them know you appreciate them without expecting something in return.
• Sending personalized videos or organizing in-person events can also surprise and delight your customers.
• Go to ChatGPT and ask for 50 ideas to surprise and delight your customers. Choose the best ways in the list that fit your brand.

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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When it comes to building business partnerships, finding the perfect fit is paramount. When brands align in terms of personality and values with their partner agencies, the synergy created paves the way for seamless collaboration and increases the likelihood of achieving success.

In this episode, Jordan West sits down with special guest Behdad Jamshidi, expert marketing consultant and founder of CJAM Marketing. They dive deep into and share invaluable insights into the world of marketing agencies. Bee shares his experiences and expertise and uncovers the secrets to successful agency-client relationships. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• When hiring an agency, it's important to find the right match in terms of personality, values, and level of involvement desired.
• Setting clear expectations is crucial for effective marketing partnerships. 
• Unrealistic expectations regarding marketing ROI can lead to failure. 
• Building a brand takes time and a comprehensive marketing strategy using multiple channels.
• Profit sharing can be beneficial in agency-client relationships.
• Consider the agency's level of experience and expertise before hiring.
• It's okay to hire multiple agencies or contractors to fill in gaps in specific areas.
• Self-reflection is necessary for businesses that have struggled with multiple agency partnerships.
• Fractional CMOs can be valuable for brands without internal marketing resources.
• Different levels of agencies exist, from freelancers to large agencies, and selecting the right one depends on the business's needs and revenue level.

Recommended Tool:
ClickUp https://clickup.com
Streak https://www.streak.com 

Recommended Book:
The Courage to be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43306206-the-courage-to-be-disliked 

Today’s Guest:
Behdad Bamshidi, also known as Bee, is an engineer-turned-marketer from Canada. During his time working at TELUS where he provided business consulting services to companies ranging from 50 to 1000 employees, he realized the disconnect between marketing agencies and business professionals, leading him to start his own business helping small businesses with marketing strategies such as websites, Google Ads, and SEO. However, he soon grew tired of doing websites alone and decided to find partners to collaborate with. His main goal now is to connect businesses with the right marketing partners who understand both business and marketing, bridging the gap between the two disciplines.

Connect and learn more about Bee and CJAM Marketing here:
LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/behdadjamshidi
Website: https://cjammarketing.com/ 

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.

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The e-commerce industry presents a myriad of challenges that are both unavoidable and often unforeseeable. Nevertheless, brands that have firmly established sustainable principles are better equipped to steer through these difficult times with greater ease and resounding success.

In this episode, Jordan West interviews Ben Leonard, author of a book on building successful physical product e-commerce brands. They discuss the principles, strategies, and tactics that have stood the test of time, including building a brand identity, focusing on sustainable principles, and building relationships with existing customers. They also touch on personal stories of exiting a business and the importance of perseverance and doing things that don't scale to gain an edge over competitors. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• Building a sustainable e-commerce brand requires building a brand identity and not just selling on Amazon.
• User-generated content converts better than paid or professional content due to the principle of unity.
• Shared responsibility, working together,  and maintaining strong relationships are keys to scaling an e-commerce brand.
• Building connections with the brand, not just with the product, is crucial for success in running a business.
• Small business owners have this "street fighter mentality" and are willing to do what it takes to get things done.
• Understanding the audience and developing products that solve their problems is crucial for e-commerce businesses.
• Building a brand identity has become essential for institutional buyers.
• Doing things that don't scale, like podcasting, can add extra power to a business and give it an edge over competitors.
• Perseverance is key - those who are willing to put in the effort can win.

Recommended Tool:
Klaviyo https://www.klaviyo.com/

Recommended Audiobook:
Infinite Game by Simon Sinek https://simonsinek.com/books/the-infinite-game/

Today’s Guest:
Ben Leonard had always been into fitness as a way to relieve stress from his job. But when he fell ill with a heart problem in 2015, he had to take a break from work and his fitness hobbies. It was then that his girlfriend, who was studying at the time, encouraged him to take up something new. Ben remembered an idea he had for a fitness brand four years earlier but had made excuses not to pursue it. With time on his hands, he decided to go for it and started his fitness brand. He realized e-commerce was the way to go and hasn’t looked back since.

Connect and learn more about Ben Leonard here:
LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/benjleonard
Book: Quit Stalling, Build Your Brand quitstallingbook.com/jordan

Get 5 Offers for 2 Products (10 in total) along with 10 highly engaging tried and true creatives, 30 captivating headlines, descriptions, and ad texts sent to you for only $99. Go to https://www.upgrowthcommerce.com/offer and order now - this offer is only available for a limited time.