The Unofficial TikTok Shop Podcast with Jordan West

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Surrounding yourself with the right people is crucial for success in any business. Connecting with like-minded individuals, experts, and clients provides a wealth of opportunities for growth and success.

In this episode, Jordan West chats with Curtis Matsko, the founder of Portland Leather Goods. Curtis shares the success story of his business from its early days to where it is now, the importance of building a personal network, finding the right people, and the kind of mindset every business owner should have.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• The best thing about having your company is you get to choose the people who are going to be with you every day.
• Always look not only at the marketing side of the business but also at the people side of things.
• There’s a different kind of connection among the people in a community. It is something you want in a business that you cannot make up.
• Listen to your gut instead of listening to people thinking too small.
• Choose to listen to the right people who became successful and had been through the same thing.
• Find the right people to do the day-to-day things of your business, so you can use your time building more and scaling up.
• Treasure the people who are gems of your company.
• Know the math of doubling up every year.
• Always think further ahead.
• Everything can come and go, but the network you build will always stay.

Recommended Tool
Retention https://retention.com/

Recommended Book:
Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17332218-words-of-radiance

Today’s Guest:

Curtis Matsko is the founder and owner of Portland Leather Goods, a company based in Portland, Oregon that specializes in handcrafted leather products. It has become known for its commitment to quality, attention to detail, and exceptional customer service.

Connect and learn more about Curtis Matsko here:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/curtis-matsko-9a143463/

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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

Scaling a brand is a complex task that requires a well-thought-out strategy and execution. Bold and effective risk-taking, a strong team culture, optimized streamlining systems, and successful acquisitions are the things that determine the success and scalability of a business.

In this episode, Jordan West talks to Pradeep Kumar Sacitharan of Donsfield. They talk about what it takes to scale up a brand. Pradeep extensively shares what they look for when acquiring brands and their process of acquiring them.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• Set historic bold goals. The scale that you want to scale is directly linked to your confidence.
• If you back yourself to scale quickly enough, you’ll scale quickly enough.
• Think of how quickly you can capitalize on volume, revenue, and cash flow.
• As soon as you acquire, you're adding revenue. And the quickest way to make money is to buy money. 
• Scaling a particular brand or a company comes down to people and systems.
• Cashflow is always going to be king.
• Scaling a brand is also making different verticals within that brand or within your business empire.
• When you're an expert, you think you're clever, but you're actually not. The real genius is when you can expand and go to other places and succeed.
• Knowledge is not power. Knowledge is leverage. Leverage is power.
• Markets in the next years depend on each country.

Recommended Tool:
Sellerboard https://sellerboard.com/

Recommended Podcast:
The Podcasters Podcast https://podcasterspodcast.com/

Today’s Guest:

Dr. Pradeep Kumar Sacitharan from Donsfield calls himself a serial dropout. He dropped out of high school, went to and dropped out of Oxford and Harvard, went to Dubai and learned buying companies, and dropped out of corporate pharma to start his own e-commerce business. He likes to do things quickly but very thoroughly

Connect and learn more about Pradeep here:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pradeepkumarsacitharan/

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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

The time that you waste doing all the things that slow you down is the time you need to do many other things that will scale your business up.

In this episode, Jordan West interviews Josh Hadley from Hadley Designs. Josh talks about hiring employees, managers, and specialists overseas and the framework that he uses to hire these people.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• You need to do things that will not scale in your business first and figure out how you’ll scale afterward.
• It is important to balance diversification and focusing on what is working.
• Your team members are managers and specialists with specific knowledge.

The Hiring Framework:

1. Get very clear on the role you need to hire for. 
2. You’ve got to actively recruit people to apply for your job position.
3. Run a series of assessment tests for all of the applicants.
4. Send a test project for the applicants who passed the assessments.
5. Group the final candidates into 5 and let them tell you who you should hire, excluding themselves.

Today’s Guest:

Josh Hadley is the CEO of Hadley Designs and the host of the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast. He solves complex business problems and helps brands reach overall success. He also continues to learn and collaborate with brilliant people in the e-commerce industry through his podcast.

Connect and learn more about Josh Hadley here:
Website: https://www.ecommbreakthrough.com 
Email Address: [email protected] 

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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

The rise of e-commerce and globalization has made it easier for businesses to access suppliers from around the world, but it also created new challenges and pains. However, the experts always have the right solutions to overcome these issues.

In this episode, Jordan West talks to Yulia Blinova from Zignify Global Product Sourcing. They talk about all things product sourcing and some tactical ways to get the best possible deals for your business. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• It is always good to have backup plans for the safety of your supply chain.
• Have a potential factory somewhere outside of the country where you originally produced.
• If your products are complicated and you need to source outside China, do not source by product.
• When sourcing outside of China, consider contacting at least 60 factories because they will need more time to respond to you. 
• On average, it takes about 3 e-mails and 4 phone calls for one factory to respond.
• Trust people who have proven experience and expertise in product sourcing.
• Always be knowledgeable of the culture of the people you are talking to.
• Be nice when communicating and doing transactions with people.
• The best way to get an immediate response from a US manufacturer is to contact them through the contact form on their website.
• What you give to others will always come back to you.

Recommended Book:
The Go-giver https://thegogiver.com/

Today’s Guest:

Yulia Blinova is the founder of Zignify Global Product Sourcing. She’s been working in product sourcing for the last 18 years. She is an expert in business and strategy development, project and team management, sourcing, and negotiations with different people and countries.

Connect and learn more about Yulia and Zignify Global Product Sourcing here: Website: https://zignify.net/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yuliyablinova/

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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

Deciding to exit a business can be a difficult decision for some business owners. However, the longer you wait, the more difficult it is and the less favorable the transaction will be.

In this episode, Kelcey Lehrich from 365 Holdings is back and he talks about them buying distressed businesses, what that looks like, what valuations look like right now, and what the M&A looks like.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• If you look at any niche category, the longer you're in the game, the bigger your email list is, the more brand search you have, and the better domain authority you have.
• People should be leaning into demand creation and customer acquisition if their economics work. 
• If you are motivated to sell, a good buyer will pay a good price for your business.
• Prices will depend on the quality of your business.
• Growing through acquisitions once you have a platform is a great way to scale your company.
• If you’re worried about your business, start sooner. The longer you wait, the harder it gets, and the less favorable that transaction probably is going to be.
• Get a coach, get somebody outside of yourself because you may not recognize some things when you make decisions.

Recommended Tool:
Triple Whale https://www.triplewhale.com/
Recommended Podcasts:
My First Million https://www.mfmpod.com/
Business Breakdowns https://podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/business-breakdowns/id1559120677
Invest Like the Best https://podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/invest-like-the-best-with-patrick-oshaughnessy/id1154105909
Think Like an Owner https://podcasts.apple.com/ph/podcast/think-like-an-owner/id1445929750

Today’s Guest:
Kelcey Lehrich is a co-founder and the CEO of 365 Holdings. They are a private investment company acquiring e-commerce brands, primarily selling on the internet. They currently have 9 brands in their portfolio today.

Connect and learn more about Kelcey and 365 Holdings here:
Website: www.365-holdings.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kelceylehrich?lang=en
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelceylehrich/

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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

The level of emotional intelligence of an individual or in an organization predicts its future. The more emotionally intelligent one is, the more they are able to address and withstand the most difficult challenges that come to them. But, what could be the biggest limiting factor to developing one’s emotional intelligence?

In this episode, Jordan West interviews Phil Johnson from Master of Business Leadership. They talk about the importance of developing one’s emotional intelligence, why people are often low on it, and the ways to potentially start to develop it within an organization. 

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• The bigger the gap between where you are versus where you want to be, the more motivated you are to look for a solution to close that gap. And without that motivation, change is impossible.
• You have to develop an emotional connection to what you want to achieve that’s greater than your fear of stepping out of your comfort zone.
• People who are satisfied with their current results will not get any help from a coach.
• The process of developing emotional intelligence is much more difficult than intellectual and physical labor.
• If you’re unwilling to fail, you’re guaranteed to fail.
• The lack of emotional intelligence blinds us to reality, to be able to see ourselves and other people for who they are. 
• The more emotionally intelligent you are, the easier it is to see it in other people or the lack of it.
• Without the development of our emotional intelligence, we're going to experience accelerating rates of drama, chaos, and conflict. 
• The development of emotional intelligence is an experiential process. It is not an intellectual process. 
• How somebody feels about you, whether they like or hate you, has nothing to do with you. It has to do with what's going on inside of them
• The development of emotional intelligence represents the future of organizational change.

Today’s Guest:

Phil Johnson is the CEO and Founder of the Master of Business Leadership program. He’s been an executive coach for the last 22 years working with executives and organizations worldwide to help develop leadership and emotional intelligence leading to career, corporate, and personal success.

Connect and learn more about Phil Johnson here:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipjpjohnson/

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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

Marketing is a huge part of your growth and success and it is critical to have the right mindset when it comes to it.

In this episode, Jordan talks about a case study of a brand that is heavily relying on a single marketing channel and is terrified that that channel could end up dying. He shares what they found out that led to this brand’s massive growth.

Are you worried or scared that your single marketing channel reliance is going to kill your business? Listen and learn in this episode!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• A marketing channel working for your business now can dry up and may not work anymore in the future. 
• Marketing is not an expense or a budget line item. It is fuel for your growth and success.

The Case Study:

Problems: 

1. The brand is heavily relying on one marketing channel. 
2. They’re unsure of the next best move to scale a predictable growth.
3. They’re underutilizing their UGCs.

Solution: 

1. Implemented the Upgrowth Scaling Framework on Meta and Google (upgrowthcommerce.com/grow)
2. Created the 3-legged Stool: Influencer Marketing, Facebook Advertising, and Google.

Results:

1. 20% decrease in CPA.
2. A massive 143% year-over-year growth!

This episode’s sponsor is KnoCommerce - the first survey platform built for eCommerce brands. Gain insight on everything from marketing attribution to purchase motivation, while leveraging your customer data for enhanced personalization.

Get 50% off the first 3 months with a 14-day free trial. If you’re advertising on TikTok you can also get up to 5k in credit with TT (pays for over a year).

Start here: https://try.knocommerce.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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

Success in digital marketing depends on the goals you identify right from the start. The clearer your goals are, the more efficient your ad strategies will be.

In this episode, Jordan West interviews Andy Janaitis from PPC Pitbulls. They talk about the best ad campaigns to spend your money on if you have a $10,000+ monthly budget. They also discuss Performance Max campaigns, branded search, and where these two fit in.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• The first step is to figure out the stage you are in your business and the specific goals you want to achieve next. Once you simplify and understand these things, you can then come up with the best strategies to apply to your business.
• It helps to first check the profitability of your campaigns.
• When set up correctly, branded searches are cheap tools that are still effective to get a higher edge against competitors and control your ad listings.
• Limit the number of campaigns to run based on your budget for ad spend.
• The more you can consolidate the data coming back in, the more you are giving the model a chance to get running and learning as quickly as possible.
• Avoid running the same product in different asset groups.

Recommended Tool:
Google Analytics https://analytics.google.com/

Recommended Podcast:
Animal Spirits Podcast https://animalspiritspod.libsyn.com/

Today’s Guest:

Andy Janaitis has been in the digital space for 10 years now serving clients from different industries. He started PPC Pitbulls in 2020. They have a mission to support craft brands. They simplify digital marketing, boost online sales, and develop online customer relationships for these brands.

Connect and learn more about Andy and PPC Pitbulls here:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyjanaitis/
Website: https://ppcpitbulls.com/

This episode’s sponsor is KnoCommerce - the first survey platform built for eCommerce brands. Gain insight on everything from marketing attribution to purchase motivation, while leveraging your customer data for enhanced personalization.

Get 50% off the first 3 months with a 14-day free trial. If you’re advertising on TikTok you can also get up to 5k in credit with TT (pays for over a year).
Start here: https://try.knocommerce.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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

As marketers, we know that on-platform attribution is not to be trusted. Instead, we need to focus on understanding the psychology of the people coming to your store. Brands must understand how their customers think.

In this episode, Jordan interviews Sarah Levinger from KnoCommerce. They talk about performance creative, that one type of shape that almost guarantees you a higher click-through rate, and the right questions to ask in your post-purchase survey.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

• Understand the data and the emotions that people use to purchase and apply them to your ads to get better results.
• Place a review tool on your website that will gather photos along with reviews.
• Performance comes down to understanding platform psychology. 
• The most important part of your ad should be placed in the lower right corner.
• Understand color psychology. Don’t use your brand colors if it blends with the platform color.
• Images get people to stop and text gets people to stay.
• How you ask questions will change the answer that comes back.

Recommended Podcast:
The Brainy Business https://thebrainybusiness.com/podcast/

Today’s Guest:

Sarah Levinger has been in marketing for about 14 years. She’s currently a consumer behavior analyst, creative strategist, and performance creative consultant. 

Connect and learn more about Sarah Levinger and KnoCommerce here:
Website: https://knocommerce.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahLevinger
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDaXYB8t_FD6TSi3c7y5qyg

This episode’s sponsor is KnoCommerce - the first survey platform built for eCommerce brands. Gain insight on everything from marketing attribution to purchase motivation, while leveraging your customer data for enhanced personalization.
Get 50% off the first 3 months with a 14-day free trial. If you’re advertising on TikTok you can also get up to 5k in credit with TT (pays for over a year).
Start here: https://try.knocommerce.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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta: https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/

Send us a text

One of the most powerful things to strengthen your brand is building a community.  This is where your most loyal customers find connection and belonging. Not only do you get more traction, loyalty, and referrals but also priceless insights that will improve your brand which all lead to massive scaling opportunities.

In this episode, Jordan talks about the power of building a community around your brand and the 8 steps in building a successful brand community. He also answers some of the questions of his listeners about the topic.

Listen and learn in this episode!

KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

The Power of Building a Community

1. Effectively and inexpensively promote your brand as the authority.
2. Reach more people that will likely become your customers.
3. Engage your customers on a more personal level.
4. Actively re-engage existing customers and increase customer LTV (VIP group)
5. Engage in personal discussions with members and get valuable feedback.
6. Gain priceless insights on how to improve your content/brand/product/services.

The 8 Steps of Building Your Brand Community

1. Determine its purpose. 
2. Create the right community. A true VIP group should be closed.
3. Promote your Facebook Group to your existing customers. 
4. Reward your members with exclusive promos, content, etc. 
5. Content, content, content. Quality content needs to be the fundamental building block of your VIP group.
6. Engage with your members daily. Keep your engagements organized and consistent within the group. Find out the best time they are online and engaging.
7. Word-of-mouth and referral programs.
8. Actively monitor your insights.

Stop what you’re doing right now and take our free Offer Generator course at https://upgrowthacademy.podia.com/.

Upgrowth Commerce Group Coaching: upGrowthcommerce.com/coaching

This episode’s sponsor is KnoCommerce - the first survey platform built for eCommerce brands. Gain insight on everything from marketing attribution to purchase motivation, while leveraging your customer data for enhanced personalization.

Get 50% off the first 3 months with a 14-day free trial. If you’re advertising on TikTok you can also get up to 5k in credit with TT (pays for over a year).

Start here: https://try.knocommerce.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.

Get the latest strategies, tips and case studies sent to you weekly by signing up for the free Secrets to Scaling Newsletter. Also, get first access to our Founder-Only Slack channel, our CMO Dashboard to plan out your marketing efforts and so. much. more.
‘Join the Beta:
https://www.secrets.upgrowthcommerce.com/