DTC834: Ways To Raise AOV, Shiti Coolers Humor-Based Marketing, and TikTok Ban Update

Good morning,

Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC:

💰 Maximize ROAS By Improving Your AOV 
3 ways to improve this critical metric. 

😂 Humor-Based Marketing 
Shiti Coolers’ unconventional growth story. 

📦 Daily Tariff Update
U.S. and China extend trade talks. 

‼️ So…Is TikTok Getting Banned?
The latest update on the app’s fate. 

You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Forward Financing, Cork Pops, and iQMetrix. 👋

✨ Round-The-Clock Support. Real-Time Data Analysis. Perfectly Optimized Ads. AI Agents Are Your New Secret Weapon.

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From data analysis to revenue tracking and ad optimization, they do it all. With AI agents by your side, you can become more efficient and profitable, without relying on manpower. 🤖

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They might be just what your business needs to beat the competition and win, day in and day out. 🏆

💡 Make Your Ad Dollars Work Harder

With the digital ad space becoming increasingly expensive each year, finding ways to maximize the return on each ad dollar spent has never been more crucial.

A huge factor that contributes to that positive return is your Average Order Value (AOV).

Average Order Value (AOV) is an important metric on Meta for ecommerce brands, as it sheds light on how much customers typically spend per transaction.

Increasing AOV allows businesses to earn more from each customer, helping boost revenue and profitability without relying solely on acquiring new shoppers.

Here are 3 top tips on increasing your AOV:

1️⃣ Price Anchors: Restaurants often use this tactic on their menus, and this can also be applied to DTC sites. 

Include a higher-priced item or bundle that can be 3-6 times as much as the normally priced item. 

This way it makes other items look less expensive. 

For example, having three options on a PDP – one blanket option priced at $130, a 5-blanket option priced at $500, and a 20-blanket bundle option at $2,600.

That $500 option isn’t looking so bad compared to the highest option!

This pricing strategy increases AOV through comparison.

2️⃣ Add-ons and Upsells: Offer add-ons and upsells that will benefit the customer.

This can be done on the PDP level using services like Rebuy.

Rebuy utilizes AI to suggest relevant products to customers based on their browsing and purchase history, leading to increased conversion rates and average order values (AOV).  

Or add an upsell feature to the checkout experience, including shipping threshold bars.

The Pilothouse team reports a 30% increase in top-line revenue for clients who utilize tactical upsells.

3️⃣ Bundling: Some brands tend to adopt subscription models before bundling, which we generally do not recommend for AOV plays.

Especially when trying to increase new-to-brand customers and offer value, bundles are your go-to guy.

Classic bundling is always a good idea. Either offering multiple of the same product at a discount price or sets of commonly purchased items together.

These will always increase your AOV if done correctly.

But don't bundle blindly! Leverage data and learnings to craft bundles that appeal to a wide range of customers. 

Increasing your AOV is one of the most effective ways to improve profitability without pouring more money into customer acquisition.By strategically implementing price anchors, upsells, and data-backed bundles, brands can encourage higher cart values and make each ad dollar work harder.

There aren’t enough hours in a day for your employees to do everything you want them to do. ⏰

Ekster, a premium wallet and tech accessory brand realized this and turned to Triple Whale’s Moby Agents for help.

And, the results are mind-blowing, to say the very least. 🤯

Triple Whale’s Ekster Case Study shows how, by leveraging Moby Agents, Ekster was able to:

• ✂️ Cut their weekly reporting time by 65%
• 🪴 Grow their revenue by 50% YoY
• 📈 Increase their marketing efficiency ratio (MER) by 20% YoY

Intrigued? 

📦 Your Daily Tariff Check-In

Whether it’s a minor tweak or a major shift, we’ll keep you posted on the latest tariff changes—so you’re always in the know. 

June 10, 2025 update:

• U.S. and China Extend Trade Talks
  
  
  • Trade talks between the U.S. and China resumed on Tuesday after six hours of discussion in London on Monday.
    
  • Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shared that it was a "good meeting," while Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called the negotiations "fruitful."

🎧 How Shiti Coolers Turned A Joke Into a $320K Sticker Business and Built the First Party Cooler Brand

Trevor Zacny, founder of Shiti Coolers, joins the DTC podcast this week to share how he and his brothers transformed a napkin joke into a viral sticker business, and then into the world’s first party cooler brand.

This episode dives deep into humor-led branding, event-based growth, and the transition from parody to a premium quality product.

“Even if your brand is called Shiti Coolers, the product can't actually be shitty.”

In this episode, we dive into:

• Benefits of Humor-Based Marketing: How this can be a powerful differentiator in saturated product categories with performance brands. 
• Skyrocketing Growth: how Shiti Coolers went from zero to $320K in sticker sales. 
• Leveraging Events: How having a presence at country music fests and NASCAR brought in more sales but was also an invaluable networking opportunity.
  

"Events aren’t just great for sales, they changed the trajectory of our business."

• Fostering Community: How Shiti Coolers uses SMS, social, and in-person events to build a loyal following.
  

👉 Listen to the full episode with Trevor here.

TikTok’s ban deadline is fast approaching. 

The app is set to go dark on June 19th, but it looks like the Trump administration is planning to extend the deadline for the third time so there is more time for negotiations.

🤔 Still trying to figure out how to use AI agents? Triple Whale’s Ultimate AI Agents Playbook for Ecommerce Brands breaks it down for you with real use cases and real results. Get your free copy here. *

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Have you heard our latest podcasts?

• 🥘 AKNF 514: How Hestan Built a 40% Repeat Purchase Rate

• 😃Ad-venturous 5: Are Millennials Cooler Than Everyone Else? 
• 🧑‍💻 TWBERP 36: Retention Programs for Different Cohort Profiles
• 💦 How CharCharms Scaled Hydration Accessories to Nationwide
• ⚡ AKNF 512: Q4 Playbook: Meta, Mother’s Day and Creative Strat
• ✏️ Ad-venturous 4: For Those Who Can't Write Copy Good

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DTC Newsletter is written by Rebecca Knight and Frances Du. Edited by Eric Dyck.

Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content.