DTC887: Train the Google Ads Algo, Browser Abandon Email, and Micro Dramas

Good morning, 

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

⚡ Train the Google Ads Algo
The importance of using quality data.

🧠 The ‘Funnel Flusher’ Technique
How to re-engage customers that haven’t converted. 

🚨 Daily Tariff Update
Canada lifts some tariffs on U.S. goods.

🚀 A New Ad Opportunity
‍These short-form videos are taking off. 

You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Better Tan, Virtuo, and Hashtag Paid. 👋

🚀 108% Revenue Growth. 53% More Profit. One Year on Amazon.

Since 2022, Pilothouse has been building the foundation with this fitness brand. By Year 3, the question wasn’t whether Amazon worked, it was how far we could push growth and profitability. The result?

👉 In just 12 months, they more than doubled revenue ($10.4M → $21.6M) and boosted gross profit by 53%.

How we did it: 👇

✅ Launched new products, bundled SKUs, simplified variations
✅ Tripled deal volume with monthly promos across SKUs
✅ Refocused budget, launched new campaigns, and owned the top 5 generic keywords
✅ Ran Amazon DSP Streaming TV to capture competitor traffic
✅ Upgraded listings, streamlined FBA prep, and prevented stockouts

📦 Q4 will be here before you know it. If you aren’t fully prepared or know you could be doing more, now is the time to get your strategy dialed.

💰 Training the Google Ads Algorithm with Quality Conversion Data

Google Ads works like any AI model: the quality of your inputs dictates the quality of your outputs.

If your conversion tracking is inaccurate or tied to low-value actions, you’re effectively training Google to optimize for the wrong goals.

Pilothouse shares that’s why high-quality conversion tracking is the foundation of any successful Google Ads account.

If you’re still relying solely on GA4 or client-side tracking, you may be sending incomplete signals.

Tools like Elevar allow you to pass cleaner, more accurate, and privacy-compliant server-side data back to Google, ensuring the algorithm is trained on the right metrics.

Here's a real-life example from Pilothouse:

A client came to them with conversion tracking set up in GA4, focused on net-new customer growth.

GA4 reported that nearly 89% of purchases were from new customers but after setting up server-side tracking with Elevar, the truth came out: only 40% of purchases were actually new customers.

What this meant: Google was being trained to chase repeat buyers, not new customers.

The solution? 

Pilothouse set “Elevar – New Customer Purchase” as the primary conversion action in Google Ads. 

This gave the algorithm the right goalposts, and as the account moved out of the learning phase, performance began optimizing toward true net-new growth.

The lesson: avoid micromanaging during the learning period.

One of the biggest mistakes Pilothouse saw in client accounts is over-managing campaigns in the learning phase.

Constant tweaks halted the algorithm’s progress.

Instead do this:

• Avoid daily bid or budget changes
• Give Google time to learn from your data
• Prioritize consistency over constant adjustments

Smart Bidding only works as well as the data it’s fed. Start with quality conversion actions, then scale to quantity.

👉 A good benchmark: Focus on generating at least 30 meaningful conversions per month per campaign to get the algorithm out of the learning phase.

The takeaway?

When it comes to Google Ads, quality conversion tracking isn’t optional, it’s critical.

Shifting from incomplete signals to clean, server-side data can completely transform performance.

Train the algorithm with the right data, and it will find you the right customers.

✅ Want to make sure your Google Ads are optimizing toward the right goals?

Talk to Pilothouse about setting up smarter conversion tracking that drives true net-new customer growth.

🎁 Are Your BFCM Offers The Right Ones? Here’s How To Know For Sure

🤔 Want to know which offers will actually work during BFCM? 

🔮 Find out ahead of time.

Intelligems brings data-backed clarity to your most important decisions, including your BFCM offers. 

👏 Instead of testing headlines, layouts, and button colors, test across the bigger business levers like pricing, shipping, and offers that are usually left to gut feel.

💬 "I’ve uncovered an extra 15% in profit per visit by testing my offers before Black Friday with Intelligems. I can’t imagine going into BFCM blind ever again."

— Nate Lagos, VP of Marketing at Original Grain

Don’t guess this holiday season.

Decide with confidence. 🎯

📅  Book Time With an Expert

📦 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. 

August 25, 2025 update:

• 50% Tariff on Indian Exports Starts Today
  
  • The U.S. doubles tariffs on Indian goods by imposing an additional 25% duty, bringing the total to 50%.
    
  • This is in response to India's continued import of Russian oil. 
    

• Canada Lifts Some Retaliatory Tariffs on U.S. Goods
  
  • Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney will remove 25% retaliatory tariffs on approximately $21 billion worth of U.S.
    products such as orange juice, peanut butter, wine, appliances, and motorcycles starting September 1.
    
  • Key sectors like steel, aluminum, and automotive remain unaffected by this rollback.
    
  • Carney hopes the move will kick off trade talks with President Trump.

🎧 The Only Browse Abandon Email You’ll Ever Need 

In this episode of TWBERP, Jordan from Pilothouse discusses the critical importance of optimizing email retention strategies, particularly for ecommerce businesses looking to boost conversion rates and maintain customer engagement.

He emphasizes that building and executing a proper email retention flow can significantly impact a brand’s profitability, especially during crucial sales periods. 

He breaks down key strategies to improve browser abandonment emails and outlines how they can effectively drive revenue.

In this episode, we dive into:

The Power of Dynamic Content: Jordan highlights the importance of tailoring email content to each customer based on their interactions with your site.

"Make sure you're showing customers the products they actually interacted with. That’s where the real value lies."

Timing is Everything: Set the right wait times between email follow-ups to keep the customer’s intent fresh.

"The goal is to strike when the iron's hot, before they forget about you."

Drive Revenue: We discuss the ‘funnel flusher’ technique, making a final push after a certain period by offering a discount to re-engage customers who didn’t convert.

"A funnel flusher helps you capitalize on the remaining intent from that session. It’s about giving one last chance to convert."

Focusing on the Customer’s Journey: Lead with the products customers viewed and incorporate relevant recommendations, such as trending items or best sellers, to maintain engagement.

"Don’t just show random products. Lead with what the customer was already interested in."

The Importance of A/B Testing Subject Lines: Testing different subject lines is crucial, especially ones that convey direct value to the customer.
"A good subject line tells them, ‘Here’s what’s in it for you.’"

👉 Listen to the full episode with Jordan here.

Searches for short-form “micro dramas” are on the rise. 

Already hugely popular in Asia, platforms like ReelShort are betting the trend will catch on in the U.S.

Why is this happening? These 2-minute, bingeable storylines are designed for on-the-go audiences with short attention spans. They’re inexpensive to produce and highly scalable.

💡 For brands, this could potentially be a new advertising channel to tap into.

📝 A streamlined platform for your influencer contracts? Yes please! Create, send, revise and sign UGC agreements in minutes. Track dates, terms and expiry in a single dashboard. Get started for free. *

🔥 Calling all DTC brands: Got a growth story (or a hard-won lesson) worth sharing? Apply to be our next DTC podcast guest.

📥 Got a B2B Biz? 

Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 150k brand leaders and founders this year. Talk to our team to learn more.

Have you heard our latest podcasts?

• 🏆 Ad-venturous 16: Labor Day Creative Wins to Carry into Q4
• 💡 TWBERP 47: Retention Bootcamp: Master Your Welcome Flow!
• ✅ How Obvi Fixed Meta Pixel Poisoning & Recovered Performance 
• 🪄 AKNF 534: Google’s 90% “New Customer” Illusion
• ☠️ Ad-venturous 15: 6 Meta Ad Mistakes that Kill Scaling 
• 😎 TWBERP 46: The Only Browse Abandon Email You’ll Ever Need

Don’t forget to rate the DTC Podcast on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

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.