Emotional support water bottle? Nope, emotional support Chrome tabs. 🤣
If you’re new to DTC, welcome! You’re in good company with fellow newcomers from Diskin Cider, HYPEBEAST, Rubi and Lib, and Book Depot. 📚
In this newsletter, you’ll find: 👇
📦 The crime scene, the recovery, and the power of the internet
📦 The top five UGC strategies and pro tips
📦 Are your landing pages aligned with your search volume?
📦 Leverage first-party data to fuel email personalization
📦 Obvi on how not to grow an 8-figure business (C-Suite panel)
Read till the end for the top insights of this newsletter!
👉 If a pal forwarded this to you, subscribe, so you never miss out.
This past weekend, one of Pilothouse’s co-founders, Kyle Hitchcox, had his newly kitted-out van stolen 😞 A six-month-long project seemingly down the drain.
You’re probably wondering, ‘Why is DTC telling me about a stolen van?’ But this isn’t just the story of theft; it’s a story showcasing the power of the internet, community, social media, and good ol’ media buying.
🚨 Sunday, April 30th: The day of the disappearance.
Shortly after noticing the van was missing, Pilothouse and local communities came together to conjure up organic posts on Reddit and Facebook targeting groups in Victoria, BC.
Kyle put on his thinking hat and said, “Let’s catch these losers”’ And thus, the ‘Find Kyle’s Van’ Meta campaign was born (yes, this is an actual campaign with real spend behind it). 🛻
Across the various social media efforts, both paid and organic, the leads started to roll in from all over Vancouver Island.
🐝 Monday, May 1st: The sting.
A local Redditor commented on one of the threads with a sighting. Not across the Island, not in a different part of town, but a mere five blocks from Kyle’s house. Kyle and Archie (his dog) went for a stroll, and sure enough, the lead paid off.
The van looked a little different with a fresh coat of poorly applied white paint, but albeit it was the van.
So why did we tell you this story? Because yes, the internet and technology can be scary, overwhelming, and a whole slew of other negative descriptors, but at the end of the day, it’s using our marketing skills, reach, and communities for reasons like this that make it feel so dang good.
💰 Performance marketing: The results
With $300 bucks spent driving six solid leads and about 60k impressions in a day, Kyle’s Cost Per Lead was $50 with a conversion rate of 16%.
The police have since pulled Kyle over, and the officer said it was because of the ad he saw on Facebook. 🧠
🔥 UGC 🔥
It is one of the hottest buzzwords in marketing right now.
But are using your UGC the right way?
This guide on UGC was created by our friends over at minisocial, to provide you with strategies that you can use to ensure you get the best results.
Some of the top brands are already proving what's possible:
Unlocking UGC has been shown to do the following things to a brand:
Just take a look at this FREE guide to see it all broken down. 👀
Each of these top five strategies comes with examples, data (you know we love data), and even Pro Tips you can use immediately.
You know UGC needs to be in your marketing strategy, this guide will show you how.
Are you in need of an alignment? No, we’re not talking about a trip to the chiropractor. We’re talking customer journey.
If you’re trying to take your Google strategy to the next level, this one’s for you!
The Pilothouse Google team recently set out to optimize high-volume searches for Manly Bands. 🥇
One of the highest searches, to no surprise, was gold rings. The team had been optimizing for those keywords in their campaigns, but the collections page shoppers were being sent to featured both ‘rose gold’ and ‘white gold’ rings front and center.
If you’re searching for something specific, it’s easy enough to filter for what you want; however, minimizing the barriers to entry is a fabulous way to go the extra mile. 💅
When putting themselves in the mind of the searchers, the team made the connection that most people searching for ‘gold rings’ were likely looking for yellow gold. Could flooding the collections page with different variants possibly harm conversion rates and inflate bounce rates?
Take a look for yourself. 👀 The team shifted the images on the gold collections page to only yellow gold and made subsequent pages for both white and rose gold.
By putting themselves in the shoes of the shopper, the Pilothouse Google team was able to unlock an additional $40k in week-over-week revenue.
Take some time to ensure that your landing pages are aligned with search terms to make it as easy as possible for your shoppers to land on their dream product! 🎯
Email marketing still reports the highest ROIs for DTC marketers—even with the economy taking a nosedive. 🛬 ⤵️
This is especially true when you adopt a tool (ahem...like Bloomreach) that leverages first-party data to fuel personalization.
Bloomreach is the tool you've been missing to turbocharge your DTC growth game.
Get ready to:
👉 Show your customers they’re the real VIPs. Check out Bloomreach today!
🎧 On today’s episode of the DTC pod, we're excited to bring you a riveting live fireside chat from our recent C-Suite Mastermind event in Las Vegas.
Join us as we welcome Obvi’s Ronak Shah and Ashvin Melwani back on the pod, the unstoppable team behind the world's largest collagen community, boasting an impressive $44M in revenue in just 42 months. 🤯
With a thriving Facebook group of 65,000 members and an innovative approach to raising capital (a 2.2M angel round secured via Twitter), these trailblazers dominate the social space.
Listen in as they share insights on building community, navigating influencer and omni-channel marketing strategies, and the importance of segmentation when it comes to a positive user experience!
The takeaways 👇
🔑 Diversifying dependence
Influencer marketing has skyrocketed in popularity, and it's no wonder why businesses like Obvi have embraced it. But as Ashvin and Ronak discovered, there's a bit of a cautionary tale. They initially put their eggs in the basket of a mega-influencer with a hefty social media following, and while their sales soared, they soon realized their brand was playing second fiddle. When the influencer waved goodbye, so did their customers. 👋
To dodge the overdependence trap, Ashvin and Ronak discuss how it's key to nurture lasting relationships with influencers. Sure, chasing after the industry's shining stars is tempting, but joining forces with smaller, truly passionate influencers who vibe with your brand can bring home the bacon in the long run. 💸
With this approach, you'll team up with influencers who really click with your vision, ensuring your brand's growth doesn't rely on just one internet celebrity's coattails.
📈 Segmentation success
Obvi's segmentation strategy isn't just about sending relevant campaigns – it's also about creating a positive user experience.
For example, imagine receiving an email about a product you have no interest in – frustrating, right? That's why the team at Obvi analyzes customer data to tailor messaging for each individual's needs and interests. The result is a user experience that feels personalized, thoughtful, and unique to each customer's interests.
Beyond just making customers feel heard and valued, Ronak and Ashvin talk about how segmentation maximizes efficiency and minimizes waste. Instead of sending the same message to everyone on their email list, Obvi hones in on each customer's specific product interests, ensuring they're not sending irrelevant messages to disinterested customers.
By doing so, they can make the most of their resources, boost the chances of conversion, and ultimately increase customer retention.
👉 Listen to the full fireside chat with Ronak Shah and Ashvin Melwani here!
🤯 Successful eCommerce brands drive at least 50% of their sales from returning customers. Find out how you can at Retain Forward, Yotpo’s biggest product innovation event - May 10th. *
🚀 Expanding your DTC to Europe? Start with the ultimate European eCommerce cheat sheet. From local payment - and delivery preferences to legal requirements. Compete like a local everywhere! *
📱 Samsung has temporarily banned generative AI tools on company-owned devices. The ban follows a recent data leak and difficulties deleting sensitive information from external servers.
♾️ Meta unveils the Partnership Ads for Instagram. This program allows brands to scale collaborations with creators by boosting more organic content.
🔎 Google adds more ways to build awareness within YouTube Shorts. Shorts have been expanded into Video Reach campaigns and the same tech that powers YouTube Select will be integrated into Shorts.
*Sponsored
👮 Think Like a Media Buyer:
We found Kyle’s van with the power of the internet! Using real ad spend, a meta campaign, and promising leads, Kyle reunited with his passion project… only to be stopped by police once again.
🦴 In Need of Alignment?
Take your Google strategy to the next level by optimizing keywords in your campaigns. By putting yourself in your audience's shoes, Pilothouse found that it’s possible to generate an extra $40K in week-over-week revenue!
💰 42 Months = $44M in Revenue!
The DTC Podcast features a fireside chat from the latest C-Suite Mastermind. Ronak Shah and Ashvin Melwani join us again to provide insight into how they built their collagen empire.
🍫 Jess Cervallon from Feastables: What CPG Can Learn from SaaS about CX.
🍸 Ben Soffer - Spritz Society: Influencer Strategies for Alcohol Brands and Linear Commerce.
🕯️ 9-Year-Old Lily Harper from Lily Lou's Aromas homeschools us all.
🌲 TAXA Outdoor, Garrett Finney: Digital meets dealership, NASA Architect goes out of home for real.
🐶 Pet Health Comes Home with MySimplePetLab's Jen Hagness.
💡 Listen to the Biggest Marketing News Stories Today.
Don’t forget to rate the DTC Podcast on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)
DTC Newsletter is written by Rebecca Knight, Kate Gullett, and Michael Venditti. Edited by Claire Beveridge and Eric Dyck.
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DTC is fueled by Pilothouse company registered in Victoria, BC, Canada.