Subscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signup
Welcome to the episode: we’ve got Jordan Gordon back on the mic — the guy leading email, retention and CRO at Pilot House, with 25 years in ecommerce under his belt.
Role‑Based Hook (for DTC growth/marketing audience):
For DTC founders & growth marketers scaling from $5M–100M in revenue, this is your CRO check‑list for Q4.
Here’s what we dig into:
- Why your headline conversion rate is a shaky metric — and why “direct conversion” gives you better signal.
- The one page type (your top product page) you can fix in time for Black Friday to move the needle.
- How to push “bundling and recommendations” tools to unlock +8–30% lift in AOV with zero extra ad spend.
- The eight choke‑points across homepage → category → PDP → cart/checkout you must optimize right now.
- Real copy & button tips: How a tiny phrase (“Feel organic again”) can flip the homepage from meh to go‑time.
Who this is for: DTC brand leads, ecommerce CRO/optimization folks, retention & growth marketers who already run advertising and now need to tighten the funnel.
What to steal:
- Run quick benchmark: Are you hitting 5‑7% Add‑to‑Cart, ~2% conversion, ~1.25% direct conversion in Shopify?
- Pick your top 3‑5 PDPs and make them ultra‑fast (under 3s load) using a tool/tech stack like Niche.
- Install a bundling/recommendation engine (like Rebuy) across the site and measure +8% lift in AOV by pushing “people like you bought this + add it” flows.
Timestamps
00:00 Highest Leverage CRO Insights for Q4
02:10 Benchmarking Add-to-Cart and Conversion Rates
04:45 Why Direct Conversion Is a Better Signal
07:00 Speeding Up PDPs with Niche for Instant Wins
10:05 Boosting AOV with Rebuy Bundling
13:00 The 8 Critical Website Choke Points
15:45 Optimizing Copy Around Key Conversion Areas
18:20 Homepage Strategy for High-Volume Traffic
21:40 What Big Brands Get Right on Their Homepages
24:30 Final Q4 CRO Checklist and Fast Wins
Hashtags
#dtcpodcast #q4ecommerce #cro #conversionrateoptimization #ecommercetips #shopifygrowth #blackfridayprep #aov #d2cbrands #onlinescaling
Subscribe to DTC Newsletter - https://dtcnews.link/signup
Advertise on DTC - https://dtcnews.link/advertise
Work with Pilothouse - https://www.pilothouse.co/?utm_source=AKNF559
Follow us on Instagram & Twitter - @dtcnewsletter
Watch this interview on YouTube - https://dtcnews.link/video
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.png)
.svg){kind=icon}
.svg)
.svg)
.png)
