Ecommerce Unboxed

In this episode, I answer a popular question among businesses transitioning to ecommerce:  where should you sell your products online? The answer isn't straightforward and depends on the type of products you sell as well as your branding and growth strategy. In the first part, I discuss the key difference between web stores and marketplaces. I then review the 3 biggest UK marketplaces and finally share a list of some of the other best marketplaces to sell on in the UK.  

Is it me or there isn't a day that passes by without us hearing about TikTok?! On top of being the most downloaded app in the world, TikTok offers two incredibly exciting promises to marketers and brands: an authentic way to connect with customers and great organic reach. In this episode, I sit down with Anthony McGuire, ex Facebook Manager who is now exclusively focusing on Tik Tok marketing, to discuss  why he is really excited and what the platform means for ecommerce brands.  

The biggest mistake that you can make as an entrepreneur is to no not properly test your business idea or validate that there is a need for it before launching. In the words of successful entrepreneur and marketer Pat Flynn, "a lack of proper validation kills more businesses than anything else".  So before investing time, energy, and capital in your next big idea you need a structure to test it. In this episode, I share a simple framework that you can apply to your next business idea to make sure you are working on something people actually want.

Amazon has become the default search engine for products online with as much as 63% of customers starting their online purchase there. What does it mean for you if you sell or want to sell products on Amazon?In this episode, I break down how you can figure out exactly what people are searching for on Amazon and how you can optimize your product pages to rank your products on those keywords. I also look at some of the key factors influencing Amazon's algorithm (A9) and offer some insights on what strategy you should adopt. 

The excitement surrounding the e-commerce space is palpable, and for good reason! Similar to buying Bitcoin in late 2013, or Amazon stock in the mid-noughties, the e-commerce opportunity for budding entrepreneurs and SME's has the potential to change livelihoods. In this episode I look at the evolution of eCommerce in the context of recent retail history, the impact of COVID-19 on the industry, and the categories of products that are growing faster online. 

About this episode:This is Part 2 of the interview I recorded with Jason Stokes who funded Eastside Co, one of Europe's top Shopify agencies. In this second part we opened the conversation to wider questions around the ever changing e-commerce's landscape and the impact it has on Shopify businesses. We discuss the most recent evolutions in e-commerce such as social commerce, 5G and Augmented Reality (AR). Jason also shares his insights from the recent Shopify Unite Conference he attended in Canada and gives me his perspective on some of the biggest annoucements Shopify made about Shopify fulfillment, Shopify Point of Sales payment device and Shopify Plus.Connect with Jason:Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-paul-stokesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonstokes__Website: https://eastsideco.comWere mentioned in the episode:Drunk shopping article: https://thehustle.co/drunk-shopping-surveyDFS: https://www.dfs.co.ukMade: https://www.made.comLazy oaf AR https://eastsideco.com/blog/bringing-virtual-realityShopify Unite: https://unite.shopify.comAcknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About this episode: With more than 800,000 merchants using its services, and a 50% year over year jump in sales to $320.5 million in Q1 2019, Shopify is one of the few companies redefining the ecommerce landscape by making it easy for businesses to get started selling their products and services online.In this episode I sit down with Jason Stokes who is the CEO of Eastside Co, one of UK’s top Shopify agencies boasting clients from the likes of Nike and Unilever. Jason basically takes me through a Shopify Masterclass, covering every topic a Shopify business should know about from driving traffic from a content strategy and SEO best, to optimising conversion and repeat purchase.Connect with Jason:Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-paul-stokesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonstokes__Website: https://eastsideco.comWere mentioned in the episode:Ren Skincare: https://www.renskincare.comRegal Gentleman: https://regalgentleman.comMoz: https://moz.comSEM rush: https://www.semrush.comHotjar: https://www.hotjar.comYotpo: https://www.yotpo.comHuel:https://huel.comAcknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About this episode: There are so many places where you can sell online that it is easy to get caught up in trying to sell everywhere without understanding the specificities of each channel; or overlook high-potential channels and miss out on sales opportunities. In this episode I reconnect with my former Amazon colleague Francis Odejinmi who is now a senior consultant at Channel Advisor and together we discuss the best way to approach selling online through multiple channels. Our chat spanned from successfully selling on Amazon to the balance between marketplaces and D2C as well as fast growth of new channels with social commerce and questions around the value of brands for millenials. Connect with Francis:Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/francis-odejinmi-b674465a/Acknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About this episode: Internet video traffic is predicted to account for 80% of all consumer Internet traffic in 2019, a number which shows that video has become the default way of ‘consuming’ content online. Video has revolutionise the way people discover, engage and trust brands online and any company which sells online should put it at the forefront of its marketing strategy. In this episode I sit down with my great friend Viren Samani who is also the founder of One Globe Studio, a boutique video agency which helps brands leverage the power of visual content on Facebook and YouTube. Viren shared his insight on how brands can use video to create valuable and meaningful content that will connect with their customers (rather than the annoying ads that we all skip) as well as a brilliant framework to plan, organise and create video content.Were mentioned in the episode:Horace: https://horace.coMr Porter: https://www.mrporter.comGuinness "Sapeurs" ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1fbUbDoGnAPictet: https://perspectives.pictet.comEpisode #3 about Facebook: https://buff.ly/2ZIUAwwEpisode #1 about Snag Tights: https://buff.ly/2Y8PPflConnect with Viren:Web: https://www.oneglobestudio.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/oneglobestudioLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/one-globe-studioYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/oneglobestudioAcknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About this episode: I get lots of questions about customer data, how to segment this data and more generally how to measure ecommerce success.In this episode I sit down with Will Young who is an expert on all three. Will is the CEO of Rais, an AI driven customer data management platform and has more than 10 years experience in big data. In this episode he breaks down the fundamental metrics that any ecommerce business should know about, take me through the way you can tarck those metrics and optimise them as well as explaining the key goals behind customer segmentation. Connect with Will:Rais: https://www.rais.io Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-young-raisAcknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About this episode:For this episode I sit down with Michelle Barnum Smith, 'the Queen of chatbots for Amazon sellers, who has 18 years experience in digital marketing and has been featured in Forbes and Business Insider.Chatbot marketing allows brands to communicate and promote products to customers directly on messaging apps such as Facebook Messenger, Instagram or WhatsApp. Chatbots remove tons of friction for brands (easy opt-in, higher open rates,...) but also have the potential to create a more engaging and more personal experience for customers (vs. email marketing for instance). In this episode Michelle gives us a great summary of the fundamentals of chatbot marketing for Amazon sellers, answering questions such as:- what is a chatbot? - how to create a chabot subscriber list?- how to engage your subscribers and drive sales?- how to use chatbots to create traffic and grow your sales on Amazon specifically?Were mentioned in the episode:ManyChat: https://manychat.comChatfuel: https://chatfuel.comFacebook integration with Instagram and WhatsApp: https://buff.ly/2S5kQBcConnect with Michelle:Link to Michelle's courses: https://buff.ly/2WpDOAF Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellebarnumsmith Acknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About the episode:For this episode I sit down with Anthony McGuire, founder of technology venture studio Frontier X and former Global Partnerships Manager @ Facebook.  Anthony has worked for Facebook for several years in New York and London, helping companies like Procter & Gamble, Heineken and Ford use the platform in the best way. His knowledge and passion makes Anthony an incredible guest.  Anthony shares his advice and some super practical tips on how consumer brands can harness the power of Facebook's platforms (Facebook, Instagram) to learn about their customers as well as promote their products in a cost effective way.Connect with Anthony:Instagram: www.instagram.com/anthonymcgnz Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/anthonymcguire Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyMcG2 Check out his new book: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1793086753Acknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About this episode:In this episode I sit down with Kara Rosen who is the founder and CEO of Plenish. Plenish is a plant-based drinks brand she started in 2012 and turned into a multi-million turnover business which sells plant-based milks, cold pressed juices and shots and dairy free milk shakes. Kara's story is both incredibly inspiring and full of learnings. In this episode she explains  how she went from pressing juices for her friends at maternity yoga to selling those juices online and getting her first customers through a clever growth hack. She then breaks down how she used e-commerce to learn about her customers and convinced investors and UK’s biggest supermarkets to help her turn Plenish into one of London's current most exciting Food & Beverages startups.More about Plenish:Website: www.plenishdrinks.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/plenishdrinksTwitter: https://twitter.com/PlenishDrinksAcknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq

About the episode:For this first episode I sit down with Brie Read, a seasoned digital marketer and successful e-commerce entrepreneur. Former data analyst and CEO of Diet Chef, Brie ran a Facebook agency for several years. In April 2018, she co-founded Snag the “every-size and every-shape” tights company, a business which rose to £2.3M in online sales after only a year of trading thanks to a singular approach to e-commerce marketing.Brie breaks down for us the recipe behind Snag Tights’ early success, their approach to e-commerce, social media marketing and creating a brand co-owned by customers as well as why they don't do any e-mail marketing and why they do NOT sell on Amazon!More about Snag:Website: snagtights.comInstagram: www.instagram.com/snagtightsFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/snagtightsTwitter: https://twitter.com/SnagTightsBrie's article about e-mail marketing: https://buff.ly/2HzbnKXAcknowledgements: Editing by Gonçalo AbrantesMusic “Vera Cruz” by Relly and produced by SnakehipsArtwork by Audrey Hacq