Halfway Through Q3… ⏳

Absolutely WILD to think we are 1.5 months away from the start of Q4… what I call the DTC Playoffs. Lots has happened since my last newsletter send… pretty much the entire Olympics flashed by.

No time to waste, let’s get into the thick of it!

Quick Updates:

• Shopify ($SHOP) SMASHED Q2 Earnings: The stock skyrocketed 25% on August 7 (the day it reported earnings) & added $21B+ in market cap. Here's the recap:

  • EPS Beat by 30%

  • Revenue Beat (+21% YoY)

  • GMV Beat (+22% YoY)

  • STRONG Q3 Guidance on Rev & FCF

  • FY '24 revenue expected to grow ~20-25%

  • Shopify Payments (+30% YoY) = 61% of $SHOP GMV

  • Subscriptions MRR +25% YoY

  • Top line, bottom line AND FCF ALL growing majorly

  • Wildly impressive, especially considering the unfavorable consumer market we're in. With Shopify Payments revenue representing 61% of all GMV and consumer spend levels directly impacting this, imagine what $SHOP GMV growth will be when the market shifts & consumer spend growth resumes.

• TikTok Ads (& Pinterest) <> Amazon Partnership Announced: TikTok (and Pinterest) users can now link their Amazon accounts to their social media app and purchase Amazon products from ads directly within TikTok without ever leaving the app. Sounds GREAT in theory… but mass adoption from users will be needed for it to truly be game-changing.

  • TikTok & Pinterest partnership w/ Amazon is virtually the same as its Meta partnership announcement a few months ago. The most critical factor for success is mass adoption of Amazon users to link their accounts with their social accounts on Meta, Pinterest, and TikTok. Without majority adoption, it will likely have little impact on being able to confidently advertise on social platforms directing traffic to Amazon listings.

  • If I’m Amazon, I'd strongly consider giving $10 gift cards to users who link their account to each social platform.

Recent Press Features:

• Fast Company: The Evolution of Affiliate and Influencer Marketing

• MarTech 360: Interview with Jonathan Snow, Co-Founder & CIO at Avenue Z

1. How to Increase Your Odds of Going Viral on TikTok

Less than 1% of TikTok posts go viral. Little is known about WHY posts go viral. Rumor is 70%+ engagement rate on the first 500 views triggers it.

4 ways to increase odds of going viral:

#1 - Intriguing Hook

This is everything. Nothing else matters if your content doesn't make ppl stop scrolling. We include a few diff hooks in our content briefs for creators and let them choose what resonates best. This video breakdown is on point.

#2 - Trending Styles

Review the top-performing organic creatives on TikTok WEEKLY. Trends on TikTok change rapidly. Use research tools to track trending topics. Whether it's the format or the topic of the video, identify what's trending and incorporate it into your content.

The BEST place to find this, is on TikTok itself, with its Trend tool.

#3 - Content Gaps

Use TikTok's "Creator Search Insights" Tool on mobile to identify the content that people are most searching for with the least amount of results.

Start producing content that addresses these topics and your content will start getting a ton more organic reach.

#4 - Trending Music, Hashtags & Key Words

TikTok's Trend Discovery tool is criminally underutilized. Access it HERE.

Skim what hashtags, music, and keywords are trending weekly. Try to incorporate them into your weekly content. Stay relevant & in the convo.

2. TikTok Shop: GMV MAX (Everything You Need to Know)

TikTok Shop changes weekly. The BIGGEST change is now upon us: PAID is mandatory to succeed.

TikTok Shop created FOMO w/ viral organic, then viral affiliate, then viral live.

Now? pay for amplification or you’re a 0.

"GMV Max" is the new Advantage+ Shopping Campaign on Meta and Performance Max Campaign on Google. ASC/PMAX.

I put together Everything You Need to Know about TikTok Shop’s GMV Max Campaigns. If you’re active on TikTok Shops, this is a must read.

3. We’ve Been testing Reddit & Pinterest Ads for DTC brands the past few months… EARLY FINDINGS 🔍

Been testing Pinterest & Reddit ads for past few months. Read below for the results👇

Once a brand hits a certain level of scale on the main ad platforms: Meta, Google, TikTok... you start getting pigeon-holed into a pocket of the platform's audience.

It's critical to move further up the funnel to get new ppl to your website... so we've been testing Pinterest & Reddit. Snapchat is next.

Main findings:

• Neither Pinterest nor Reddit performs well as a last-click, direct response platform (as expected)

• Reddit is yielding:

  • 95%+ of new site visits: highest of any platform

  • lowest cost (along w/ YouTube) per new site visit

  • worst conversion rate of any platform

  • better performance on 1DC1DV window than TikTok, YouTube, and Pinterest

• Pinterest is yielding:

  • better performance than Reddit (click-only CAC)

  • highest cost per new site visit of all platforms

  • better conversion rate than TikTok & YT traffic

  • similar performance to YT ads on 1DC1DV window

💥 Despite poor perceived performance (click-only CAC) from both Reddit & Pinterest, blended CAC actually improved with these experimental budgets added in. *this is obviously association, not causation.

Most interesting takeaway: 

Reddit performed better than every social channel other than Meta on 1DC1DV attribution window, brought the highest proportion of new site visitors by far of any platform, and yielded the 2nd lowest cost of new site visitors of any platform.

Both Reddit & Pinterest continue to remain in our media mix for scaled up brands. Will share more as more data rolls in.

If you’re interested in activating either channel for your brand, reach out to us HERE.

TikTok Shop Ads: GMV Max vs. Shopping Ads (Which is right for your brand?)

The answer: It depends.

You can't run both simultaneously for a product. You must choose either/or. Brands are choosing wrong routinely. I break down the 11 main differences between each.

What I’m Listening to 🎧

Beats of the Week: RÜFÜS DU SOL (DJ set) in The Lab LDN | Mixmag

Rufus du Sol is known for their unique melodic style and might be best known as an electronic band, not DJs. Their live concerts are incredible. I was fortunate to experience one here in Miami.

But they can pull a killer set together on the DJ front. If you haven’t listened to them yet, drop what you’re doing and give them a listen. You’ve probably heard their songs & just didn’t know it was them.

I welcome all feedback. Good, bad, everything in between.

Hit reply, and let’s hear it! 👂

📧 Share your thoughts or what you want me to cover next!