eComFuel Podcast

What is the future of Amazon? That's what we're diving into today with Bill D'Alessandro of ElementsBrands.com. Bill is a repeat guest on the show and someone who has very different views on the current—and future—state of Amazon. Listen in as we debate whether Amazon is dying like some believe, whether brands should be leaving the platform for greener pastures, and Amazon's biggest weakness. Whether you sell on Amazon or not, the behemoth is hard to ignore if you're in eCommerce, so this is an episode you won't want to miss! You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3F8izgN Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

It's been a tough few years for many eCommerce brands, and in this episode, we're chatting with Brenden Marquardt, owner of LoriBeds.com, a brand of really beautiful murphy beds that are functional, affordable, and made in the U.S. Brenden has built an amazing business that has also faced a pretty challenging period, over the last six months in particular, and we're diving into some of the challenges they've faced, as well as what they've done to weather the storm. Listen in as Brenden shares how the brand came to be, how raising prices led to a rebrand, and the importance of finding the right value proposition. We also get into the supply chain challenges that Brenden has faced, what he's done to overcome them, and how a website redesign turned out to be a game-changer. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3TgFBWT Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

We all know that great customer service is a cornerstone of any successful eCommerce business, but finding a truly great customer service hire is not always easy. Aaron Powell from BunchBikes.com joins me today to share how he was able to find and hire someone who is above and beyond your average run-of-the-mill team member and how that hire has revealed the true definition of what it means to be an "A-Player." Listen in as Aaron discloses how he found his unicorn customer service hire, as well as how this hire has been a game-changer and pushed the business forward in unexpectedly positive ways. We also dive into some bike geekery and discuss the bike market, infrastructure building, and how Aaron has found a niche within a niche that has allowed him to build a really amazing business. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3Mn6fuA Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

What does it take to build a brand in this day and age, and how has the branding experience changed from even a decade ago? David Segal is not only a tea veteran, having founded David's Tea and now Owner and Co-Founder of FirebellyTea.com, but he also has a ton of branding experience that spans years. He joins the show today to talk all things branding and so much more. Listen in as we dive into David's retail experience, what it's like starting a brand today versus years ago, and how he is weaving really unique branding elements into his new website. We also discuss the investment that went into the current brand and find out what Firebelly Tea is looking for in their next eCommerce Marketing Manager. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3rrxQkt Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

In this episode, we're deep diving into all things leadership with Jesse Pujji, whose name you might be familiar with as a second-time guest on the show. He's an entrepreneur and investor who is also the Founder of Gateway X, Executive Chairman of Ampush and GrowthAssistant, and more recently, CEO and Founder of Kahani, a software that transforms eCommerce stores from boring websites into engaging mobile experiences. Listen in as we talk about a bunch of different stuff, including what it means to be a leader, what it's like working with an Executive Coach, and how Jesse balances family and kids with a very ambitious work schedule. We're also discussing how the online shopping experience today is, in a lot of ways, identical to a decade ago, and whether or not people are really buying off of social platforms. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3dYU8Hf Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

By far, the thing that has made the biggest impact in terms of financial results in my own business—while doing the least amount of work—has been pricing, and it's something that I've always wished I had done so much sooner. Joining me on the show today is Drew Marconi, co-founder of Intelligems.io, which helps eCommerce brands scientifically test their pricing to find the right one for their brand, and we're geeking out together on all things pricing. Take a listen as we discuss the current pricing landscape and find out what Drew learned during their recent Shopify pricing experiments. We also discuss whether it's better to include shipping in your pricing, whether you should let your customer base know if you're raising your prices before you pull the lever, and what to expect in the near future when it comes to pricing trends. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3xpei3H Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

What do you get when you take a discontinued National Geographic catalogue and 12 years of experience in the print catalogue sector? If your name is Allan Shiffrin, you may just get an 8-figure business. If you're an eCommerce brand, you're definitely going to want to listen to this episode to find out how you can make direct mail a major source of sales for your brand. Listen in as we geek out about catalogs, direct mail, and how to be able to make what is equivalent to a Facebook lookalike audience for direct mail contacts. Allan also shares some of the tools and co-ops that you can use to get started, how to lay out a great catalog, and the magic number of products to include in a direct mail catalog. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3BaxlQn Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

Search for "side hustle ideas" in Google and you'll get a million and one results. In fact, side hustles have trended upward over the last couple years as people worked them to supplement their income during the pandemic—and many even used their side hustle as an exit path during the "Great Resignation." Spencer Jan is the co-founder of SoloStove.com, and he is one of the side hustle success stories, having bootstrapped his way to a $2-billion valuation in only 8 years while working a full-time job for much of that time. Listen in as he shares Solo Stove's journey from being a side hustle to a highly profitable and valuable company. You'll hear why he and his co-founder and brother, Jeff, obsessed over margins from the very beginning, as well as the painful reality they faced when they first went to sell. We also discuss the importance of profitable margins, how to stay lean as a company, and why it's important to get out of the default mode of working more and instead spend more time on what matters most. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3wEIh7C Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

Do you understand why your customers buy? This week, we're running a replay of one of the more interesting episodes from the last year with Charles Burdett of PipDecks.com, which is a suite of card decks that helps people do anything from brainstorming creative workshop ideas and improving their storytelling to designing more innovative products. What makes PipDecks.com particularly interesting is how Charles was able to take a product that has a very low cost of goods and sell it at incredibly high prices. You'll learn how his positioning and his branding have been the secret to selling the decks based on their value rather than on their physical worth. He also shares the one question we should all be asking our customers to understand why they buy, as well as how to overcome the mindset block that most entrepreneurs will grapple with at some point. You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3QVnnce Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.

Email has to be one of the biggest pain points that entrepreneurs face, and it's also something that is an inevitability in today's world if you're in eCommerce. I'm happy to say that I finally feel like I've gotten to a good place when it comes to my inbox—I no longer feel a sense of chaos when I open my email, and what used to take me over 2 hours now takes me half the time it used to. In this last solo episode of the summer, I'm discussing how I managed to wrangle my email and cleared out most of the junk, made the important stuff easy to spot, and overall made it possible for me to move through my inbox quickly and efficiently. I'll also be sharing the game-changer that helped me control the chaos much more easily and why I let go of a lot of hangups I had when it came to email (that you may also have and not even be aware of!). You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3ADmpf4 Interested in our Private Community for 7-Figure Store Owners? Learn more here. Want to hear about new episodes and eCommerce news round-ups? Subscribe via email.