Braxton Manley first appeared on the podcast in 2021. As a college student, he had launched Braxley Bands, a maker of Apple Watch bands. Last year he returned with an update on that business after operational and sales challenges.He's back, having launched his latest company, Mystic, a direct-to-consumer maker of health-focused chewing gum. In this episode, he shares the origins of Mystic, marketing plans, early successes, and more.For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6sJyFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. https://www.practicalecommerce.com 

The reality of post-pandemic ecommerce has been tough for many direct-to-consumer merchants. Take Molson Hart. His company, Viahart, makes innovative educational toys and sells them on Amazon, Walmart, and other marketplaces.The last two years have been challenging for Viahart. What worked before and during Covid doesn't apply now, Hart says.Host Eric Bandholz shares those sentiments, as Beardbrand, his firm, has similar struggles.This is Hart's second appearance on the podcast. In this episode, he addresses surviving the downtimes, TikTok successes, and the importance of persistence and optimism.For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6sDJFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. https://www.practicalecommerce.com 

Guest Barry Hott, a Facebook ad consultant, recommends creating 'ugly ads' for better engagement. He discusses Facebook ad metrics, budgeting, testing, and the importance of standing out. The podcast also covers challenges in making ads profitable on meta platforms and crafting relatable and authentic ads.

Lukas Tanasiuk once paid a firm to redesign his Shopify site, a seller of electric scooters. The result was slow page loads and his efforts to improve them. What he found, he says, was a lot of false claims."I discovered corruption among folks who say they are page-speed optimizers," he says.Page-speed optimization became Tanasiuk's next opportunity. In 2023 he launched The Nice Agency, focusing on Shopify page loads.In this episode, he shares his journey from merchant to agency owner, slow Shopify sites, and more. He addresses:His firsthand experiences with slow page speeds.The root causes of slow Shopify sites.The downsides of adding third-party Shopify apps.His efforts to out a company making false page-speed claims.For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6ssXFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. https://www.practicalecommerce.com 

Corey Wilks is a clinical psychologist turned business coach. He helps entrepreneurs and creators improve their mindset and overcome self-imposed obstacles. He says a common obstacle is overthinking a problem. Others involve perfectionism, doubt, and even fear. In this episode, he addresses those mental hurdles and more. For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6smDFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. https://www.practicalecommerce.com

Natalie Mounter is a stay-at-home mom and entrepreneur. Her company, Totally Dazzled, sells craft supplies for weddings and creative projects. She says the business has prospered due to other stay-at-home moms — her employees and affiliates."Being a stay-at-home mom and hiring other stay-at-home moms has been key to our success," she stated.In this episode, she shared Totally Dazzled's origins, its affiliate marketing success, and the value of smart, hardworking moms.For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6shrFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. http://www.practicalecommerce.com 

Bill D'Alessandro is a 14-year ecommerce owner. Natural Dog Company, an omnichannel seller of canine health products, is his eighth brand. "My niche is acquisition entrepreneurship," he stated. 'll buy a small brand, grow it, improve it, and eventually sell it."Along the way, he's learned lessons such as focus, industry selection, and product pricing. He shares those experiences and more in this episode.For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6scyFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. http://www.practicalecommerce.com

Shahzad Chagani runs operations for PE Energy, a Houston, Texas-based supplier of industrial equipment and supplies. The company collects leads online from worldwide B2B buyers and relies on its Colombia-based sales team to convert them into sales."Colombia is pretty Westernized," Chagani stated. "We find a lot of college-educated talent there."In this episode, Chagani addresses his company's backend setup for 100,000 SKUs, the benefits of an offshore sales staff, and more. For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6s96For all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. http://www.practicalecommerce.com 

For years Brandon Eley's online shoe company, 2BigFeet, prospered by reselling prominent brands. But the profit margins slowly narrowed as did the sources for large footwear sizes, Eley's niche.The solution is Michael Ellis Footwear, Eley's direct-to-consumer brand, launched in 2021. "We finally decided to take matters into our own hands," he said.In this second appearance on the podcast, Eley shares the evolution of 2BigFeet, the launch of Michael Ellis, custom manufacturing, and more. For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6s2HFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. https://www.practicalecommerce.com 

Mickey Friedman co-launched Flair.ai in 2022, a year after graduating from the University of Chicago. The company, which has raised $5 million in seed funding, deploys artificial intelligence to perfect product photos, providing entire virtual scenes and setups.The process, Friedman says, dramatically lowers the cost of photo shoots while improving quality.In this episode, she addresses the rise of visual AI, the necessity of human intervention, and more. For an edited and condensed transcript with embedded audio, see: https://pec-ly.com/?6rYbFor all condensed transcripts with audio, see: https://www.practicalecommerce.com/tag/podcastsListener reviews of Ecommerce Conversations elevate visibility and help others experience the lessons of online entrepreneurs. We invite you to leave a review on this channel.   ******The mission of Practical Ecommerce is to help online merchants improve their businesses. We do this with expert articles, podcasts, and webinars. We are an independent publishing company founded in 2005 and unaffiliated with any ecommerce platform or provider. http://www.practicalecommerce.com