The Unofficial Shopify Podcast

If you're struggling with Facebook ads, you’re not crazy and you’re not alone. Social media advertising is not what it once was, and neither is Q4. This new landscape is really, really hard. Guest Bio: Andrew runs Foxwell Digital, where he not only advises companies on their marketing strategies and overseas digital ad campaigns on behalf of clients, but he also runs a community of 400 digital mar...

Performance MAX campaigns are HOT right now. This super campaign type combines ALL of Google's channels into one campaign - Search Ads, Shopping Ads, Display Ads, Gmail Ads and YouTube ads all in one. We're seeing amazing early results and believe this will be a game changer for eCommerce brands. To break it down, we're joined by Google Premier Partner Brett Curry. Brett is the CEO of OMG Commerce...

Do you feel like you're burning money at the altar of Facebook while Zuckerberg builds a VR empire? Are you earning break even ROAS, and hoping ad prices don't rise any further? If you are, that's not uncommon. In August, I was at Ecommerce Day in LA, and heard their keynote speaker say "Facebook and Google's entire business model is to take credit of sales that were already going to happen." And...

If you're a little older than me, you may remember a particularly cool pair of sunglasses that was famous for using NASA satellite tech in their lenses and for being the first real activewear sunglasses in the 80s. I'm talking about REVO sunglasses. Our guest today is Cliff Robinson, CEO of Revo. Cliff has fashion in blood. You see, he was born into fashion, his family’s nearly century old busines...

Today's guest co-founded the #1 cat travel brand in the world. You read that right. We're joined by Emily Miethner from travelcatshop.com, now the #1 cat travel brand in the world, and a fast-growing, global 7-figure DTC brand serving catstomers in 75+ countries. As the Chief Marketing Officer, Emily manages influencer marketing, SMS and email marketing, organic digital content, retail, product de...

Today's guest is Jake Karls, a co-founder at chocolate factory & DTC brand Mid-Day Squares. Jake's job goal is to grow their brand by building genuine relationships – with investors, buyers, journalists, and their 80-person team. He's done that with a content marketing approach that he describes as "starring in our own reality TV show" that includes real life therapy sessions and inspiring others...

Today's guest is Nick Disabato, a conversion rate optimization consultant who believes "Ecommerce isn’t a video game. It’s relationships with real people, at scale." In this episode, we'll learn how his customer-focused mindset has helped in improve conversion rates and shift company cultures at the same time for his clients. You'll hear: Design Mindset & Cognitive Biases Customer Phone Interviews...

Scott Brown & Tim Swindle are the creators of PaddleSmash, a new outdoor active game that combines elements of Pickleball and Spikeball. Scott Brown is the co-founder of Marbles: The Brain Store, a retail concept focused on building better brains through play, which eventually grew to 40 stores, a website, a catalog business and a proprietary product division. Tim Swindle created Utter Nonsense, a...

Today's topic is PR... PR or "earned media" is very attractive. Authentic content and engagement that you dont have to pay for. Its like SEO for press. Sounds great? So why isn't everyone doing it? Because it's hard and expensive. As the host of a moderately successful podcast, I get a lot of pitches from PR firms and they're mostly awful. Or we've had clients hire PR firms and feel like they flus...

Our popular 'Ask Us Anything' series continues We open with news of a ponzi scheme, then answer your burning questions. We discuss: Maximizing your advertising dollars Shopify's share price Building the perfect ecom team and more_!_ Show Links Overhyped & Under-Regulated: Zadeh Kicks, the Sneaker Arbitrage that Cost Customers Millions Sponsors Free 30-day trial of Zipify OCU - To get an unadvertis...

A cookie brand born in Farmer's Markets discovers their mission after a chance encounter with the lead singer of Imagine Dragons. This is the story of Wunderkeks, an Austin-based baked goods company specializing in cookies, and building safe spaces with those baked goods. We're joined by Hans Schrei, co-founder of Wunderkeks. Show Links Wunderkeks Wunderkeks: About Us IG: @wunderkeks_atx Republic....

Move over Unite, the big announcements are now happening twice a year with Shopify Editions, Shopify’s new semi-annual showcase. CEO Tobi says, “With Shopify Editions, we’re sharing our big bets and latest innovations in commerce so that those ambitious enough to try their hand at entrepreneurship can start and scale faster than ever before.” There's a lot to explore, every time I revisit Editions...

In this episode, our guest packages more than a decade of knowledge and experience into just a handful of immutable laws that can help savvy brands convert more visitors into buyers. We're joined by Jon MacDonald, founder of The Good, a conversion optimization firm that has helped globally-recognized brands like Nike, Adobe, Xerox, and The Economist exceed their ambitious growth goals. Show Links...

Our guest today didn't know what he didn't know when he started an apparel brand in 2009, and only grew to dislike it the more successful he became, so he eventually exited the business in 2017 to focus on digital marketing. Today, he's a go-to expert on Facebook ads, with a lot of unconventional opinions, and a no BS approach that's refreshing in the marketing space. That's the kind of experience...

Learn the Four Pillars of Value Which deal types are available (its more than just cash) As interest rates rise, why you want to be SBA qualified Why you want to use accrual accounting to clean up your books Elaine is an advisor at Quiet Light where she helps online-based businesses exit. She has a background in e-commerce and a track record of success in online business. She started her first pro...

"Addressing prices once every year or two isn't going to work anymore." You've probably already invested time testing and analyzing your sales funnel, but have you ever tested your pricing? How did you determine the pricing on your site? It was a best guess, right? With all the changes in the last year - iOS & FB, supply chain disruptions, inflation - pivoting to a margin focus is so important. Th...

In this episode: An email insider exposes how to acquire the email addresses of anonymous website visitors who don't make a purchase or fill out a form. You read that right. But is it even legal? And if so, what are the risks and ROI? Our guest should know, after all he's an email marketing veteran with a successful exit under his belt. We're joined by Adam Robinson, founder and CEO of GetEmails,...

Most business owners would agree that data-driven decisions are preferable, so why then are we all overlooking split testing when making design decisions? In this episode, we talk through seven interesting split tests and the implications of their results. With one big caveat: there are no best practices... Show Links Google Optimize Tuffy Rhodes' 3HR Opening Day Baymard - Readability: The Optimal...

Google offers many free and excellent tools for business owners, but knowing which ones to invest in, and what to do with can be intimdating. Our guest today talks us through a low-stress, high impact approach to optimizing for Google's business tools that applies to nearly any store. (If you haven't setup Google Search Console yet, listen to this episode.) Which of Google's free tools should you...

Long time SEO expert and Shopify Partner Rhian Beutler returns to the show with updates to tell us... the SEO & content strategy every store should employ the right approach to Meta title & description tags How to take advantage of Google's Natural Language Processing push Plus an update on the global supply chain. Show Links Moz CopyAI OpenAI’s API for GPT-3 Double Your WDW Otter.ai Google Search...

In this Ask Us Anything episode, we discuss new features and answer your burning questions. What's new at Shopify: Audiences Delivery Dates SFN + Deliverr And your questions: When to upgrade your plan The importance of being a HYPE BEAST Metafields impact on SEO Conversion Rate Factors And more Show Links Shopify Audiences Estimated Delivery Dates at Checkout Shopify acquires Deliverr Shop Promise...

In today's episode, we learn a sane and accessible influencer marketing strategy that has worked for brand and big small: product seeding. We're joined by Cody Wittick, Co-Founder and Co-CEO at Kynship, an influencer marketing agency. Prior to co-founding Kynship, Cody worked at QALO, the brand that created the silicone wedding ring, where he built out a robust influencer program of 500+ influence...

In this episode, we hear how Shopify merchants can better manage their business finances, and increase conversion at checkout. Our guest today is Tui Allen, a Product Director at Shopify, overseeing financial solutions for entrepreneurs and businesses. This includes Shopify Capital (available to merchants in the US, UK, and Canada) which provides merchants with timely access to funds to help their...

In episode 400 , we heard from veteran ecom investor Drew Sanocki that he'd acquired oVertone Haircare along with ecom powerhouse influencer Ezra Firestone. In today's episode, our recent hire Tom Siodlak talks us through the behind the scenes experience of working with Ezra and the oVertone team on migrating the site from headless back to native Shopify with a custom theme. He reveals the premium...

In episode 235 , we heard how SHITI Coolers started with $400 in parody stickers back in 2016 and by 2019 had grown into a seven-figure lifestyle brand. Today, they're back on the show to discuss their next phase of growth, beginning with a custom theme and rebranding effort. Not just any custom theme, when we built with them and launched less than 24 hours before recording this episode. Show Link...