Kim LaFleur

Cotopaxi has so much potential but needs to evolve to be different from everyone else (Patagonia), and their stores need more experience. Companies get stuck with the "textbook mission" and must innovate but remain authentic. Their sale during BF told me there is something amiss. https://lnkd.in/gAdNX-_q

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Why scaling Google Ads without knowing your contribution margin is a recipe for disaster. We helped an outdoor furniture brand go from overspending to optimizing by forecasting based on their real contribution margin. Here’s how we saved them tens of thousands.👇 Most DTC brands look at their total revenue, but here’s the thing… Revenue doesn’t equal profit. To scale profitably, you need to know your contribution margin – how much money is left after covering variable costs like production, shipping, ad spend, your agency fees, and CC fees. Here’s how you forecast Google Ads spend using contribution margin: Calculate Contribution Margin (CM): Revenue – Variable Costs = Contribution Margin. Example: If you sell a product for $97.99 and your variable costs are $52.00, your CM is $46. Determine Your Ad Budget Based on CM: Once you know your CM, you can calculate how much you’re willing to spend to acquire a customer and remain profitable. Optimize Ad Spend: Track how well your campaigns are performing against these margins. If you’re overspending on CPAs, it’s time to adjust bids or pause underperforming ads. Build your ad strategy around contribution margin, not just total revenue or ROAS. It’s the only way to grow while staying profitable. Need help building a forecasting model? I’ve done this for dozens of DTC brands. Let’s connect and chat about scaling profitably.

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The physical location "halo effect" for DTC brands is too simplistic. In reality it looks more like a J-Curve. First 6-8 months you cannibalize your ecommerce sales. And then... "Over a two year period they go back to shopping online in apparel because they have been fitted, they see a broader assortment, they are more willing to buy expensive product. So they become much better ecomm customers." Just one of many gems from my discussion with Andrew Neelon.

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Check out our recent case study for a Shopify website We teamed up with Pinkergreen (who assisted w/ UX & design) Outcomes from work? Conversion rate up ⬆️ 60% Avg order value ⬆️ 7% Upsell value (within 45 days) $8100 SEO up ⬆️ Bounce rate ⬇️ Check out the full case study below with more info on process & outcomes

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If the ads you're seeing on your various CTV channels are feeling a tad too personal, chances are that's more of a coincidence than truly hyper-precision targeting. Nevertheless, it's an opportunity to discuss advertising experience and the concept of personal vs collective/communal advertising (a really interesting challenge for a mass medium to consider!). I spoke to Mark Stenberg and ADWEEK about that fine line between creepy and effective . #advertising #targeting #ctv #experience https://lnkd.in/eK9X67MK

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Ecom stores that scale past 6-7 fig days aren't built on ONE big decision or "magic secret" They’re the by-product of 1000+ micro-optimizations across the entire customer journey that compound into exponential growth Here’s 7 that’ll deliver the biggest and fastest impact: #1 Customers asking, "Is this legit?" will kill your ROAS and CPA faster than any bad creative. You need to maximise social proof at every touchpoint: → Build Testimonial Library → Inject Testimonials into your ads, landing pages, PDP, emails, EVERYWHERE #2 Enhance Positioning by Nailing the 4 Pillars of Your Acquisition Product → Authority Figures: Trust drives action → UMP: Justifies why nothing else works → UMS: Positions your solution as inevitable → UM: Creates differentiation and intrigue #3 Most visitors never scroll and thus only see the top of your page and your product images. Optimise your product image carousel with these images for increased conversions: → Benefits → Social proof → Before & After → How to use → What's inside → Features #4 Most brands have typical “30 day money back guarantee”. Make your guarantee 10x better in 2 simple steps: → Transform standard guarantee into “See noticeable results in 3 days or your money back” → Remove obstacles by offering perks like free return shipping or exchanges #5 Optimise these 3 basic email flows to stop leaving money and LTV on the table: → Abandoned cart tailored to urgency → Post purchase cross-sell & upsell with discounts → 30, 60, and 90 days customer win back #6 Post purchase is your hottest moment to upsell. The extra revenue isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s a growth multiplier: → One-click upsells → Personalized upsells → Thank-you page offers: Instead of a “thanks for your purchase,” pitch another irresistible offer #7 Fuel your growth with a steady stream of banger creatives + funnels If you’re running a 7-9 figure DTC brand looking to break through ad spend ceilings on Meta and scale FAST Book the call below to work with our team:

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This is Marketing and much more

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It can take 2-3 months just to get approval to run ads for RMG operators. That’s before you even think about testing, scaling, or optimizing campaigns. It’s frustrating, it’s slow, and it’s filled with red tape. But having someone on your side who knows the ins and outs of this process is everything. Here’s what it actually looks like when you’re trying to launch a campaign in this space: Month 1: Compliance Checks & Waiting Around You’ve filled out every form, submitted all your documents, and followed every rule in the book. Now you wait. And wait. If you’re lucky, you’ll get feedback from Meta or Google saying you missed some tiny detail. If not, your account just sits in “review” for weeks. Month 2: Maybe Some Progress...Maybe Not If you get approved on one platform—great! But don’t get too comfortable. You might find out that the ad creative isn’t compliant or your landing page needs tweaks. Best case? We launch a small campaign to test the waters. Worst case? We’re still going back and forth. Month 3: Finally, Some Traction! By now, we’re hopefully live on one or two platforms. But instead of blasting out your full budget, we need to scale cautiously. Spend too fast, and you risk getting flagged. Plus, the data we collect in these early stages is crucial for optimizing the long-term strategy. Here's why it's worth it: Most agencies rush in, set up a campaign, and are shocked when approvals don’t come through. They’re not built to handle the waiting, the compliance setbacks, or the constant pivoting. But we’ve done this before. We know how to navigate every roadblock and keep things moving. Because at the end of those 2-3 months, when everything’s finally dialed in, you’re not just live—you’re set up to scale. 🔥

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Revenue alone won't pay your bills—contribution margin dollars will. Too often, I come across DTC brands that focus solely on revenue growth without considering the costs tied to that growth. The result? A false sense of successful growth while profitability quietly slips away. The reality is: It’s not just revenue that matters—contribution margin dollars are what pay the bills. Contribution margin dollars are what’s left after covering variable costs, like ad spend. If those dollars shrink as you scale, you’ll struggle to cover fixed overhead—and your profitability takes a hit. 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲. So, what’s the solution? ✅ Regularly track contribution margin dollars alongside revenue to get the full picture. ✅ Question every dollar spent on ads: Is it generating enough margin to justify the cost? ✅ Adjust your strategy early before scaling starts eating into your profits. Need help untangling this? At Free to Grow CFO, we specialize in working with DTC brands to optimize financial strategies and maximize profitability. Let’s talk about how to protect your bottom line while you grow. -- Hi, I'm Jon Blair founder of the DTC Finance and Accounting firm Free to Grow CFO. Want more tips on growing a profit-focused DTC brand? Give me a follow. Want to learn more about how Free to Grow's Accountants and CFO's can help you increase profit and cash flow as you scale? Shoot me a DM. Until next time, scale on! 

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After 5 years of experience and generating millions of dollars online for 6 to 8-figure DTC brands, I’ve put together "The Ultimate Guide to Segmentation Strategies in Klaviyo" Why is segmentation key? It’s the foundation for personalized emails that engage customers and drive serious revenue. If you're not segmenting, you're leaving money on the table. Especially with Q4 around the corner! Comment ‘Segment’ or ‘Q4’ and I’ll send the guide straight to you. Let’s make some bags this Q4 together! (Must be connected)

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Scaling a DTC brand to $10M+ in annual revenue isn’t as complicated as people make it out to be. You just need to do two things right: - Find a massive Total Addressable Market (TAM)  - Ride the right trend at the right time. Here’s what I mean: If you want to grow a high-revenue DTC brand, it’s a cheat code to be in a big market. Why? Because it’s easier to take a tiny slice of a huge pie than to bake a whole new one. Let’s break it down: The health and wellness supplement market is worth $200 billion. That’s a huge market, and even if you only capture 0.1% of that, you’re looking at $200 million in revenue. Now, imagine your TAM is only $1 billion. It’s still a billion-dollar market, but capturing 0.1% of that gets you only $1 million. Big difference. You’re working 10x harder for a fraction of the results. The point? Choose a market with room to grow. That’s what Dollar Shave Club did. They entered a multi-billion-dollar men’s grooming market and took a small but loyal share of the pie. They didn’t need to own the market. They just needed to make a dent, and that dent led to a $1 billion acquisition by Unilever. The second part of the equation is: you need to ride a trend that’s already growing. Why fight against the current when you can catch the wave? Let’s look at Stanley, the Tumbler brand. The cups everyone is holding. They didn’t invent a new category. They rode a trend and turned a niche product into a $750 million force. But here’s the thing: trends aren’t random. They’re driven by compound annual growth rates (CAGR). In simple terms, a market growing consistently will push you forward even when you’re not doing much. The health and wellness supplement market is growing at 6.5% annually. That’s why brands in that space see easier growth. There’s momentum going. And what does that mean for you? It means you need to pick a market that’s moving. If your industry isn’t growing, it’ll feel like you’re running uphill. But if you can ride a wave of growth like Stanley did, that 0.1% market share you were aiming for today could be worth 2x or 3x more in just a few years.

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Are class action settlements tracked as Marketing Campaigns? It feels like the $5 voucher being offered will have low redemption rates. However, for those who do redeem, there will certainly be incremental spend. Some cannibalization may occur for consumers who would have made purchases regardless and are now receiving a discount, but overall, I expect it to generate net incremental purchases and user traffic.

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3 in-the-trenches lessons scaling a CPG drink brand 300% (so far). from $47k in June to $167k last 30 days (steal it or AMA) 1. Biz model or bust CPG is one of the hardest niches to scale IMO. We’ve done many over the years and it rides or dies by the biz model. This particular brand was selling a single pack + running ads. Their contribution profit per order was 2% No ad or strategy will fix a broken model No one can scale that profitably. Something has to change So naturally the only thing to do is either sell more per order raise prices bundle In this case we did price increase and then changed th default first order from a 1pack to 2pack. That increased contribution profit 10x to 22%. Now that we scaled. 2. Throw the brand book out the window for ads Having worked with 15 CPG brands I can confidently say in many cases branding guidelines gets in the way more than helps. I know. I know. Sue me. My team is hired to scale brands and make them money. THE MOMENT we were able to say “let’s ease up on the branding just for ads and see what happens” things starting working better + the increase in CM. It worked so well they were 100% cool with making any ad we wanted because they saw it working better. 9/10 when a founder sees it making more money they never go back. lol The less on brand the better. I think everyone should consider keeping branding loose for advertising. It usually works better in my experience. 3. Positioning In CPG land, this is so hard to land. Unless you have a truly uniqueness to the product you’re kinda just in a shouting match with the next CPG brand like yours. In this case, the thing that is working for them is Positioning less on what’s in it Positioning less on branding Positioning more on who it’s for Positioning more on ideal outcome desire i.e. drink with Dandelion root, ginger, chicory, etc vs i.e. This slimming drink took me (a plus size girl) from a 16 to 11. Feeling proud they are up 300% and it’s not ever Black Friday yet. Christmas is coming early!!!

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Good points here. (A "gatekeeper" company is going to get a lot of unwanted attention if they make it really easy to turn off every competitor's cross-context user tracking while leaving their own cross-context user tracking turned on. Whatever form the cookie preference ends up taking, it's going to also have to control Google tracking that isn't technically cookie-based but would otherwise be unfairly/illegally advantaged)

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Why did Stitch partner with Talon.One? Three main reasons... 1️⃣ In working with Braze customers, we've seen an incredible amount of pain with their existing loyalty platforms (looking at you, Punchh & CrowdTwist, Inc.). 2️⃣ The platform is 👌. The response time and the ability to customize workflows is elite. 3️⃣ The combination of Braze + Talon.One is a marketer's dream. Scale, capability and efficiency bridging marketing & loyalty together.

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What if you could get 400 regular buyers to weigh in on best practices for direct-to-consumer (DTC) subscription? Subscription products are the holy grail for consumer and DTC brands, but what do we actually do and want as buyers? As someone who runs and works with consumer brands, I wanted to get some real insights here, so I ran a survey with SurveyMonkey. Here’s what I found from 400+ responses: Finding 1: 80% of respondents subscribe to less than 3 products. Insight for brands: It’s unlikely your new brand is going to find a ton of subscription traction, so don’t build the model and assumptions around that. Finding 2: Pet food has the highest likelihood for subscription, while beauty, skincare, health and wellness supplements aren’t as high as you would think. Finding 3: Two major concerns people have when subscribing is not knowing how long a product will last them, as well as the cancellation process and terms. Insight for brands: at the point of subscription, give insight around product usage, typical duration, as well as crystal clear information on ease of cancellation. We as buyers have all experienced subscription experiences that are impossible to cancel, and that’s a hesitation we bring when evaluating any new subscription. Finding 4: 82% of buyers have subscribed, knowing full well they’ll cancel, just to get the discount. Insight for brands: heavily discounting to incentivize subscriptions may be hurting you. This data not only helps me as I build my own brands but working with teams, we now don’t have to debate how to structure these kinds of user experiences — sometimes all you have to do is ask! Success isn’t just about finding answers; it’s about being caring enough, and daring enough, to ask the right questions #DareToAsk. A ton more insights here. Check out the full survey, and let me know in the comments what questions you want to see data and findings on: https://lnkd.in/egGvRJse  #surveymonkey #ad #daretoask

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I'm an ex-VP of Retention at the 9 & 10-figure retailers with 👉🏻 ONE SIMPLE PLAYBOOK 👈🏻 that helped 100+ retailers & brands increase repeat purchases from their list, leading $200M in new untapped revenue. 🤯 Even better news: I've just launched my 2025 version of it. 😎 Introducing my ✨ 2025 Customer Retention Playbook for Ecommerce Retailers & Brands. ✨ If you’re a retailer or brand looking to stop customers from bailing on you after one purchase, increase customer loyalty and unlock untapped profits from your customers, this is a must-read. 🙋🏻‍♂️ 🙋🏼‍♀️ Let's face it: with shrinking consumer confidence, rising inflation and subpar holiday shopping season, 2025 could be the year your brand goes bankrupt. 💸 Huge brands like Party City, Express, JoAnn's, Big Lots and others have already gone under in 2024... and it's shaping up to be worse in 2025. 🥵 In this playbook, I’ll share the exact 10-figure Customer Retention frameworks I used as VP of Retention to consistently reduce churn rates, double revenues from millions of customers and avoid bankruptcy in 2025! 🥹 This playbook distills market data from... 📚 McKinsey 📚 Harvard Business Review 📚 Shopify 📚 Klaviyo 📚 Statista 📚 and so much more... ... into actionable, VP-level insights that you can implement immediately to stop the bleeding. With this playbook, you'll be able to: → Reveal the top reasons your customers will bail on you in 2025! → Clarify the number ONE reason customers leave you today! → Prevent churn with a proven 10-figure customer retention framework! → Identify what's holding you back from solving churn all year long! → Implement a retention strategy that solves churn forever! You can access this for free playbook in three simple steps: 1️⃣ Like this post 2️⃣ Comment "PLAYBOOK" below 3️⃣ Connect with me so I can DM you the link No sign-ups. No funnels. Just VP-level strategies to help you win 2025. I'm Isaac Hyman and I'm going to help you never lose a customer again!

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This will sound "duh" but a lot of new DTC brands don't realize it until it's too late. Invest in really good photography. The difference between a forgettable eCommerce site and one that gets the order (besides a good story, good marketing copy, and social proof) can come down to the quality of the creative assets. In a world of a million knock-offs and shoddy products, showing high-quality photographs of your actual product in the hands of real people in a genuine setting: big difference. We've never had a situation where we've had too many great photographs. The more the merrier. If you're a DTC Brand CEO looking to boost your revenue, then grab 'The 5 Ways High-Performing DTC Brands Get 10-20% eCommerce Conversion Rates'. This guide reveals the 5 tactics that the highest-performing DTC brands employ daily to achieve 10-20%+ conversion rates on their eCommerce websites. Note: If you don't see my comment below with the link, choose 'Recent Comments' in the dropdown below my post.

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Will be done right before Thanksgiving week holiday shopping kicks in, Google's announcement sounded a lot like the HCU, and more -> Google November 2024 Core Update Is Now Rolling Out - What We Know So Far via Barry Schwartz "This update is designed to continue our work to improve the quality of our search results by showing more content that people find genuinely useful and less content that feels like it was made just to perform well on Search." #google #seo

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