Direct-to-consumer is all the rage right now...and for good reason. Removing wholesalers, retailers, dealers, and marketplaces generally reduces costs and provides a better purchasing experience. BUT, the strongest brands find a way to balance a DTC model with other external sales channels. When considering this option, many brand owners are justifiably concerned about introducing channel conflicts to their business. So, today we're going to talk about channel conflict and how to manage it effec...
Jul 06, 2021•27 min•Ep. 36
With that advent of smart shopping campaigns, it has become ridiculously easy to start spending money on Google shopping ads and to see some return. But one area that's become overlooked is text ads. Ryan explains why you shouldn't be sleeping on text ads if you want to push your brand further.
Jun 22, 2021•23 min•Ep. 35
Digital marketing can start the fire, but CRO adds fuel to the fire. Yet, it seems every business has this bank of excuses on why CRO can't happen now, or why it doesn't make sense. Today Jon overcomes these objections and explains why CRO can be of such a high value to your business.
Jun 08, 2021•31 min•Ep. 34
There's no end to new platforms popping up and claiming to be the next great source of traffic to your business. First there was Yahoo. Then Google. Then Facebook. Then Twitter. Then Instagram. Then TikTok. Then… well, the list goes on and it will forever be growing too. So, how do you decide which one to test and how to gauge the success or failure of these new exciting ways to spend your marketing dollars to generate business? Luckily Ryan is here is to break it all down for us. TRANSCRIPT: Jo...
May 25, 2021•26 min•Ep. 33
Product descriptions may seem straightforward, but if done right they can significantly improve conversion rates. Today Jon explains why product descriptions are one of the most effective changes you can change to your website and how to write great product descriptions that will convert. The article Jon mentioned on how to write production descriptions that sell: https://thegood.com/insights/product-descriptions/ TRANSCRIPT: Announcer: You're listening to Drive and Convert, a podcast about help...
May 11, 2021•31 min•Ep. 32
Traffic sources can come from a number of places, but for most companies the largest source is Google. And things can get confusing when it comes to organic traffic versus paid ads.There are a number of things that can affect organic traffic and paid traffic in Google, and it can get confusing quickly. Today Ryan clears things up and tells you what does and doesn't work in Google, and focuses on what you can do with on-site SEO to improve your organic rankings. The site mentioned for checking yo...
Apr 27, 2021•21 min•Ep. 31
In the Ecommerce world, it's almost always about the data. But what works well for large organizations may not work well for small ones and vice versa. A lot of that has to do with how much data you have, and large organizations tend to have more. So where should different size organizations starts as far as collecting data and making use of it? And why do we even need data in the Ecommerce world?
Apr 13, 2021•25 min•Ep. 30
Larger companies get most of the press and excitement with their 6 and 7 figure marketing budgets, but the majority of clients we work with are smaller. And smaller companies have to do things a little differently than the big guys. What impact does a small budget have on driving traffic? How should small budget brands compete online? https://www.logicalposition.com/ TRANSCRIPT: Jon: Hey Ryan. So we get companies contacting us all the time, that don't have large, six or seven figure marketing bu...
Mar 30, 2021•26 min•Ep. 29
Today, Jon & Ryan talk about how Digital Marketing and CRO work together to create a scenario where one plus one really equals three or four. When these combine it It becomes an explosion of revenue and profit. Today the guys why it is that these two things work so well together.
Mar 16, 2021•31 min•Ep. 28
The official data from the Census Bureau has stated that through Q3, e-commerce was up 32% year-over-year in 2020. By no means should a company complain when they're up 32% during a pandemic, but there are times when a company should be concerned when they have 32% year-over-year growth. That sounds backwards, but business owners and marketing teams should have regular fear of missing out or FOMO, to help make sure that their brands aren't falling behind their competitors. Even when the numbers ...
Mar 02, 2021•29 min•Ep. 27
How does one break down optimization into some key principles? In episode #24, Jon started talking through his eight laws of conversion. The first four were: It's hard to read the label from inside the jar. People come to your website for only two reasons: to purchase, or to research. Your goals are aligned with customers, both of you want a conversion. Competitive research is not data. Today, Jon and Ryan pick up where they left out and give you Jon's final four laws of conversions. www.thegood...
Feb 16, 2021•29 min•Ep. 26
As business owners, we’re always worried about missing out. Many businesses owners we talk with seem to regularly have FOMO (fear of missing out) when it comes to marketing: Are my goals right? Was optimization right? Was there an area of the market I didn’t pay attention to? During holiday periods, which is when we are recording this, everything is intensified and I find most business owners are stressed about this more. Especially in a year like 2020. Today we dive deeper into the details of h...
Feb 02, 2021•28 min•Ep. 25
Today, is the first in a two part series about the first four principles of the world of Conversion Rate Optimization. What are these fundamental truths, and how can I break down optimization from a high level to not focus so much on the tactics? Everybody goes directly to the tactics, but what are the overarching things that a brand needs to know and be thinking about? Today, Jon breaks it all down.
Jan 19, 2021•25 min•Ep. 24
It's hard to talk about E-commerce and driving traffic without thinking about Amazon. How do you find new customers there? Should you run on ads on Amazon? Ryan has the answers! For help with your Amazon Advertising: https://www.logicalposition.com/amazon-advertising-management
Jan 05, 2021•31 min•Ep. 23
There are seven different types of people that you're going to find coming to your site. And if you can understand who these people are in each one of their buckets, you're going to be able to help each one of them convert because they're all going to look at your site a little bit differently. So how do we understand who they are? And what do we need want to know how do we convert these people? Jon's got the answers! TRANSCRIPT: Announcer: You're listening to Drive and Convert, a podcast about ...
Dec 22, 2020•34 min•Ep. 22
With Cyber Week just in the rear view mirror, we’ve got a lot of questions for Ryan...Outside of revenue, how does a brand know if they were successful for Cyber Week? How do they know if money was left on the table? Or their goals were misaligned? What were the common missed opportunities in search engine marketing? What does a brand’s data say about their Cyber Week performance? When a brand looks back at their ecommerce data for Cyber Week, what should they be looking for? We've got even more...
Dec 08, 2020•27 min•Ep. 21
Psychology plays an important part in business no matter what business you’re in or how you’re getting sales. The best tactics to convince us to spend money are the ones we’re not aware of. Retail stores have been using music, scents, and merchandising to get us to spend more money for decades if not centuries. Those tactics online now have a name and its Dark Patterns. Jon explain just what Dark Patterns are and why your brand should avoid using them. Read more about Dark Patterns: https://theg...
Nov 24, 2020•23 min•Ep. 20
Most online businesses are hooked on traffic. It's like a drug –– they think if they just get more traffic, all their problems go away. Because traffic equals sales, right? On the surface that seems right, but Ryan is here to dig deeper, and explain why that isn’t the whole story. TRANSCRIPT Jon Macdonald: There's a common saying that there are only three ways to increase the revenue of an online business. You get more people to visit your site while keeping your conversion rate the same, or you...
Nov 10, 2020•24 min•Ep. 19
It seems most brands are using email popups on their website. Today Jon dismantles this practice with passion, explaining why they're bad for everyone, and offering better alternatives. TRANSCRIPT: Ryan: Jon, we've spoke together quite a few times around the country, and then recently just around the internet, since we can't leave our houses. And almost every time we talk, you ruffle quite a few feathers when you're answering questions about email pop-ups. It seems that most retailers and brands...
Oct 27, 2020•35 min•Ep. 18
We know that internet traffic doesn't operate in silos. No matter what method you are using to drive traffic and sales, there's always going to be a halo effect. Today Jon and Ryan chat about Google Shopping, but more specifically the effect it has on other channels. TRANSCRIPT: Jon: Hey, thanks for listening to Drive and Convert. Before we jump into this episode, just wanted to take a quick second and let you know that during this episode we had some recording issues and the audio quality is no...
Oct 13, 2020•24 min•Ep. 17
So many Ecommerce stores offer discounts. Should you? Today Jon breaks down why discounts are probably doing more harm than good for your brand, and offers some better alternatives. The Essential Guide to Ecommerce Sales Promotions [78 Tactics] : https://thegood.com/insights/essential-ecommerce-promotion-guide/ TRANSCRIPT: Ryan Garrow: Jon, I come across this all the time, and I found myself accidentally suggesting these things to maybe my wife's business or some friend's businesses. When it com...
Sep 29, 2020•24 min•Ep. 16
Google recently dropped all commission fees on their "Buy on Google" platform. On the surface-level this seems like a very intriguing offer. But Ryan here is to explain why "Buy on Google" may not be the best thing for your brand. TRANSCRIPT: Jon: Ryan, a few days ago, I sent you an article I read about Google's Buy on Google program and how they were dropping all commission fees for their sellers as part of the program. Now, to me, this seemed like a pretty good deal. Who doesn't like freeways ...
Sep 15, 2020•27 min•Ep. 15
How can you prepare your businesses for operating in a future that has yet to be determined? Today, Jon explores the future of CRO. With such a high volume of transactions happening on Amazon and Shopify are we nearing the end of incremental improvement from CRO? For help with your CRO visit: https://thegood.com/ TRANSCRIPT Ryan: All right, Jon, as a business owner and strategist, I'm constantly thinking about the future and how I can prepare my businesses, my teams, clients for operating in a f...
Sep 01, 2020•25 min•Ep. 14
Today, Jon asks how to determine what your SEM budget should be...and Ryan explains why the answer may actually be to have no budget at all For all your digital marketing needs: https://www.logicalposition.com/ TRANSCRIPT: Jon: It's a common question that I hear quite a bit. "How much should I be budgeting for search engine marketing and how do I even forecast what I should be spending?" Well, securing the SEM budgets is always a challenge, right? So when you do spend on search engine marketing,...
Aug 18, 2020•26 min•Ep. 13
In every business there are tools specific to that industry or type of business that will help them grow. Ecommerce is no different. CRO is one of the most important tools to grow an Ecommerce business. Today, Jon dives into the role CRO plays in Ecommerce businesses. For help with your CRO: https://thegood.com/ TRANSCRIPT: Ryan: Oh Jon, most people start businesses because they've got skills, knowledge, and the desire to control their work and what they're actually doing on a day to day basis. ...
Aug 04, 2020•30 min•Ep. 12
There are so many folks selling “search engine” services these days. And a lot of that is “snake oil” –– especially when you talk about “search engine optimization” or SEO. And this no doubt bleeds over into the SEM – or “search engine marketing” field too. Today Ryan unpacks just exactly why SEM is so hard to do yourself. For help with your SEM: https://www.logicalposition.com/ TRANSCRIPT: Jon: There are so many folks selling search engine services these days, and that is a lot of snake oil out...
Jul 21, 2020•24 min•Ep. 11
Today Jon takes a look at how to improve your category pages on your website. He'll explore what you should know about headers, footers, navigation, bread crumbs, and more! For help optimizing your category pages: https://thegood.com/ TRANSCRIPT: Ryan: Hello Jon, and welcome to the podcast. Ryan: I was digging through one of our shared clients analytics, and this is a rather large international brand that most of our listeners would probably recognize if we mentioned their name. And outside the ...
Jul 07, 2020•34 min•Ep. 10
Most Ecommerce brands are starting to feel like they can’t beat Amazon and thus, they must join them. Ryan unpacks the benefits of joining Amazon and the things you need to watch out for if you do. TRANSCRIPT: Jon: So, Ryan, we've all heard the old adage, "If you can't beat them, join them." Right? Ryan Garrow: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jon: So from what I hear on a daily basis in the conversion optimization world is that most eCommerce brands are starting to feel like they just can't beat Amazon, a...
Jun 23, 2020•26 min•Ep. 9
Ryan unpacks the different social media platforms and how you can use them to sell your product. He explains where you should start and then where you can test the waters next. Jon and Ryan also provide an update about what you need to know about the recently released Facebook Shops. TRANSCRIPT: Jon: Hey everybody, just a quick note before we jump into this episode, we recorded this episode on Selling on Social before Facebook Stores was launched, but everything we discussed still applies and is...
Jun 09, 2020•33 min•Ep. 8
Jon explores the nuances of CRO and explains why it can be so difficult to take a DIY approach with it. He also offers a few tips for those just starting out to improve your CRO without spending a whole lot. [The Mom Test book]: ( https://www.amazon.com/Mom-Test-customers-business-everyone/dp/1492180742/ref=sr_1_1 ) For more CRO help visit The Good: https://thegood.com/ TRANSCRIPT: Ryan: Hello, Jon. Jon: Hey, Ryan. How are you today? Ryan: I am doing well. Excited to get educated today by you, o...
May 26, 2020•30 min•Ep. 7
