Welcome to episode #55 of the UMAI Social Circle, with your hosts, Karin and Alison. Today's episode features guest Andrea Popova, and we're discussing investing in consumer packaged goods brands from an investor perspective. Andrea shares her journey from spending years in retail and eCommerce at companies like Walmart, Nielsen, Meta, and Prose to writing one of the most-read DTC newsletters—CPGD. CPGD has evolved into a vital resource for digitally native brands, boasting 10,000 weekly readers...
Apr 17, 2024•22 min•Ep. 55
In this final episode of our Facebook and Instagram advertising series led by Alison, co-founder of UMAI Marketing, we conclude by delving into effective audience targeting methods. Learn how to properly identify prospective audiences, optimize cost per acquisition by using better audience targeting techniques, and leverage your retargeting for lifetime value. Join us as we explore the four essential steps for discovering optimal audiences to drive successful ad campaigns. Let’s dive in! 🎧 Let'...
Apr 01, 2024•12 min•Ep. 54
Hi friends! Today, we're serving up some juicy tips on how to spice up your ad game with killer creativity! These tips are sure to help your brand skyrocket its growth! 🚀 Creative is QUEEN when it comes to ad performance, so buckle up for this episode as we share our favorite tips for better ads. We've gathered all of our learnings on what works and what doesn't over the years into four simple tips (+ some bonus tips for good measure) for you to discover how to hook your audience with better cr...
Mar 20, 2024•13 min•Ep. 53
Welcome to the UMAI Social Circle! In today's episode, our co-founder, Alison, discusses Facebook and Instagram advertising. We're answering the #1 question we get about FB and IG ads: "How much should I spend on advertising?" Join us as we discuss setting your budget, scaling it, and maximizing your spending between acquiring new customers and getting existing customers to return. Jump into today's episode, and let's start making your ad investment work for you! Let's break it down for you... [...
Mar 11, 2024•11 min•Ep. 52
Welcome to episode #51 of the podcast, where we get the chance to chat with Leslie Roberson, founder and CEO of Black Beauty Collective. With previous success in diversifying corporate teams and starting (and selling) a luxury linen rental company, Leslie's journey reflects a commitment to social impact and leveraging her recruiting, marketing, and networking skills for the greater good. Leslie founded The Black Beauty Collective, aiming to empower marginalized founders by providing opportunitie...
Feb 19, 2024•47 min•Ep. 51
Welcome to episode #49! In this episode, we're diving into executing a winning brand refresh. Our co-founders, Alison and Karin, team up with the dynamic duo: Meghan Martin, UMAI's Strategy Director, and Sam Laubach, UMAI's Creative Director (previously the founders of boutique branding & package design agency, Here & Now Creative). With years of expertise in bringing strategic and eye-catching branding to the CPG world, Meghan and Sam share their insights on creating shelf appeal, their...
Feb 05, 2024•32 min•Ep. 49
Welcome to Podcast #50: Social Strategies We Love featuring Black-Owned Brands! Today, we're delving into a special episode dedicated to Black History Month with co-founder of UMAI Marketing, Karin Samelson. Join her as we explore standout Black-owned brands, including Partake, A Dozen Cousins, and Me & the Bees Lemonade. Discover what sets these CPG brands apart and how their organic social media strategies help them to stand out from the crowd. Let's dive in! 🤓 Let's break it down for you...
Feb 05, 2024•20 min•Ep. 50
Welcome to episode #48 where we're diving into branding for your consumer goods brands. Our co-founders, Alison and Karin, have teamed up with dynamic duo: Meghan Martin, our Strategy Director, and Sam Laubach, our Creative Director to bring you this episode. Meghan and Sam, cousins and business partners, started Here and Now Creative Co. years ago to bring strategic and eye-catching branding and packaging to the CPG world. Fast forward 5 years, and their work has graced Forbes, Shark Tank, Vogu...
Oct 12, 2023•26 min•Ep. 48
Welcome to episode 47, where we'll discuss our top tips for training your marketing team. Our co-founder Alison will dive into the importance of ongoing education and training in the agency and marketing space. At UMAI, our approach has always been to hire & train bright individuals with potential and focus on ongoing education for our team. We've developed our own comprehensive training course, drawing from our decade of experience as in-house marketers, as well as in our marketing agency. ...
Sep 19, 2023•12 min•Ep. 47
We're talking about boosting your Q4 profitability! 🤑 As we gear up for the exciting holiday season, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday, now is prime time to start laying the foundation for your most successful sales quarter ever. And guess what? It's time to start planning your promo emails! In this episode, we're going to talk about how to create promo emails that get you results; we're talkin' opens, clicks, and SALES! We'll look at a successful example from MaryRuth's Organics, and we'...
Aug 19, 2023•10 min•Ep. 46
Hi there, CPG friends! Welcome to Episode 45, where we're diving deeper into how to choose a successful promo offer for your brand. With Q4 just around the corner, it's time to gear up and make some serious cash! And guess what? We're here to equip you with the best tips and tricks to make this sales quarter your most successful one yet. Today's episode is extra special because we have our amazing team member Carley Jones joining us to share her promo expertise and insights. Together, we're goin...
Jul 23, 2023•31 min•Ep. 45
We're diving into the exciting world of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. 🎉 With Q3 just around the corner, it's time to gear up and start mapping out your holiday promotions to end the year on a high note. In this episode, we'll be taking a look back at last year's Black Friday and Cyber Monday campaign we executed for a skincare client. In this BFCM case study episode, we'll review how we planned, executed, and analyzed the biggest sales event for D2C CPG of the year! And how we secured this cli...
Jul 20, 2023•32 min•Ep. 44
Hey, y’all! 👋🏼 Today, we're chatting about one of our FAVORITE tools to make content creation easier, whether you're a marketer, social media enthusiast, founder, or even a small business owner. We're talking about the wonderful world of Canva! If you're not using it yet, no worries. We are here to share 6 quick-and-dirty tips on how you can use Canva to whip up high-quality content quicker than ever. So, get ready to level up your social game and create content in a flash with these awesome C...
Jun 20, 2023•21 min•Ep. 43
In this episode, Karin discusses the importance of utilizing user-generated content (UGC) as a cost-effective way to drive sales for consumer goods brands. UGC refers to content that's created by customers, content creators (or even your mother, brother, best friend, next door neighbor), and it's known for its authentic appearance and messaging. Karin shares some effective strategies for leveraging UGC to increase sales and engagement, even on a limited budget. Tune in to learn more about how UG...
Jun 07, 2023•6 min•Ep. 42
In today's episode, Alison discusses the importance of email marketing as a direct and effective way to build a relationship & sales with leads. She shares four easy-to-implement tips to increase email open and click-through rates. Email marketing is a valuable marketing strategy that often gets overlooked - on this episode, learn how to make the most out of this valuable tool! Let's dive into these tips and start driving results for your email campaigns. 💌 Timestamps: [0:59 - 1:48] Why you...
Apr 26, 2023•14 min•Ep. 41
In this episode, Karin and Alison, co-founders of UMAI Marketing, are joined by Andy Janaitis, Founder and Chief Strategist of PPC Pitbulls. PPC Pitbulls is an agency that works with small businesses in the eCommerce space, helping them build authentic customer relationships and increase sales online. Andy shares his background on how he started the agency and his passion for serving purpose-driven, passionate founders with a product they believe in. Tune in to learn more about Andy and his jour...
Apr 11, 2023•29 min•Ep. 42
Join Alison and Karin as they chat with Alli Ball, creator of Retail Ready, and Adam Pollock of Rodeo CPG in this mini series: Lessons Learned from 7-Figure CPG Brands! In the last episode of our mini series - Alison and Karin will be talking about the digital marketing KPIs you need to track to make informed decisions, three essential digital marketing levers for CPG brands, and how to prioritize your marketing to-do list so you can avoid overwhelm. Let's get into our final episode! 🙌🏼 Timest...
Dec 14, 2022•38 min•Ep. 39
Learn the strategies of million dollar brands! Join Alison and Karin as they chat with Alli Ball, creator of Retail Ready, and Adam Pollock of Rodeo CPG in this mini series: Lessons Learned from 7-Figure CPG Brands! In the second episode of our mini series – Alli Ball shares everything you need to know about getting on AND off the shelf, and setting your CPG brand up for retail success. Alright, let’s get onto more shelves! Oops....We meant onto the pod! 🎙 Timestamp: [0:46 - 2:47] Introduction ...
Dec 07, 2022•33 min•Ep. 38
Join Alison and Karin as they chat with Alli Ball, creator of Retail Ready, and Adam Pollock of Rodeo CPG in this mini series: Lessons Learned from 7-Figure CPG Brands! They're sharing some of the strategies that successful consumer goods brands implement across operations, retail, and digital marketing. In this first episode of our mini series - Adam Pollock shares everything you need to know from demand production, procurement, and cash flow. Let's get into today's episode... 📣 Timestamp: [0:...
Nov 30, 2022•29 min•Ep. 37
When we think of founders who live, breathe, (and eat) their product every single day - Kate Morton is definitely right up there on that list. She's the founder of Funk It Wellness, a woman-owned menstrual health company based here in Austin, TX. Kate went to school to become a registered dietitian, and never intended to be an entrepreneur let alone become a marketer for her own business. In this episode, Kate will be sharing wisdom about building her brand from the ground up, the struggles of m...
Nov 03, 2022•38 min•Ep. 36
April King, founder of Better Than Provisions, joins Alison and Karin to discuss her journey of building her own keto-friendly, grain-free granola brand. From farmers' market roots to an all-grown-up re-brand, April shares her biggest wins, advice she has for other founders, and how taking the Consumer Goods Growth Course has given her the confidence to show up on social for her community. Listen in to discover how April's motto to be "better than", paired with small steps and small actions, led...
Oct 21, 2022•45 min•Ep. 35
Co-Founder and CEO of Cantina Royal Hot Sauce, Diana Beshara, joins UMAI Social Circle podcast to chat about her biggest wins, challenges she overcame as an owner (including a major pandemic pivot from restauranteur to CPG brand owner), and how a pinch of luck landed her hot sauce on "Hot Ones", an Emmy nominated celebrity interview YouTube show with a viewing of over 100 million people. You're going to love this SPICY episode, so let's get into it! 🔊 Timestamp: [0:47 - 8:30] Starting as a rest...
Oct 05, 2022•36 min•Ep. 34
Amy Zitelman is the co-founder and CEO of the premium tahini brand, Soom Foods. In this podcast episode, join Alison and Karin, co-founders of UMAI Marketing, as they chat with Amy about her journey of bringing high-quality tahini to consumers here in the states. Discover how Amy successfully rooted Soom Foods in B2B first, created valuable relationships with chefs and influencers to help spread the Soom word, and how she's been using UMAI's Consumer Goods Growth Course to expand and train her m...
Sep 19, 2022•40 min•Ep. 33
Granarly founder, Morgan Potts, joins Alison and Karin to discuss her dream of bringing granola baked with whiskey to the masses. She shares her business philosophy, how her brand landed on the shelves of Whole Foods, and how taking leaps of faith in business ended up driving much of her success. In this episode, Morgan shared how she made the jump from "half-in" to "all-in" on her CPG business, and what it's been like running the daily operations, sales, and marketing! See what's in store for M...
Sep 02, 2022•36 min•Ep. 32
We're speaking with Zoë and Summer, herbalists, creatives, and regulatory nerds to share how herbal brands can creatively market their brands despite strict regulations. Zoë, a PhD in Plant & Soil Sciences, and Summer, Communications Manager and author of Kosmic Kitchen Cookbook, met while working at one of the largest herbal tea companies. They both dropped out of the corporate world at the same time and decided to join forces. They realized that in the world of herbal products, the regulat...
Aug 24, 2022•40 min•Ep. 31
Independent Brand Strategist, Katie Mleziva left the corporate world after working with brands like American Girl and Kraft Foods to pursue her own entrepreneurial journey as an independent Brand Strategist working with smaller more natural food businesses and farms. She joins UMAI Social Circle podcast to chat about why brand strategy is paramount and dives into detail on her three-pronged strategy for brand success. Let’s get into it!
Jul 27, 2022•39 min•Ep. 30
Join Alison and Karin as they audit The Cumin Club with Stef Shapira and Lindsey Leroy of The Rind PR! Learn about everything you need, from website click throughs to social copy as they look over this up-and-coming CPG brand.
May 26, 2022•52 min•Ep. 29
Join Alison and Karin as they audit Sippin Snax with Stef Shapira and Lindsey Leroy of The Rind PR! Learn about everything you need, from product bundling to social posting as they look over this up-and-coming CPG brand.
May 23, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 28
Join Alison and Karin as they audit Lost River Apothecary with Stef Shapira and Lindsey Leroy of The Rind PR! Learn about everything you need, from sending product to influencers to product linking as they look over this up-and-coming CPG brand.
May 12, 2022•58 min•Ep. 27
Join Alison and Karin as they audit Willow St. Snacks with Stef Shapira and Lindsey Leroy of The Rind PR! Learn about everything you need, from influencer affiliates to product photography as they look over this up-and-coming CPG brand.
May 06, 2022•55 min•Ep. 26
