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The ultimate guide to performance marketing | Timothy Davis (Shopify)

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Jul 28, 2024

Guest

Timothy Davis

Timothy Davis, a performance marketing expert with experience at Shopify and other major companies, shares invaluable insights on optimizing paid growth strategies. He discusses when to invest in performance marketing and common pitfalls companies encounter. The conversation dives into building effective marketing teams and enhancing creative performance. Davis also explores the future of performance marketing with AI and the importance of strategic timing and data analysis for successful campaigns. Get ready to elevate your marketing game!

01:42:03

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insights

INSIGHT

Paid Search vs. Disruptive Media

Paid search is essential because it's user-initiated.
Disruptive media like Meta ads and YouTube ads are less critical, especially for startups.

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ANECDOTE

LinkedIn for B2B: Coca-Cola Example

Timothy used LinkedIn to target Coca-Cola decision-makers with ads about security and recency.
This helped overcome sales objections and win a major client.

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ADVICE

Paid Ads for Startups

Startups should consider paid advertising based on goals and market demand.
SEO takes time, so paid can provide quicker results depending on product demand.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Understanding the Essentials of Performance Marketing

03:38 • 5min

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Navigating Performance Marketing Strategies

08:11 • 17min

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Harnessing Emotional Engagement in Video Advertising

25:15 • 2min

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Timing and Strategy in Performance Marketing

27:37 • 16min

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Mastering Data in Performance Marketing

43:15 • 4min

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Optimizing Paid Advertising Metrics

47:34 • 23min

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Balancing Creativity and Marketing in Growth

01:10:54 • 16min

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Navigating Competitors and AI in Marketing

01:26:58 • 12min

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Insights on Happiness and Career Influence

01:38:53 • 3min

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Timothy Davis has led performance marketing for all of Shopify for the past 2.5 years, and as a consultant has helped companies like Pinterest, LinkedIn, Redfin, and Eventbrite kickstart and scale their performance marketing teams. In every one of those cases, he got them so performant at paid growth that they significantly scale spend and investment in these channels. In our conversation, we cover:

• When and how to start investing in performance marketing

• Common mistakes companies make with paid ads

• How to build and structure a performance marketing team

• How to get your creatives performing better

• Strategies for optimizing workflows and team efficiency

• How AI will change performance marketing

• Much more

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Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/performance-marketing-timothy-davis

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Where to find Timothy Davis:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothypatrickdavis/

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Timothy’s background

(02:31) Understanding performance marketing

(06:31) The importance of paid search

(08:39) Identifying growth potential

(09:54) Case studies: Hairstory and Ipsy

(12:22) Experimenting with new platforms

(18:57) Choosing the right platforms

(20:23) LinkedIn for B2B marketing

(27:56) When to start investing in paid growth

(33:33) Common mistakes in performance marketing

(37:41) Working with agencies and consultants

(40:36) Hiring for performance marketing

(47:33) Metrics that matter

(54:43) Competitor analysis and CPC insights

(56:15) Custom reports and data visualization

(56:38) Understanding impression and click share

(59:10) True competition metrics

(01:02:14) Attribution and incrementality

(01:08:52) Building a performance marketing team

(01:10:53) Creative and ad copy collaboration

(01:15:48) Managing workload and hiring strategy

(01:20:52) Training and onboarding new hires

(01:24:41) Impact of ATT on performance marketing

(01:25:56) The power of creative in ads

(01:29:47) Using AI in performance marketing

(01:37:16) Lightning round

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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.

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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

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