Chew on This - Digestable DTC Content

In a heartfelt conversation, Solomon Choi shares his journey as the founder of 16 Handles, a beloved frozen yogurt brand in NYC. He emphasizes the importance of customer obsession and adaptability in a competitive market. Solomon highlights how early adoption of social media gave him an edge and stresses the power of authentic connections with consumers. He also discusses the value of continuous learning and taking risks, encouraging aspiring entrepreneurs to embrace their vision wholeheartedly. His insights are a lasting tribute to his entrepreneurial spirit.

Tyler Rutstein, Chief Brand Officer at Overtime, shares insights on transforming the company into a 9-figure e-commerce powerhouse. He discusses the power of real-time content creation during games and unique limited-edition apparel drops. Partnerships with brands like Nike and SpongeBob reflect their strength in market understanding. Tyler emphasizes the need for staying informed on industry trends and building strong community ties to engage the audience effectively, all while navigating the challenges of post-COVID e-commerce.

Sponsored by:📨 Sendlane - Tired of paying for hosting unnecessary contacts on your email list? Thats why we switched to Sendlane where we are only charged for the number of contacts we send to. You will unlock huge savings by signing up with them. 🔗 https://sendlane.com/chewonthis In this episode of Chew on This, Bruce Smith, founder and chairman of Hydrow, shares his journey of building the successful rowing machine company and Peloton competitor. He discusses the challenges of scaling a business, the importance of passionate belief in your product, and how to navigate a shifting market. He also emphasizes the importance of staying true to your brand’s North Star and creating a strong, cohesive brand identity. 🚣‍♀️ Passion fuels funding: Bruce’s deep knowledge of rowing and his genuine belief in the product helped him secure early investment even without a formal pitch deck. 💰 Navigating the market: The shift from easy access to capital during the pandemic to a more cautious investor landscape forced Hydro to refocus on efficiency and lean in on what works. 📈 Attribution is king: Moving away from a mass market approach and building a strong in-house performance team allowed Hydro to see significant growth in unit sales and a decrease in CAC. 🌟 Celebrity influence: Strategic influencer partnerships, like with Kevin Hart, have been instrumental in Hydrow’s success. 🧭 Stay true to your North Star: Bruce emphasizes the importance of staying committed to your brand’s promise and creating a cohesive brand identity across all aspects of your business. 0:00 - Intro ​1:20 - Moving from Canada to the US to pursue entrepreneurship​ 4:10 - Changes in the cost of money and venture capital​ 6:28 - Having a phenomenal product for fundraising ​9:04 - Passion and expertise in fundraising​ 11:59 - The journey of Peloton vs the world of rowing ​16:05 - Price points and changes in consumer behavior​ 18:20 - Strategies for marketing and building brand awareness ​20:08 - Positive growth and traction in unit sales​ 23:25 - Hydrow's approach to influencer marketing​ 24:21 - Kevin Hart and Hydrow​ 25:47 - Affiliate marketing and choosing influencers carefully​ 26:31 - Taking marketing risks that align with the brand​ 28:11 - Value of brand equity and impact of collaborations​ 29:00 - Content creation and brand awareness in marketing strategies​ 31:17 - Restructuring Hydrow post-pandemic ​37:05 - The future of Hydrow - IPO? ​39:02 - Adapting to market trends and being open to new opportunities 44:43 - Final chew Follow us, subscribe to our newsletter, and to see our exclusive merch check out https://chewonthis.io/ Ron Shah - https://twitter.com/obviceo Ash Melwani - https://twitter.com/ashvinmelwani Chew On This - https://twitter.com/chewonthisdtc

Drew, a profit optimization expert from Intelligems, shares insights on increasing e-commerce profitability. He emphasizes focusing on profit per visitor over just conversion rates. The conversation dives into strategies like risk reversal and social proof to enhance customer confidence. They discuss the impact of clear navigation and value propositions on conversions. Drew also unveils effective pricing techniques like price anchoring and upselling methods to boost average order value, making data-driven adjustments critical for success.

Ron, Ash, and Ankit, the co-founders of Obvi, share their journey of overcoming significant business hurdles. They discuss their identity crisis as a brand and the importance of adapting marketing strategies. Their insights on managing supply chain issues and embracing pre-order models are enlightening. They emphasize brutally honest SKU rationalization and the strategic use of credit to improve cash flow. Open communication and creative testing in advertising emerge as vital themes, offering invaluable lessons for aspiring brand builders.

In this conversation, Jimmy Kim, co-founder of Sendlane and email marketing guru, tackles the evolution of email marketing and the pitfalls of traditional metrics like open rates. He reveals why bots have made open rates obsolete and stresses the value of click-through data to uncover customer intent. Jimmy advocates for immediate retargeting based on clicks, emphasizes the necessity of hyper-segmentation, and encourages brands to increase email frequency for better engagement. His insights could transform how businesses connect with their audiences.

In this discussion, Dave, the President of Bambu Earth and a specialist in conversion rate optimization, dives into maximizing revenue per session. He highlights the power of cost caps for efficient ad spend and how experimenting with surprising free shipping can boost sales. Dave also emphasizes the benefits of subscription models for stability and lifelong value, while sharing insights on unit economics. He encourages businesses to creatively connect with customers through targeted offers and personalized marketing strategies.

Ben Yahalom, CEO of True Classic, shares company growth secrets: consumer empathy, profitability focus, data utilization, Omni Channel strategy, and international expansion. From T-shirts to 15+ product categories. Importance of emotional connection with customers. Start with English-speaking countries for international expansion.

In this discussion, Alex Beller, Co-founder and President of Postscript, shares his expertise in SMS marketing and AI applications. He highlights that SMS can outshine email in list growth and monetization. Alex warns against over-segmenting customers and stresses the importance of finding the right message frequency. He also emphasizes engaging content, like quizzes and games, to boost interaction. The conversation dives deep into metrics like Lifetime Value (LTV) and innovative retention strategies that foster brand loyalty and improve engagement.

In S4 E1 of Chew on This, ​Ron and Ash sit down with Kevin Gould, Co-Founder of Glamnetic, as he shares his entrepreneurial journey from starting Beautycon to co-founding Glamnetic. He discusses the challenges faced during the pandemic and the importance of influencer marketing and community building. Kevin also emphasizes the significance of analyzing marketing campaign success and managing separate teams for different ventures while also sharing learnings between them. He highlights how collaborations and cross-promotions between brands are key strategies for growth, and how building unique value propositions and brand loyalty over time, along with thoughtful product development and retail distribution strategies, are essential for long-term success in the beauty industry. 💅 Kevin reveals a costly mistake of launching a collagen water that “tasted horrific” and emphasizes the importance of listening to feedback before launching new products. 💰 He believes that the future of his business lies in acquiring and scaling beauty brands, as well as buying and holding cash flow-generating businesses. 📈 Kevin highlights the importance of staying curious and humble in the ever-changing landscape of e-commerce, emphasizing that adapting to platform shifts is crucial for success. 🗣️ Kevin utilizes voice memos for recruitment and encourages small brands to leverage DMs for prospecting and community building. 📊 He shares his approach to measuring the success of in-person events, focusing on brand activation and word-of-mouth marketing. 0:00 - Intro.​ 2:05 - Kevin starting BeautyCon. ​4:21 - The inception of Glamnetic. ​6:29 - Challenges during the pandemic.​ 10:01 - Influencer marketing and community building. ​13:10 - Analyzing the success of marketing campaigns through various channels.​ 17:07 - Managing separate teams for different ventures and shared learnings.​ 20:02 - Collaborations and cross-promotions between brands.​ 22:05 - Building unique value propositions and brand loyalty.​ 23:26 - Product development strategies and considerations for retail distribution.​ 25:13 - Taking feedback from the community for retail success.​ 28:06 - Collaboration with retailers for exclusivity.​ 29:18 - Impactful communication with customers.​ 30:08 - Building community through exclusive discounts.​ 31:01 - Working with Gorgias for ticket sales strategies.​ 33:00 - In-person events for brand awareness.​ 34:04 - Brand activation through unique experiences.​ 36:00 - Marketing strategies and budget allocation.​ 38:02 - Kevin reflects on past mistakes and lessons.​ 40:02 - Organic growth on TikTok and challenges with TikTok Shop. 49:53 - Final chews. Sponsored by: 📨 Sendlane - Tired of paying for hosting unnecessary contacts on your email list? Thats why we switched to Sendlane where we are only charged for the number of contacts we send to. You will unlock huge savings by signing up with them. 🔗 https://sendlane.com/chewonthis Follow us, subscribe to our newsletter, and to see our exclusive merch check out https://chewonthis.io/ 💅 Glamnetic: https://www.glamnetic.com/ Ron Shah - https://twitter.com/obviceo Ash Melwani - https://twitter.com/ashvinmelwani Chew On This - https://twitter.com/chewonthisdtc