António M.

Reddit is great for brand exposure, but one wrong move can get your subreddit clapped. With Skool, brands own their community and have the following benefits: ✉️ Collect email addresses (and API into beehiiv) 🔽 Attract your ICP and funnel them into discovery calls 🛒 Convert existing content into paid classes 🚀 Your posts index quickly on Google, helping you rank for what's important Now selling done for you Skool communities at Community Operators, link in comments.

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Ok, I get it—most popular CMS platforms have pretty solid tracking and metrics built in. (I personally love the granular detail you can get from Wix, and Shopify’s no slouch either!) But I feel like a lot of businesses are sleeping on GA4. Yeah, the transition from the OG Google Analytics was rough, and learning a whole new system is a pain. But having a proper GA4 setup is super important for a few reasons: 🌟 A Single Source of Truth Your CMS metrics are great, but GA4 is platform-agnostic. It collects data from across all your digital channels (not just your website), giving you a holistic view of your customers. That means consistent and comparable data, whether you’re tracking web traffic, app interactions, or something else entirely. 🌟 Future-Proofing Your Data Let’s say you decide to switch CMS platforms down the line. If you’re only relying on your CMS for tracking, you’ll lose all your historical data and be starting from scratch. A solid GA4 setup means no data gaps, no matter how often you switch platforms or tools. 🌟 Hidden Gems in GA4 While GA4 doesn’t come with as many pre-built reports as the original Google Analytics, there are goldmines in there. Features like predictive metrics, cross-platform tracking, and advanced segmentation aren’t always available in a CMS’s reporting. These are key to unlocking deeper insights into user behavior. 🌟 Trust but Verify Got trust issues with your CMS data? GA4 can help. Being able to compare data from multiple sources (like your CMS and GA4) means you can cross-check metrics and make sure nothing’s slipping through the cracks. 🌟 Neutral Ground Unlike your CMS, which might push its own agenda (like driving you toward certain e-commerce tools), GA4 is neutral. It’s not here to sell you on Google Ads (surprisingly!). It just gives you clean, unbiased data. 🌟 Track Third-Party Software If you’re using third-party tools like ticketing systems or booking software, GA4 is your best friend. CMS platforms typically track only the data happening on your site, but GA4 can track interactions across other software and services too. This means you get a complete picture of your customers’ journey, even if it happens outside your website. 🌟 It’s Critical for Google Ads If you’re running Google Ads, GA4 is basically a non-negotiable. Without feeding GA4 data into your campaigns, you’re not going to get anywhere near the full potential of your ads. GA4 powers smart bidding, remarketing audiences, and other advanced features that can boost your ROI. Other reasons? If you’re doing any cross-platform tracking (mobile apps, for example), GA4 excels at unifying data across web and app interactions. And GA4’s event-based model gives you far more flexibility in tracking user interactions than the old session-based model. #GA4 #marketingdata #googleanalytics

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Meta advert hot takes. Change my mind, agree, call me insane, you choose. 🌶️ There's no magic bullet for a winning advert, rather a 'secret sauce' of better copy, standout creative, and smarter targeting. 🌶️ ROAS is the single best measure of success in our game. 🌶️ Try not to create with an 'advert mindset'. Too ad-like and you're just white noise. 🌶️ One-size-fits-all campaign strategy? Myth. It's about finding the right fit for each client, service, and audience. 🌶️ Think you can outsmart Meta's algorithms? Guess again. Got any hot takes of your own? I'm all ears. #paidsocial #facebookads #metaads

Diversify, DIVERSIFY, dIVERSIFY, d!v3r$fY When your Google Ads CPCs increase and all your eggs are in one Ads basket - where's your budget going to come from to pay for the same level of traffic? (If you have unlimited cash, then ignore me) Diversify your channels a bit. People are looking for your products on Google Search, Instagram, TikTok and many other channels. Why aren't you there? Why aren't you building a presence? Why aren't you trying to build on those platforms and curate content for them? It's all about understanding, which takes some reading and learning I know, how best they can or can't work for your business. If you want to chat about SEO when your Ads costs skyrocket, shoot me a message 📩 😅 I still love you Paid Ads agency friends 😅

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We need to hold agencies accountable for paying creators on time. The amount of late payments from agencies I have experienced recently is astronomical. Industry standard is net 30. If you’re lucky net 15 and if you’re even luckier you can negotiate an upfront payment/ deposit. Now I have seen a rise of data driven creative agencies with net 45 + net 60 payment terms taking another 30 days to actually pay. This is absolutely unacceptable… I always push back on net 45 and rarely agree to net 60 unless talent genuinely love the brand. We need to have a lot more serious conversation about brands paying agencies on time + agencies paying creators on time. Obviously it’s not always on the agency but often times it is…

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Most ppl don’t need a scaling method. They need... 1. A good testing & validating process 2. A proven method for creative strategy 3. A reliable system for doing research & writing copy ...so they can actually scale.

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Better words on a website that make people buy stuff? Yup - we're spilling the beans. All 60+ pages of them. Blend - eCommerce CRO & CVO Agency clients on average see a boost of +78.00% on their conversion rate after 6 months of working with us, and sometimes this can be driven by changes to copy onsite and on email. Feel free to keep scratching around (and your head) or get the guide for free in the comments 👇 #ecommerce #shopifyplus #cro

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3 misconceptions that set you up to fail with CRO. Align your expectations to the process or you will unfortunately pay the price. 1. Viewing CRO as a band aid for poor ad performance. CRO is not a band aid. It’s a process that collects and activates insights through research and testing to deliver measurable online growth. We can control what we learn, how we learn it and how we validate. We can’t control market fluctuations and seasonality. And we can’t control the demand for your product. Thinking this is a band aid shifts the perception and expectations in unrealistic ways. Nothing will fix ad performance if the issue stems from campaigns, targeting, copy and creatives. This process will help improve conversions, but if we draw the growth curve your business is own, it probably won’t radically change its course. Great outcomes can and will happen, but don’t rely on them being a sure or quick thing. 2. Expecting best practice tests. Don’t believe what all the blogs tell you. There are no best practices and no great test that work for every business. Copying the best websites without basis won’t yield consistent good results either. The very best experimenters still fail 7/10 times, and that’s with research-driven tests. Learn about psychological principles and study your specific audience for a much greater ROI. A better lens to look at this is thinking of “best practices” in the sense of how we run the program. What you need are contextual tests for your website and audience, based on where users get stuck and abandon in their journey. It’s not easy work, but the best performing programs all share one trait : tests have a clear hypothesis, problem statement, and supporting data. 3. Expecting immediate results and returns. CRO provides value way beyond pure metrics and revenue. It establishes a process for making smarter decisions, in an environment that controls risk. It trains entire your team to think from a place of not knowing, and encourages curiosity and develops a spirit of validating insights. You need to give at least 90 days to properly set up the process, workflows and gain traction. Results are going to lag by the measure of the average test duration. Most tests produce an increase below 15%. One test will not change the world. Just like interest on a financial portfolio, If you let test wins compound, then the impact can be greatly felt. There are no silver bullets when it comes to optimizing your website. These misconceptions are damaging to any business getting started with website optimization. Set your expectations around building a system and an approach for decision making. Trust in the process and give it 90 days to prove it’s valuable.

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The 5 cardinal sins of CRO (And how to fix them) 1. Weak Call to Action (CTA) ❌ ↳ Many brands rely on vague, small CTAs that don’t drive action. ↳ Fix: Make your CTA bold, full-width, and crystal clear about the next step. 2. Lack of Social Proof 📉 ↳ Thinking that people will trust your brand without reviews is a major mistake. ↳ Fix: Add testimonials, customer reviews, or even numbers like “10,000+ Happy Customers.” 3. Features > Benefits 📋 ↳ Focusing too much on features without telling customers how it helps them is a lost opportunity. ↳ Fix: Speak to the benefits—how does your product make their lives better? 4. Poor Visual Layout 🎨 ↳ A cluttered, disorganized page doesn’t give your product the spotlight it deserves. ↳ Fix: A clean, visual-first layout that makes the product and its benefits pop. 5. Bad Cart Experience 🛒 ↳ Making it difficult for customers to checkout leads to abandoned carts. ↳ Fix: Remove distractions, add dynamic shipping prompts, and offer cross-sells to boost AOV. - - - Brands like Graze are leaving millions on the table because of these mistakes. But by optimizing these five areas, you can dramatically increase conversions and profit per visitor. What other CRO mistakes have you seen? Drop them in the comments ⬇️ ♻️ Repost to help others avoid these costly mistakes. And follow me for more conversion tips!

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Google Ad Red Flag #1 🚩 I audit so many Google Ad accounts that just tick over. Often when you look at the last 12 months data; - No experiments or A/B tests have been run ❌ - The same 1 ad in each campaign has been running for ages ❌ - The same bidding strategies and settings have been used ❌ - Minimal new campaign testing and structure testing ❌ - Just keyword and bidding tweaks 😅 ❓ So my Google Ad Red Flag #1 is - ‘Not A/B testing’ and look I get it!….. I think people get scared to run tests BUT it’s one of the best ways to keep improving results Sometimes tests don’t work but you still learn from them and when they do work you can keep compounding your wins into better results What tests do you like to run in your paid ad or digital campaigns? #ppc #payperclick #googleads #searchmarketing #googleadvertising #sem

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I was chatting with Lee Waltham yesterday about the changing role of organic search in 2024. Wil Reynolds is a leader in the space and lays it out really well. "Gartner predicted a 25% drop in search traffic by 2026. In reality, my SEO traffic is already down 41% in 2024. But here's the surprising part: my newsletter signups are up 65%, and revenue remains steady." It's an interesting point and aligned with what we're seeing at Brandish | A Creative Agency— losing SEO traffic isn’t the end. There's less correlation between SEO traffic and leads now, with metrics like branded search and homepage visits becoming more relevant. We're talking a lot about this with our clients. It's a big part of why your creative approach is more critical than ever as a marketer. As research shifts to AI-driven search, how do we adapt our KPIs? Time to rethink our SEO strategies. Read Wil's full article here: https://lnkd.in/etJvr8a9 #SEO #GrowthMarketing #BrandedSearch

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RISK FREE ADVERTISING ONLINE WITH GUARANTEED ROAS Risk-free advertising online with guaranteed ROAS with Cooper Harris  - So rather than just showing a consumer cool pictures, we actually show them viable ad units from which they can actually purchase. And then we do that on a pure performance basis for our brands. - We’re a tech platform behind the scenes and looking at things and making optimizations. It is literally an algorithm that uses its own learning to make decisions. - We are super conversion focused. So we really want to show the right product, the right person at the right time. - Brands are way overly dependent on Amazon. They don’t own their customer, Amazon owns them. - I think it is so much more powerful and empowering for brands to have a service or a platform that helps them actually use the data to do something. And that something should be to drive sales. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gGHuiU-A #podcasting #podcast #podcasts #podcastlife #podcaster #podcastersofinstagram #podcasters #podcastshow #spotify #itunes

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Do you launch Performance Max or Standard Shopping? Ask yourself these 3 questions: 1. Is Google our primary traffic channel? 2. How long is our average day to conv from first click? 3. As an operator, do I prioritise control & transparency or performance? Full vid in comments below breaks down this framework.

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3 Common Mistakes Ecom Founders make that prevent them from scaling past $1,000 in ad spend: 1️⃣ Shiny Object Syndrome Stop wasting your time running after the 5th “100 Great Hooks” Freebie and the next media buying hack. You already have something that’s working. Double down on that. Better results come from refining and optimizing what you already know works, not from continuously shifting focus. The same principle applies to the tools and platforms you use. 2️⃣ Lost Focus All too often I see founders losing their focus. Running from tracking software to tracking software to make their spend more efficient, focusing on new ad platforms, launching new “hero” products all while forgetting what got them off the ground in the first place. Total focus on 1 Product, 1 Channel and 1 Avatar. That’s all you need to scale (for now). Focus on your hero product on the channel that got you your first successes and on the avatar that buys. 3️⃣ Take Risks Iterating your winning creative for the 5th time won’t get you anywhere. At a certain point you have to take a calculated bet on your next steps. Whether that’s investing more into content to get better creatives, trying out a new offer a new angle or building out a landing page. Your next big win will come from being innovative. But don’t take too many risks at once. #ecommerce #metaads

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Why SEOs Are Struggling to Understand Brand Marketing. There are a lot of SEOs now using the word 'brand' that clearly have not done enough research. Brand marketing is well established, with scientific studies, big budgets, conferences and events. Oh and experts...lots of them. Now, to the reality. SEO is a physical or digital availability tactic. We make brands easier and more convenient to buy, when people are in the market to buy. They are 'in the aisle' and looking to purchase. And this is the power of organic search (and why adwords is as big as it is). Many people do not know what brand to buy, so they go to search engines using keywords and enter into what Google calls 'the messy middle of search'. Eventually having a few brands in their consideration set, they purchase. We are a bottom of funnel play. We educate in the market buyers or those coming into the market. But as part of this, especially in the world of AI search, we need to build our distribution infrastructure. Traditionally SEOs have thought of this as just links. In reality for many years, it's been 'mention information'. Google has long used this to understand authority because it's so hard to cheat. Along with syntactic parsing, phrase clustering and more. Google is able to understand authority. This is key, because what Digital PR does is to take a brands expertise and expand this through the media. 'According to the (subject) experts at (brand name)'. Yes, this gains links too, and yes this is also good. But I'll be more than happy with mentions, extra happy with a link. And it's this, along with on-page and some technical work that allows us to place our products and services on the digital shelves. Do this right and you can win huge amounts of business. And vastly increase your market share. Brand marketing also increases the likelihood you'll be recognised in the SERPs and chosen or be searched for. SEO is a massive but largely ignored part of marketing. But if we're going to gain more respect and indeed budget, you're going to study actual marketing, not smart thinking. The opportunities in SEO are huge, once you realise how many have been doing it badly. And that's why low 'authority' sites can outrank you. They are doing things well that Google rewards that you either can't see or aren't looking for. But once you understand the mission, you'll assemble the right skills and tools. SEO fuelled by digital PR handles it all. And if you need advice, message me.

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CRO is still widely misunderstood and misrepresented. Misleading agencies are tagging CRO to entirely different initiatives. Do not let them sell you on what is a poorly hidden attempt at boosting their MRR. What’s the incentive for your average digital marketing agency? I mean this seriously. Are they really looking to build a growth function in your organization? Most likely, they think template tests will suffice to you while adding more revenue and profitability to their bottom line. Consider that they already offer paid search, paid social, email, seo, affiliate marketing, organic social…. A fair question to ask is do they really have the competencies with each of those service lines? And do they for CRO? Locally here in Montreal, average retention in agencies is benchmarked under 1 year. You don’t get specialized skills and a dedicated team in these environments. From personal experience, I can also tell they assign clients to staff until they are over capped on bandwidth. And a lot of projects landed on my lap that I was not skilled to work on but had to nonetheless, without tools, coaching or resources. If you consider their offer, here’s a set of questions that will enlighten you on their ability to deliver. - What does client allocation look like for my assigned team? - What sort of tenure in the company do my assigned team members have? - How is the team trained and kept up to date with industry standards? - What is the composition of my assigned team? - How do you come up with test ideas? - What does a test results analysis looks like? From these questions, you will get to understand the intent and incentive the agency has. You’ll get to see what sort of team you would be working with. You will also see if they work tactically or if they operate under a specific process. Most of the time, digital marketing agencies do not have the specialized skills.

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Is there a way to measure loop returns return rates by weekly cohort? We recently tested free returns and I’d like to see the impact on return rates on those with free returns versus not. As well as look at when we took free return global with the entire site. Ideally measuring the week after returns rates close cause then it will be fully picture.

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3 steps to increasing revenue for your DTC brand: Step 1: Drive traffic Step 2: Convert traffic Step 3: Retain customers But....there’s a catch. Don’t neglect step 3. If done well, step 3 pays the cycle all over again. For free.

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Tech stack you need to run outbound campaigns: - Porkburn for domains - Google for inboxes - Mailreach to test deliverability - Apollo for lead scraping - Millionverifer to validate leads - Instantly to send out emails at scale

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