Mike Mierz

So you want to run your own marketing company? Those ads on IG got you thinking it's a passive revenue game? Those 10K MRR months are just a few leads away? That Corona & beach time are just ahead of you? Here's my Tuesday: - Respond to ~18+ client emails - Answer pings in Basecamp & Slack (I lost count) - Review blog for grammar - Write up contract for new scope - Handle an "urgent" client request over phone call - Discuss scope issues with an existing client thru email - Work with bookkeeper on payment tracking - Provide guidance on LinkedIn strategy to a client - Type up notes for upcoming calls - Prepare a deck for a new client launch - Send out invoice - Hound a client for not paying - 1 on 1 with 2 team members - 3 client facing calls / monthly recaps - Write copy for my new website - Spend 30 min on follow-up emails from last week's events - Pay invoices that I owe - Watch a demo video for a software I'm considering - Take pictures of my receipts from trip for accountant - Provide feedback on a website we launched - 1 sales call with a CEO + follow-up - Building a Notion board for a new ad campaign - Research a prospect for a sales call - Write LinkedIn posts - Engage on LinkedIn Oh yeah & I had: - Lunch - Workout - Library trip with daughter If you're not a context switching master; I'd suggest another business : )

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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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As you scale DTC - customer acquisition costs will increase...AND you'll make more $. Revenue growth doesn't come from acquisition growth - it comes from retention. Stacking customers is how we help build multiple 8 figure brands. So focus on increasing order value - it won't be impacted the next time Instagram goes down... #dtc #customeracquisition #shopify #digitalmarketing #facebookads #googleads #tiktokads Everything Bagel

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Doing lead gen PPC means longer sales cycles, offline steps, and not knowing when revenue/deals close. The same stuff makes pricing hard to crack. If you are unsure of your pricing because of the value delivered, then just go flat fee. Charge enough that you are happy, but not so much that makes it hard for the client to see value. Then reverse engineer the work. What components do you need to make this a success? Price high enough that you can have your systems in place - and if a prospect cannot afford it, then that prospect would likely fail anyway. An example is requiring Google Ads + landing page + offline tracking integration, all at one fee. And you propose a minimum ad spend required to make this work, based on experience. This keeps it super simple - you have a retainer fee and that is final. Obviously, if some big budget company comes your way then you might want to add some danger money on top. 😎 If you aren’t fully up to speed in an industry and need more experience, then just charge less. Use that as a stepping stone and make it up on later clients. I have never personally worked for free, but I have worked heavily discounted when I just wanted to get the experience and understanding (and case study). ----- Traditional agencies and old school freelancers are dying. To succeed in Google Ads today, you have to be able to do more than just account management. Learn how to future-proof your PPC agency with my Perfect Agency Framework: - Get new agency leads in 24 hours - Close 80% of qualified leads - Hire realistically, not based on lies you've been fed about unicorns - Get consistent results for your clients - Deliver exceptional Google Ads results 👉🏻 edleake.tv/forge-framework

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Higher CPMs = Higher ROAS? Why a high CPM is actually good for your business ↓ Most people think that high CPMs are affecting their business. Guess what? This is completely false. High CPMs may actually be a good sign. Why? Let’s talk CPMs: 1. How are CPMs calculated? CPMs derive from 4 main sources: 1. Audience 2. Placement 3. Creative  4. Page Score Audience Think of your audience in terms of supply and demand. If you for example advertise in the skin care niche, there’s a lot of similar brands that compete for the same audience. Therefore the “Base” CPM is higher from the get go. But this isn’t bad. The audience is actually more valuable. Placement The placement also impacts your CPMs. Typically a Facebook newsfeed impression has the highest CPM, and a FB Desktop Right Column a lower CPM. But the Facebook Newsfeed Impression has people who convert better. Creative Yes, your creative also has an impact on your CPM. Your creative should be entertaining and be fun for people to have on your newsfeed. The less entertaining your ad is, the less people want to see it. Facebook notices that and “punishes” you with higher CPMs to basically tell you to make ads that people want to see. Page Score If it drops to an orange or red level this is also a sign to Facebook that you’re a bad business partner to them. 2. Why CPMs don't matter First of all, there’s nothing (except one thing, more on that later) that you can do about your CPMs. There is not a specific action you can take to lower them. On top of that, you simply can’t say that lower CPMs are better. Some ads have lower CPMs because they reach a broader audience but don’t convert as well in the backend. Some ads have higher CPMs because they reacher a smaller audience but they convert super well. 3. When are your CPMs too high and what can you do about it? If your CPMs rise above $60ish on broad in the US, it may be a sign that one of two things is off Your Creative  Your Page Score Creative: Your creative shouldn’t be boring. Every ad should entertain. High CPMs can be a hint for you to create ads that are entertaining. Page Score: Your page score also has a large impact on your CPMs. If it drops to an orange or red level this is also a sign to Facebook that you’re a bad business partner to them. Could be due to various different factors e.g. Shipping Times, Product Quality etc. So, if your CPMs have risen recently check your page score. BUT with all that, keep your CPA in mind. If your CPA is profitable, then forget about your CPMs. To sum this up: 1. A high CPM often is an indicator for you reaching a valuable audience 2. Not every impression on Facebook is the same, some are worth more, some are worth less 3. The only actions you can do to improve your CPM is to: Improve your Page Score Make better creatives How does your page score look like?

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The proof is in the pudding. If you're a DTC business owner spending less than $10M/year on ads. I have the perfect system to scale your ad spend and lower you CPR.

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Bundling is a great tip for increasing Avg. Order Value. In D2C, if your AOV is less than $50 you will struggle mightily to make paid ads work (unless what you sell is a consumable with lots of repeat purchases). Image credit: Ben Heath #ecommerce #woocommerce #shopify #conversionrateoptimization

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🚨 Black Friday is 24 hours away. Ecommerce warriors, listen up: Here are 10 last-minute tips you can't ignore... 1. Monitor your site speed religiously. - Slow load times = lost sales. - Use tools like GTmetrix every hour. 2. Have a crisis plan ready. - Server crash? Payment gateway down? - Know exactly who to call and what to do. 3. Watch your inventory like a hawk. - Set up alerts for low-stock items. - Be ready to update your site instantly. 4. Customer service on steroids. - Response time is everything. - Consider 24/7 coverage for the next 72 hours. 5. Keep an eye on competitors. - They might slash prices last minute. - Be ready to react. 6. Mobile experience is king. - Most shoppers will be on phones. - Test, test, and test again on mobile. 7. Abandoned cart recovery is your lifeline. - Set up aggressive email sequences. - Consider SMS follow-ups (if allowed). 8. Watch for fraud spikes. - Cybercriminals love the chaos. - Double-check your fraud detection settings. 9. Have a post-purchase nurture plan. - First-time buyers are gold. - How will you turn them into loyal customers? 10. Prepare for the aftermath. - Returns will flood in. - Have a solid, customer-friendly process ready. Remember: It's not just about surviving Black Friday. It's about creating customers for life. Good luck out there. May your servers be strong and your coffee stronger. What's your biggest concern for the next 48 hours? #cro #digitalmarketing #ecommerce #dtc #shopify

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PSA: accrue returns and use estimates for daily tracking. And Shopify please stop presenting Total Sales as the default revenue definition in the dashboard. If we can't have contribution margin can we at least get order revenue?

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Winning abandoned checkout email structure: - HEADLINE + CTA above the fold - Dynamic product block - Benefits of their specific product - Featured testimonials Don't just throw in a dynamic product block and call it a day. This is what real personalization looks like...

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BFCM is over. But you can squeeze out more revenue using this 1 strategy: This is what usually happens on Black Friday & Cyber Monday. Shoppers get bombarded with deals. They feel overwhelmed and abandon carts. You work hard for those visitors. Now they're gone. But a “no” now doesn’t mean “no” forever. Those abandoners aren’t actually lost. They're waiting. Set up a "BFCM Extended" offer to retarget those potential buyers. Reach out with an exclusive coupon code like “LATEBCFM” Give them a compelling reason to complete their purchase. And lastly? Watch those extra sales roll in.

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Most DTC business owners are leaving money on the table. And here’s why... Most business owners think they’re doing enough. They’re running some generic ads or waiting for word of mouth to kick in. And sure, that might bring in some sales, but let’s be real—it’s not enough to dominate your market. Here’s the hard truth: scaling your business isn’t complicated, but it does require strategy. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝘁: 1️⃣ Understand Your Market Dive into what your audience really wants. What problems keep them up at night? What’s their dream outcome? Without this clarity, you’re shooting in the dark. 2️⃣ Study the Competition Look at your industry’s top players. What’s working for them? What trends are they capitalizing on? Take their playbook, refine it, and make it your own. This saves you both time and money to figure it all on your own. 3️⃣ Build a Simple Funnel Forget overcomplicated strategies. The winning formula is simple: - Hook them with a promise or outcome in your ad. - Use your landing page to squash doubts and show why your solution is the best. - Finish with a strong CTA that leaves no room for confusion. 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲. 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲. 𝗗𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗹𝘆 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. So, ask yourself—are you actually doing this? Or are you just running on autopilot, hoping things work out? (♻️P.S. Share this with someone who’s serious about scaling their business.)

How to name your company: SEO Expert: "It's gotta be a name you can win and rank for in search." Sales Expert: "I don't want to have to explain it. Make it easy to say." Engineer: "Who cares? The product will win them over." Designer: "It's gotta be edgy or funky." VC: "I've heard it before." Marketing and growth experts take in all of the perspectives above.

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Raising prices doesn't always mean losing customers (here's why you should test it) In the ultimate guide to maximizing ecommerce store contribution margin in 6 steps (3/6) To improve profitability and grow consistently - https://lnkd.in/gk4fg2yw Step 1 - Increase Repeat Purchase - https://lnkd.in/gebR668R Step 2 - Increase Average Order Value - https://lnkd.in/gNiG3nEp Pricing plays a key role in your contribution margin. Every DTC brand has two options - Increase prices & get higher customer acquisition costs OR Lower your prices & get lower customer acquisition costs Either can work for you It's more about balancing growth with profits. Profit with no growth is scary. Growth without profit is unsustainable. Testing pricing will help you find the right balance. Now, with A/B testing on prices, you can test multiple prices in parallel. Tools like Intelligems can help you run successful price tests. Changing prices without the AB test is sensitive, but here's how to do it with minimum risk. --> Change prices just before the holidays As you would be discounting anyway during holidays. So instead of 40% off on the old price, make it 30% off on the new price. At least you can go back to new higher prices in Jan. --> Change prices with a subscription/membership program Move the old price in the subscription. Use new prices without any incentive. Offer a free subscription or membership for one month, so there's no immediate hit. --> Change prices with a new version This is the Apple model. Pro and Pro Max. You can keep the old price and introduce a higher price on a new product. --> Use bundles to offset risk If most products are sold together. Introduce new bundles. Use the old price as part of a bundle and introduce a new price on a standalone product Remember: Operational costs go up every year. You should reflect these increased costs in your product prices so they don’t eat into your margins. #dtc #ecommerce I am Rahi Jain    I use my PCC (Product, Customer, Communication) framework to maximize growth and profitability for ecommerce brands.

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📊 Metrics That Matter: Product Validation Edition This week, I’m diving deep into primary metrics for product validation, and one of my key focuses is the number of new sellers entering the market. Here’s my approach: 👉 Start by analyzing the primary keyword and its associated keyword aggregate. For example, “white chair” might look great with millions of searches and hundreds of new sellers, but here’s the catch: you need to narrow it down. 💡 Shift your focus to purpose and features. Instead of just “white chair,” think “white toddler chair” or something similarly specific. Now assess: 1️⃣ Look at the competitors within this niche. 2️⃣ Use tools to get the total number of indexed and qualified products for this exact match. 3️⃣ Do the manual count, too. This is where you’ll uncover what the machine might miss—sometimes it’s not hundreds of competitors, but just a few real contenders. 📌 This kind of precision is how you avoid saturated markets and uncover hidden gems with actual profit potential. What metrics are you focusing during your product validation? #SellOnAmazon #ProductValidation #EcommerceStrategy #AmazonTips

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I’ve added 6-figures in email revenue for DTC brands, even without touching their emails. Here’s how: What’s the bridge between the awareness portion & retention portion of your funnel? It’s your website popup. Think about it: To go from website traffic that almost certainly won’t convert, to email marketing, you need a popup to capture their email. The problem is many brands throw the kitchen sink at their prospects & ask for too much zero party data right out the gate. This includes: • Family Name • Email • Location • Phone number This is way too much friction for your prospect to handle. Ask for their first name & email. Capture the rest during the email marketing process. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said this to DTC brands & netted them an uncountable amount of revenue from the increased popup conversions they receive. Ask for the bare minimum and collect the rest later. Watch your list grow at 3x the speed.

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A super common mistake I see 7-8 figure eCom brands make with their flows: Not creating a generic "catch-all" email in their flow split. This 8-figure client wanted to personalize the customer lifecycle journey in their Browse Abandonment Flow. So they decided to: 👉 Turn off the old Browse Abandonment Flow 👉 Create a new flow based on their two best-selling products 👉 Personalize the messaging based on product type All in hopes this new flow would: ✅ Boost overall conversions ✅ Increase $/recipient ✅ Improve marketing efficiency The problem? They forgot to create an additional email for everyone who wasn't browsing their two top-selling products like: 👉 Accessories 👉 Other Product Lines 👉 Product Variations As a result, they missed out on sending an additional 27,000 emails over the last year – that's 62% of their total Browse Abandonment volume. Based on their current flow performance, that's a potential $150,000+ loss in revenue. Don't make this mistake when personalizing your flows. Include a generic email for everyone else.

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I see this mistake with many West Coast DTC/Ecom Businesses... They set their email marketing sending time to their time zone. But did you know that almost 75%+ of the US population lives in the Eastern and Central Time zones? EASTERN - 47.6% CENTRAL - 29.1% Your ESP account is set to your time zone, so when you schedule your emails, it's going out in your time zone unless you specify otherwise. And with the majority of the population living in the eastern side of the US, it's important to factor this into your sending times. One mistake I always catch is clients setting their Black Friday (and any other promo they run) final reminders between 9 pm and 11 pm Pacific Time (the business's local time). That means the bulk of your audience is getting an email between 12 am and 2 am Eastern time. Be mindful of where the bulk of your audience resides and send accordingly.

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Red Flag Alert… Ecommerce Gurus There have been a ton of Ecommerce Gurus starting to pop up on my feed lately and I do want to address this as it’s quite important. A lot of times, people will get pulled into buying a course or mentorship program without knowing if they’re actually legit. News alert: The legit ones are well known in the Ecommerce industry. If people in the Ecom industry don’t know this person or can’t vouch for them, chances are… they’re not really who they say they are. Also note a couple of things I’ve noticed(generalized points): - Have followers, but no notable Ecom operator or brand owners know them - Constantly pitching “mentorship” or paid course - Claim to have a team but most likely don’t - Not on LinkedIn (weirdly) Now I’m not saying that all mentorship programs or courses are trash, but what I am saying is that it’s super saturated and if you are going to invest into one… find someone who is more notable and legit in the industry. At the same time, however, what I’ve also noticed is that most of the information gurus provide are already available… So in essence, you’re really paying for information that is most likely available for free. In comparison, if you are paying someone who’s “vetted”… you’re not really paying for information, you’re really paying to have access to their network. Sorry to say this, but gurus typically don’t have an extensive network and will never “offer” it out. Point is, just be careful out there and do more vetting!

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