5 Mistakes eCommerce Founders Are Currently Making With Their Marketing Strategy.
This year I had the chance to talk to many eCommerce founders located in the US and Canada.
Some of them were making 6-figures a year…
While some others were making up to $10 MM in revenue/year.
Here are 5 common mistakes I saw them make:
1️⃣ Underestimate social media platforms
“A good chunk of my traffic comes from Pinterest”
“So did you use Pinterest ads or talked to a Pinterest marketer?”
“Not really…”
TikTok…Pinterest…Instagram…
What I noticed is that most of them focus on 1-2 main social media channels and discard the other platforms.
Always be ready to analyze your data and traffic reports and invest in different platforms
2️⃣ Not focusing on email marketing
I’m still surprised to see 7-figure brands make 5-10% of monthly revenue from Klaviyo (selling CPG products)
The mistake is clear: they focus too much on acquisition and underinvest in retention marketing.
Especially if you’re selling CPG products, the goal should be to hit at least 20-30% of revenue from email marketing.
Also, your list is a great way to collect zero-party data that might help you have a deeper understanding of your audience.
3️⃣ Go ALL-IN in Q4…and overlook Q1, Q2, Q3
While Q4 is famous to be the busiest period of the year…
It’s also true that many eCommerce brands tend to overlook other Qs because “it’s not the right time”
That’s actually the best time to optimize and test your marketing channels…
So you could be ready for Q4 and get the most out of it.
4️⃣ Poor Inventory Management
Especially in Q4, this is a big challenge.
Many brands either overstock (and don’t know how to get rid of the “extra” stock)…
Or they go very aggressive in sales with a high risk of overselling (so they struggle to keep up with the consumer’s demand)
5️⃣ “Multi-tasking” In-House members
Another common thing I see with many brands is using an in-house member to manage another platform (e.g. SEO guy working on IG ads)
And although it might be cheaper, it’ll be very hard to get the same results a specialist in that platform can achieve.
If you're struggling with one of these issues and you need help, just hit me up at ugo@corbulostarmedia.com and I'll connect you with someone in my network who'll be able to help you out :)