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The Ecomcrew Ecommerce Podcast

An eCommerce podcast for store owners, hosted by 7-figure store owners Mike Jackness and Dave Bryant. We cover everything in eCommerce from Shopify, to Amazon FBA. From email marketing, to Facebook Ads. Never before has there been a podcast with store owners who are so candid. Subscribe to the Ecomcrew podcast today!
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Now displaying: October, 2021
Oct 28, 2021

Today, I’m excited to be doing another Under The Hood episode, which, for new listeners, is an hour-long coaching call with a fellow ecommerce business owner that we turn into a full-fledged podcast episode to help other sellers that might have the same questions and pain points. 

 

My guest is John Terry, who is one half of an interesting mom-and-son business, Ketonia. Their company is a thriving online keto bakery that sells products like a delicious Keto Coconut Macaroons mix. 

 

In this episode, John picks my brain on how to scale his business further, including managing traffic between an Amazon store and a brand site, the value of outsourcing tasks to a VA, and even strategies as the ecommerce space becomes more inflationary. 

 

Timestamps:

 

  • How John got into ecommerce - 1:18
  • Why you want to have traffic coming into your own website - 16:53
  • Which things to optimize if you’re a smaller online business - 26:22
  • Which tasks entrepreneurs can outsource to virtual assistants - 31:00
  • How to measure the success of your influencer outreach - 36:08
  • Mike’s main strategies in this current inflationary environment - 50:19
  • The potential of selling your brand to a rollup down the road - 54:00

 

I had a great time talking to John, and I hope he and his mom can come back for a sequel episode so we can learn how far their business has come along in a year or so.

 

Before we go, don’t forget that if you’re an Amazon FBA seller based in Canada, you can get a chance to win a 1-year EcomCrew Premium membership absolutely free by just completing a quick 2-minute survey. Just head over to ecomcrew.com/poll2021. Good luck!

 

If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to iTunes and leave us a review. Until the next one, happy selling!

Oct 25, 2021

Mike and Melanie of AVASK talk about what sellers need to know before expanding their ecommerce businesses to Europe and other markets abroad.

 

Many sellers think that selling or expanding into the EU is a nightmare, what with the language barriers and different compliance requirements. I myself have done it in the past and found it quite difficult.

 

That being said, my guest today, Melanie Shabangu, will help me debunk common myths all of us might believe about selling in the EU, and she’ll explain exactly how to keep an ecommerce business profitable when expanding abroad. 

 

Melanie is a tax expert and ecommerce accountant for AVASK, an accounting firm that specializes in helping ecommerce sellers expand their businesses into Europe, the UAE, and even Australia. 

 

In this episode, I have the pleasure of picking her brain about what selling in the EU is like, especially for those who have little to no experience with it. We’ll be talking about myths that might be putting off a lot of US sellers from selling in the EU, VAT and other compliance requirements, and the overall economics of selling in markets abroad.

 

Timestamps

 

  • Introduction - 0:00
  • Introduction to Melanie and AVASK Accounting - 1:35
  • Myths you might believe about selling in the EU - 2:35
  • The basic economics of selling in the EU - 4:46
  • How much it costs to translate an Amazon listing - 13:54
  • What is Value Added Tax? - 26:53
  • What your costs could look like with VAT - 27:56
  • Standard compliance requirements when expanding into European markets - 32:45

 

I want to thank Melanie for all the valuable stuff she shared today. I definitely wish I knew all of these before trying to sell abroad—I hope it motivated you to give it a shot as much as it did me.

 

If you want to learn more about what we discussed in this episode, shoot Melanie an email at melanie@avaskgroup.com or contact their expansion team at expansion@avaskgroup.com.

 

On the topic of selling across borders, we’re running an exclusive giveaway for our friends in Canada. By answering our quick 2-minute survey over on ecomcrew.com/poll2021 you get a chance to win a full year’s worth of EcomCrew Premium membership absolutely free! This grants you access to all our courses, past webinars, and direct email support from Dave and myself. Good luck!

 

As always, please leave us a review over on iTunes if you haven’t already. Until the next one, happy selling and we’ll talk to you soon!

Oct 18, 2021

John Li and Mike talk about the newest trends that PickFu has observed over hundreds of thousands of AB Tests done on their platform.

 

PickFu is a customer insights platform that acts as a digital focus group for ecommerce sellers who want to run tests, say A/B testing a product image, and get customer feedback on product listings. 

 

My guest for this episode is John Li, who is a Co-Founder of PickFu and knows the ins and outs of customer research. 

 

I’ll be picking his brain about the key insights that he’s gotten from the thousands of tests that sellers have run using PickFu, including the testing strategies that big ecommerce rollups use to optimize their listings. 

 

Throughout the episode, he’ll be showing me specific examples of optimized listings and we’ll be breaking down which elements have the most impact on sales and conversions. If you’re tuning in through an audio-only channel, be sure to check out this episode over on the EcomCrew YouTube Channel and our new dedicated EcomCrew Podcast Channel for clips and episode highlights.

 

Timestamps:  

  • Introduction - 01:00
  • John’s insights on how sellers have done testing over the years - 02:50
  • Actual examples of optimized listings - 07:25 
  • Why you should test early - 21:17
  • The different responses you get for running consumer insights tests - 26:15
  • Using open-ended ways to get feedback - 29:37

 

I want to thank John for the strategies and actionable stuff he shared in this episode. We’ll definitely have him back for more insights as the market develops. If you want to learn more about customer research or run your first test using PickFu, head over to their website and use discount code: ecomcrew to get 50% off your first poll.

 

By the way, if you’re selling on Amazon out of Canada, we’re currently running a giveaway exclusively for you. By answering our quick poll over on ecomcrew.com/poll2021 you can get a chance to win a full year’s worth of EcomCrew Premium membership, which is valued at $1499, absolutely free! 

 

If you haven’t already, please leave us a review over on iTunes. It helps more than you know. Happy selling and we’ll talk to you soon!

Oct 14, 2021

Mike sits down with Allan Fisch, Co-Founder of Moonshot Brands, an ecommerce aggregator that buys Amazon and Shopify companies.

 

As more ecommerce aggregators are joining the fray, we’re continuing our mini-series on rollup companies to peel back the curtain and really give you an idea how acquisition companies operate, so that you feel confident striking a deal with one of them in the future without leaving money on the table. 

 

Today’s guest is Allan Fisch, Co-Founder of Moonshot Brands, a company that aggregates Amazon and Shopify businesses and aims to be among the biggest ecommerce companies in the world.

 

One thing that separates Moonshot Brands from other aggregators is that they offer a deal where entrepreneurs can sell some equity, get additional upfront capital, and join Moonshot as it grows and acquires more ecommerce companies. 

 

We’ll learn about all that and more in this episode, so stay tuned.

 

Timestamps:

  • Introduction to Allan and Moonshot Brands - 1:16
  • How Moonshot structures deals with ecommerce sellers - 3:32
  • What a deal with Moonshot Brands looks like - 7:50
  • Moonshot Brands’s best selling points as an aggregator - 17:20
  • A glimpse of Moonshot Brands’s portfolio, acquisition history, and endgame - 20:54

 

I want to thank Allan for coming to the show and sharing his valuable insights on buying and selling ecommerce business. If you want in touch and learn more details about his company, head over to moonshotbrands.com or email them at info@moonshotbrands.com.

 

By the way, if you’re selling on Amazon out of Canada, we’re doing an exclusive giveaway just for you! By answering a quick 4-minute survey, you’ll get a chance to win a 1-year EcomCrew Premium membership worth $1499 absolutely free. All you have to do is accomplish the survey over on ecomcrew.com/poll2021. Good luck!

 

As always, don’t forget to leave us a review over on iTunes if you haven’t already. Happy selling!

Oct 11, 2021

Mike talks about his experience with 75 Hard, a transformative program where you do various physical and mental development tasks for 75 days. 

 

One of the best things I did over the summer is something called 75 Hard.

 

It is a transformative mental toughness program designed to help you take control of your life and just be a better version of yourself after completing it. 

 

Today, I’ll be talking about how I discovered 75 Hard and why I got into it (Hint: friendly bet). Then I’ll go over the various tasks that you’ll be required to do throughout the program and share my own experiences with them overall. 

 

A lot of entrepreneurs often overlook their own physical and mental toughness, so I hope this solo episode will inspire you to take care of yourself as you grow your business.

 

Timestamps:

  • Introduction - 0:00
  • Why I did 75 Hard - 1:32
  • Working out twice a day - 5:28 
  • Reading at least 10 pages a day - 11:39
  • Drinking one gallon of water a day - 20:36
  • Following a diet and no alcohol - 24:54
  • New tasks introduced in the program - 29:15

 

Download the 75 Hard app at:

 

Books mentioned: 

 

 

 

Completing 75 Hard was unbelievably satisfying for me, and I definitely felt a whole lot better with the tasks and routines I had to do. I’m looking forward to giving it another go, and I’m excited to share what that experience would be with you guys in the future. 

 

Before you go, make sure to check out EcomCrew’s FBA for Canadians Facebook page, where sellers based in the Great White North exchange ideas and strategies about growing their Amazon business. We’ll see you on the inside!

 

Don’t forget to leave us a review on iTunes if you haven’t already. Until the next one, happy selling!

Oct 4, 2021

Ivan of SellerPlex talks about the specifics of the current supply chain mess and how sellers can minimize its negative impacts on their businesses.

 

As if we don’t say it enough already, a strained supply chain is the ecommerce story of 2021.

 

Between the pandemic, ships stuck in shipping lanes, and a global container shortage, the whole supply chain mess has affected a lot of ecommerce businesses negatively. 

 

My guest today is someone who knows a thing or two about minimizing these negative impacts on your business and even boosting its value despite the supply chain crisis. 

 

Ivan Torlopov is Partner and Head of Supply Chain at SellerPlex who has years of experience in logistics and supply chain management. Since 2018, he’s devoted a lot of his time helping ecommerce sellers resolve high-level supply chain issues. 

 

Timestamps: 

  • Intro about Ivan and SellerPlex - 1:18
  • What the supply chain mess looks like from the logistics side - 3:25
  • How to save on shipping costs - 8:00
  • Strategies for avoiding running out of stock - 14:58
  • The value of shopping for rates - 20:49
  • Rerouting your shipments to cut costs and transit time - 22:14
  • Choosing your 3PL location wisely - 34:46

 

I want to thank Ivan for all the valuable recommendations he’s shared in this episode. If you want to get a hold of Ivan and learn more about what they do, you can head over to SellerPlex and explore all their content and even schedule a consultation. Make sure to mention that you’re coming from the EcomCrew Podcast so they can hook you up with a discount!

 

By the way, a topic we touched a little bit in this episode is boosting the value of your ecommerce business. If you’re interested to learn more, we’ll be going live with a free public webinar on Selling Your Ecommerce Business for Top Dollar.

 

That’s going to be on October 5, 2021 at 10 AM (PST). Head over to ecomcrew.com/webinar to reserve your slot. 

 

Also, don’t forget to leave us a review on iTunes. Happy selling and we’ll talk to you soon!

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