eCommerce Podcast

• Data Is the Biggest Lever in Digital Marketing Right Now

  Digital marketing veteran Vlad Zhovtenko reveals why data has become the single biggest lever in modern e-commerce marketing. After 25 years in the industry, he explains how businesses can transform from guessing to growing by owning and leveraging their customer data strategically.We explore how the shift from platform-dependent marketing to data ownership creates competitive advantages, why TikTok's rise as a search engine changes everything, and how AI is reshaping how customers discover and buy products. Vlad shares his practical framework for identifying the 1-2 metrics that actually drive business growth, avoiding the AI analysis trap, and adapting to constant platform algorithm changes.Key Point Timestamps:07:49 - Data as the biggest single lever in digital marketing08:46 - How businesses can now own and control their data10:14 - TikTok's evolution into a major search engine17:55 - Framework for choosing metrics that matter20:45 - Real example: The missing chat button case study25:06 - Why AI can't replace business context34:12 - Starting an e-commerce business the right wayData as the Ultimate Marketing Lever (07:49)Vlad cuts straight to the heart of modern digital marketing: "I don't think it has changed much, at least in my perception. I say that is data. It's just that for the last sort of like five years maybe, the data became a real lever for you."The fundamental shift isn't about new platforms or tactics—it's about ownership. For years, e-commerce operators were digital sharecroppers, planting campaigns on Meta's land and Google's tools while never controlling the insights that powered their growth.Now businesses can feed their own data back to platforms with proper rules and regulations, becoming "the source to train their optimisation." This creates a compound advantage where your data improves your results, which generates better data, creating an upward spiral that competitors can't easily replicate.The Search Revolution Hiding in Plain Sight (10:14)While businesses obsess over Google rankings, consumer behaviour has fundamentally shifted. "TikTok is growing to become a major search engine just because how many people use it," Vlad explains.This creates a three-layer challenge:Traditional SEO strategies may miss where your customers actually searchAI recommendation engines operate on completely different rules than search botsSocial commerce platforms blur the lines between discovery and purchaseThe solution isn't to abandon Google, but to understand where your specific audience searches and optimise accordingly. "Getting the data as to how they operate, getting into that game if search engine traffic is important for a business is critical," Vlad notes.The Framework That Cuts Through Data Overwhelm (17:55)Vlad's approach to metrics selection is brilliantly simple. Focus on three questions:"What you can actually measure" – Many businesses track metrics they can't properly measure, leading to decisions based on unreliable data."What you can actually influence" – Tracking vanity metrics you can't directly impact wastes mental energy and resources."Pick up out of them, I don't know, one or two" that actually push the business forward.He demonstrates this with a practical example: A jewellery maker saw leads dip in August. Instead of diving into conversion optimisation, Vlad identified the real bottleneck was lead generation. The business expected 30-something customers to commit to in-person visits without easier ways to ask initial questions. One missing chat button was throttling the entire business.Beyond Platform Dependence (25:06)The temptation to dump data into AI and expect magic insights is strong, but Vlad warns against this "lottery-ticket approach" to...

  --------  

  46:54

  --------

  46:54
• Black Friday Part 4 - The Mom Test and 8 More Tips That Actually Work

  Your website's gonna get rammed on Black Friday - but are you actually ready? In the fourth instalment of our Black Friday strategy series, Matt Edmundson reveals nine battle-tested tips that address the operational realities most brands completely ignore.Episode SummaryThis episode cuts through generic Black Friday advice to focus on what actually happens when your traffic explodes, customer service gets flooded, and 70% of sales shift to mobile devices. Matt introduces the 'mom test' - a simple but powerful framework for validating your Black Friday offers before they go live. We explore why Black Friday is really a two-week opportunity, not a single day, and cover essential operational preparations from site speed optimisation to weekend customer service planning.Key Point Timestamps:06:00 - Introducing the Mom Test Framework07:00 - Site Speed: Your Hidden Conversion Killer08:00 - Customer Service: Planning for the Flood11:00 - Why Paid Media Gets Expensive (And What To Do)13:00 - Social Media: Building Anticipation14:00 - Mobile Reality: 70% of Sales Happen Here15:00 - Cart Abandonment: Thursday's Big Challenge16:00 - The Two-Week Mindset Shift18:00 - Creating Year-Round Black Friday PagesThe Mom Test Framework (06:00)At the heart of Matt's approach lies what he calls 'the mom test' - a deceptively simple validation method that prevents most Black Friday disasters before they happen."My mum is not the most technically savvy person on the planet, so if she can navigate it, I know other people will be okay with them as well," Matt explains. The test involves sending your Black Friday landing pages, offers, and purchase flows to someone who isn't your ideal target market but represents average technical ability.Beyond preventing customer confusion, the mom test dramatically reduces customer service load by identifying common pain points before they become hundreds of support emails on Monday morning.Mobile Reality: 70% of Sales (14:00)"70% of sales on average on Black Friday weekend are gonna happen on a mobile device," Matt reveals, highlighting a critical reality most brands overlook in their preparation.This isn't just about having a responsive design. Matt emphasises comprehensive mobile testing: "I want my mum in the mum test to do everything on her mobile. I want to talk to a friend who's got an Android because my mom's got an iPhone. I want to test it on Android as well."The testing needs to cover the entire purchase journey across different devices, screen sizes, and operating systems to ensure nothing breaks when traffic spikes.The Two-Week Opportunity (16:00)Perhaps Matt's most powerful insight is reframing Black Friday entirely: "Black Friday now lasts two weeks. It's the week before and it's the week after, right? Starting with Cyber Monday, the week after going through."This shift from viewing Black Friday as a single event to understanding it as a two-week marketing opportunity completely changes how you plan, execute, and measure success. Instead of cramming everything into one overwhelming day, you can build anticipation, test systems, and create multiple touchpoints.Matt's team once ran '12 Days of Christmas' campaigns with different offers each day, keeping customers engaged throughout the extended period rather than relying on a single promotional push.Planning for Operational Reality (08:00)While competitors focus on offers and acquisition, Matt emphasises preparing for what actually happens during Black Friday. Your standard Monday-to-Friday customer service won't cut it when weekend queries pile up."You're gonna want customer service staff to man the emails, the live chat, and the phone over the weekend," he advises. "If you leave it until Monday, people feel forgotten, and you'll come...

  --------  

  23:48

  --------

  23:48
• Black Friday Part 3 - The VIP List Strategy for Better Black Friday Results | Matt Edmundson

  Most eCommerce brands make the same Black Friday mistake: blasting identical offers to their entire email list. Matt Edmundson explains why this approach "just feels wrong" and shares a VIP list strategy that segments customers into "soulmates," "lovers," and those "about to dump you." Learn how to create self-selecting VIP lists, test offers early, leverage SMS marketing, and turn your best customers into referral engines.Key Point Timestamps:05:00 - The existing customer strategy fundamentals06:30 - Segments and journeys for maximising value09:00 - Creating VIP lists and self-selection strategy11:00 - Testing offers early with your VIP audience12:30 - Give your best customers the best discounts13:00 - SMS marketing for VIP access15:00 - Building buzz campaigns before Black Friday16:00 - Turning up your referral campaignThe Problem Most Brands Miss (05:00)Matt identifies a fundamental flaw in most Black Friday approaches: treating all customers equally when they clearly aren't equal in value."Most eCommerce companies will just whack out crazy offers, right? Lose all their profits, all their best customers get the same offer, and it just feels wrong in so many ways," Matt explains.This creates a problematic dynamic where your most loyal customers—who generate 80% of your revenue—receive the same treatment as complete strangers who may never buy again. There's no recognition of loyalty, no acknowledgment of their relationship with your brand.The RFM Segmentation Framework (06:30)Matt recommends using RFM segmentation, a methodology he learned from podcast guest Valentin Radu of Omni Convert, who uses memorable language to define customer relationships."He uses great phrases like soulmates, lovers, just about to dump you, the breakups and all that sort of stuff to sort of define the relationship you have with clients," Matt shares. "And actually at Vegetology we now use his language... just to define our clients a little bit better."The key insight is that different segments require completely different approaches: "If someone is about to dump you... the journey you want to take them on is very different to the journey you want to take on for someone who buys from you almost every day. The emails, the stories, the marketing should have very different language, very different feel."The Self-Selection VIP Strategy (09:00)One of Matt's favourite approaches comes from Daniel Budai, who's also appeared on the podcast. Rather than guessing who your VIP customers are, you let them self-identify."You email out all of your customers and you say, listen, what we're gonna do this Black Friday is we are gonna create a VIP Black Friday offers list. So if you are on that list, you'll get access to all of the Black Friday offers early," Matt explains.This strategy delivers multiple benefits: it gets your list engaged weeks before Black Friday, allows you to start sales early to reduce warehouse pressure, and creates a perfect testing ground for your offers. Only genuinely interested customers will opt in, giving you a highly engaged segment.Test Early, Win Big (11:00)The VIP list becomes your Black Friday laboratory, eliminating guesswork from your biggest sales weekend."You're gonna split test an email, which you send out to that VIP list. You're gonna see which offer pulls the best, and guess what you're gonna do on Black Friday weekend. You're gonna do that offer, which you've tested on your list already," Matt explains.This approach means you're not switching campaigns during the crucial weekend or hoping your offers will work—you already know what performs best with your most engaged customers.SMS for Inbox Overwhelm (13:00)Matt suggests considering SMS marketing as an alternative to email...

  --------  

  19:56

  --------

  19:56
• Black Friday Part 2 - The Knowledge Trust Matrix for New Customer Success | Matt Edmundson

  What if the secret to Black Friday success isn't just about discounts, but about building relationships that last? In this second episode of our Black Friday strategy miniseries, Matt Edmundson reveals the Knowledge Trust Matrix—a simple framework that transforms one-time buyers into lifetime customers.Episode SummaryMatt challenges the conventional approach to Black Friday customer acquisition, where brands focus on extracting maximum profit from new customers rather than building foundations for long-term relationships. Through the Knowledge Trust Matrix, he demonstrates how shifting this mindset can dramatically increase customer lifetime value. The framework centres on moving customers from low knowledge and trust to high knowledge and trust through strategic onboarding, educational content, and authentic storytelling.Key Point Timestamps:03:00 - The Fundamental Mindset Shift04:30 - Introducing the Knowledge Trust Matrix06:00 - The Four Customer Types Explained08:00 - Building Trust with UGC and Live Chat10:00 - The On-Ramp Strategy for Hesitant Buyers12:30 - The Story Intersection Principle14:00 - Post-Purchase Onboarding ExcellenceThe Knowledge Trust Matrix Framework (04:30)Matt's framework centres on two essential elements for building customer relationships: knowledge and trust. He visualises this as a matrix where the goal is moving all customers to the top-right quadrant."When someone buys from us for the first time, usually their trust is low because they've never really bought from us before," Matt explains. Meanwhile, their knowledge varies dramatically depending on how much research they've done.The framework identifies four customer types: low knowledge/low trust (need most work but huge potential), high knowledge/low trust (need trust-building), low knowledge/high trust (often referrals), and high knowledge/high trust (ideal repeat customers). "This is where your best customers live," Matt emphasises about the final quadrant.Building Trust During Black Friday (08:00)Trust acceleration becomes crucial during high-volume periods like Black Friday. Matt recommends two primary strategies that work particularly well during peak shopping times."Make sure there is UGC on your social media and on your website from previous customers telling them how amazing you guys are," he advises. This involves strategically placing customer stories, photos, and testimonials where new visitors encounter them during decision-making.For Black Friday specifically, live chat becomes essential: "If you don't have live chat on your website, I think you should probably do that over Black Friday weekend. That's a great way to induce trust." Real-time human connection dramatically reduces purchase anxiety.The On-Ramp Strategy (10:00)Not every visitor arrives ready to purchase immediately. Matt's "on-ramp" concept provides pathways for hesitant customers to gradually build confidence."Not every single one of our customers is ready to buy. They don't come to the website and instantly appear here. Some of them are here. So how do we get them to take this journey?" he asks.Effective on-ramps include email capture with valuable content, PDF downloads that solve customer problems, and sample programmes offering risk-free product trials. Matt shares a brilliant example of a houseplant website offering "10 Steps on How to Not Kill Your Houseplant"—perfectly addressing customer anxiety whilst capturing contact details.The Story Intersection Principle (12:30)Perhaps the most powerful insight involves how brands tell their stories. Matt illustrates this with a simple but profound concept: businesses care deeply about their own story, but customers initially care very little about it. However, customers care intensely about their own stories."When...

  --------  

  17:26

  --------

  17:26
• Black Friday Part 1 - Create a Compelling Offer | Matt Edmundson

  Ever wondered why some brands skip Black Friday entirely and still win? Matt Edmundson reveals the framework that protects margins whilst creating compelling offers that actually increase customer lifetime value during Black Friday.Episode SummaryIn this first episode of our Black Friday mini-series, we explore why everything about Black Friday success comes down to your offer—and why that offer doesn't have to destroy your margins. Matt shares strategies from years of running Black Friday campaigns across multiple businesses, including some that opted out entirely. We discuss the critical ratio of margin to lifetime value, explore alternatives to deep discounting like gift with purchase and gift cards, and reveal why giving your best deals to your best customers might be the smartest move you make this November.Key Point Timestamps:01:00 - Why abstinence is okay (REI's brilliant opt-out strategy)07:00 - The margin to lifetime value ratio10:00 - Bundle and upsell strategies13:00 - Flipping the loyalty script14:00 - Gift with purchase revelation16:00 - The IKEA gift card genius move19:00 - Creating genuine urgency without deceptionThe Permission to Say No (01:00)Matt opens with a revolutionary idea: you don't have to do Black Friday. He shares how outdoor brand REI turned opting out into a PR win by closing their stores and encouraging customers to go outside instead."If Black Friday means sacrificing everything that makes your brand special, pulling customers from profitable December sales into unprofitable November ones, and creating mayhem for minimal return—it's okay to sit this one out."This permission to abstain is particularly relevant for brands with tight margins or strong values that conflict with the Black Friday frenzy. Sometimes the best strategy is no strategy at all.The Margin to Lifetime Value Ratio (07:00)The core framework Matt presents centres on one critical ratio: margin to lifetime value. Rather than asking "How much should I discount?", the question becomes "If I sacrifice margin here, how can I increase customer lifetime value there?"Matt illustrates this with Vegetology's Omega-3 supplements—at £20 with tight margins, a simple discount would be devastating. But bundling multiple products at a discount increases the chance of creating repeat customers who've experienced the full product range."I'd rather give 20% off a £100 bundle and make £80 with good margin than give 20% off a £20 product and make £16 with terrible margin."Revolutionary Loyalty Approach (13:00)Matt challenges the industry norm of giving best deals to new customers only—a practice that frustrates loyal customers who see "new customers only" offers everywhere. Black Friday presents an opportunity to flip this script entirely.By creating exclusive landing pages for VIP customers with better offers than the general public sees, brands can strengthen relationships with their most valuable customers. These customers don't just buy more—they become brand advocates.The Gift With Purchase Strategy (14:00)One of Matt's most successful margin-protecting strategies involved candles with a £4 cost but £20-25 retail value. Offering "Spend £25, get this £25 candle free" created massive perceived value whilst protecting core product margins.The warning: don't try to offload unwanted stock this way. "I've tried clearing old stock this way, giving away products nobody wanted in the first place. Guess what? Nobody wanted them as gifts either."Today's HostMatt EdmundsonHost of The eCommerce PodcastFounder of eCommerce CohortWebsite: eCommerce Podcast

  --------  

  24:56

  --------

  24:56

More Business podcasts

Trending Business podcasts

About eCommerce Podcast

eCommerce Podcast: Podcasts in Family