Tuesday, May 2

Today's DTC news, tips, & tools you need to know

đź’Ž Klarna beefs up app with AI-powered shopping

đź“° TL;DR - Klarna has released a major overhaul of their app, making it a starting point for shopping with an AI boost. They’re also offering a storefront feature to creators. For brands, there’s a self-service ads manager that ties in with Klarna’s own data to target shoppers. Availability is limited to certain regions, so check in to see if you have access to these new features.

đź’ˇ Insight - I downloaded the app for myself and had a peruse. As I wasn’t an existing Klarna user, I’m guessing my feed was a little more generic, but it really did seem lacking in DTC brands with major retailers overrepresented. Results were also definitely tailored to my location. The AI aspect is pretty exciting and I was immediately shown discount offers. My big question is whether anyone will really want to start their shopping journey with this app when there are so many other options.

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🙋🏼‍♀️ 6 retention and acquisition tips

đź“° TL;DR - Here’s a Twitter thread for Cody Plofker of Jones Road Beauty with tips for both customer acquisition and retention. These are pretty specific tips, rather than generic ones, which I appreciate! For example, for acquisition, is offering a gift with purchase. For examining costs on retention plays, try measuring contribution margin rather than revenue.

đź’ˇ Insight - I really like the first thing Cody said about people saying retention is the new acquisition. Yes, there’s definitely buzz right now that leans towards retention, but a healthy business always, always thinks about both. I also love his point about thinking beyond email for retention. There are so many more creative solutions available beyond stuffing more sends into someone’s inbox.

đź’Ś Email marketing metrics you need to be tracking

đź“° TL;DR - Okay, I know I just said to think beyond emails, but email marketing is still very important! Here’s a great thread from email marketing expert Chase Dimond about what metrics e-commerce businesses need to be tracking when it comes to email. Obviously, we’ve got open rate and click-through, but also look at revenue per subscriber, list growth rate, and engagement. Also: are your emails actually resulting in a checkout?

đź’ˇ Insight - I like that Chase offers some tips on how to interpret and improve these metrics, beyond just listing them. Being Twitter it’s all pretty short and sweet but a great read, especially if you’re new to email marketing or wondering why your sends haven’t been effective. For my two cents, I think list growth rate is especially important.

🛠️ Things worth checking out

đź“ą LIVESTREAM SHOPPING - Pacsun is trying out the much-scrutinized TikTok live shopping suite. Worth keeping an eye on! More here.

🔥 TRENDS - DTC can always learn from retail, so here are some trends. It’s a sponsored post from Square, but still on the money. Read it here.

✍🏼 IG GUIDES - A cool Instagram marketing idea that could easily be adapted to talk about products. Check it out here.

đź‘€ YT SHORTS - YouTube is bolstering its ad options for Shorts. Read more here.

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