Wednesday, August 23

#1 - 🛍️ TikTok is killing its Shopify integration

📰 TL;DR - Starting next month, TikTok is sunsetting its integration for Shopify merchants. The integration let brands upload their catalog for display on their TikTok profile. Users could then click to be taken to the store for purchase. Well, no more! It will be gone as of September 2. Some of its users included big brands like Kylie Cosmetics. Rather, TikTok is now rolling out TikTok Shop across the US and that’s really what they want you to be using.

💡 Insight - I mean we saw this coming, right? Under the old integration, TikTok wasn’t actually involved in any part of the sale, and that’s what they really want to achieve with TikTok Shop. I actually doubt the old tab was driving that many conversions (let me know if you’ve had success!). The question is whether Shopify merchants will be down to try out TikTok Shop. The advantage of TikTok Shop is that the entire transaction takes place within the TikTok environment. However, we also know that US customers have been more hesitant about doing this, like on Instagram. Will this be a game-changer for social commerce?

➡️ You can read the article here...

#2 - 🚫 Leaked email reveals Shopify Plus is cutting a key service

📰 TL;DR - According to a leaked email, Shopify is cutting a key perk for many Shopify Plus merchants: access to merchant success managers. This report says about 16,000 merchants will soon hear they’re losing the service. For context, Shopify Plus is the platform’s pricy offering to bigger brands, starting at $2,000 per month. It’s a more white glove service that comes with a ton of perks, including consultation with those merchant success managers. This change will affect those merchants making less than $2 million per month in sales. Instead, they’ll have to use the help center and support staff like a regular Shopify merchant.

💡 Insight - Well, that’s annoying! The whole point of joining Shopify Plus is to get access to all those higher-end benefits. Clearly Shopify feels like it’s doing enough with the biggest merchants that they can make things a little worse for the still-big-but-relatively-little guys. We also know that Shopify, like so many other brands right now, is focused on profitability and cutting costs, even to the detriment of customer service. Also noted in this article is that they’re clearly expecting pushback, warning their support team of incoming “high effort interactions.”

➡️ You can read the article here...

📣 If you want to reach our audience of 10,000+ DTC store owners, tap here 

#3 - 🤖 Customers only think they don’t like AI

📰 TL;DR - This very intriguing survey found that only 41% of UK shoppers think AI is having a positive impact on shopping, yet 70% prefer brands that offer personalized recommendations. Curious! The theme here is that people have a district of this new technology yet they’re happy to interact with it as long as they don’t think about it too much. As well, 91% would rather interact with humans than bots, yet only 1 in 3 can actually tell the difference. Basically, customers seem to have very little understanding of how AI is actually improving their shopping experiences.

💡 Insight - With the rise of AI, a major trend has been to loudly and proudly label everything as AI, and therefore new and exciting. This survey suggests to me that this is not a smart course of action in e-commerce. Yes, absolutely lean into AI integrations and tools — people like them! They like having a personalized experience. Just maybe don’t go crazy announcing that your new offerings or tools are in fact AI. Just like you probably shouldn’t label your chatbot as “AI,” even if that’s what it is. Let people enjoy their blissful ignorance.

➡️ You can read the article here...

#4 - 🛠️ Things worth checking out

📈 AOV - Monk, the full suite AOV app elevates your Shopify store with cart conversions, upsells, cross-sells, and free gifts. Get lifetime 25% off and a free trial here.

💃🏽 TIKTOK - TikTok Shop is now officially rolling out in the US. Will you join? Read more here.

😎 AI - This piece looks at how small and medium-sized businesses are leveraging AI for things like financials and upsells. Read here.

🧶 ETSY - Etsy is trying to diversify and break free of its reputation of just being a place for arts and crafts. Read more here.

👔 PREPPY - Read why DTC beverage brands have been adopting a preppy kind of branding all over the place.

#5 - 📰 This brand just bought a whole publication

📰 TL;DR - A DTC brand aimed at LGBTQ+ shoppers has just bought Autostraddle, a beloved online publication for queer women and other folks. The brand in question is For Them, which sells gender-affirming apparel as well as has a digital subscription service for a gender-tracking app. The details of the deal weren’t disclosed, though Autostraddle has been in some financial trouble as of late. The idea here is that this purchase will help For Them deepen its connection with its core customers — fellow LGBTQ+ folks.

💡 Insight - A DTC brand purchasing a media property is a pretty novel thing, though perhaps a smart move. First, there’s the good vibes of them swooping in to save a much-loved but financially troubled publication. Second, they’ve just bought a very loyal audience who are the primary users of their goods. The trouble here is that running a media publication is really hard these days. It will be interesting to see if For Them can actually keep Autostraddle afloat.

➡️ You can read the article here...