SIX TIPS FOR STAYING OUT OF SPAM

On February 1st, 2024, the world is going to change for anyone who sends regular emails to their subscribers. And so today I’m sitting down with our resident Klaviyo and Shopify expert, Claudia Howard. She’s going to explain what’s changing, and walk us through what we’ll need to do to stay compliant.

Listen HERE or keep reading to find out how you can keep your campaigns out of your subscribers’ spam folders.

Understanding the New Requirements

You’ve probably noticed that your inbox is filling up faster and faster lately, and much of what you’re receiving is spam, or worse…malicious phishing emails. So in an attempt to reduce some of the chaos, Google and Yahoo are cracking down on abusive senders. This is actually GOOD for ecommerce marketers, because once the changes go into effect, our subscribers’ inboxes will be much less cluttered (and our emails more likely to be read).

BUT

Only if we take the following steps to verify our sending domains. It’s not hard, but grab a pen because you need to get this taken care of right away.

Who Needs to Comply and Why?

The new rules specify that any marketers sending 5k or more bulk emails a day must be compliant. But even if this isn’t you yet, this is the best practice to follow and will ensure that you don’t accidentally get yourself on the naughty list.

The Deal With Deliverability: What’s A Deliverability Score?

We often talk about email marketing as the one communication channel that you “own”. But did you know that email service providers like Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, etc. have their own algorithms? Each sender is assigned a “deliverability score” based on your recipients’ behavior – how many unsubscribes are you getting, how many spam complaints? What are your click rates?

Obviously, you want your email subscribers to see your beautiful campaigns. But they definitely won’t if you end up in their spam folders! So here are our six recommendations to stay out of Spam folders and in Google and Klaviyo’s good graces.

 

6 Tips For Staying Out of Spam

1. Double-check that the “from” email address you’re using is your own domain. In other words, not “yourname@gmail dot com” but “hello@yourstorename dot com” or similar.

2. If it’s not, change it!

3. Set up your “dedicated sending domain” sometimes called your “branded sending domain”. It improves your branding in the “from” address in the inbox by removing the sent “via klaviyomail.com” disclaimer. This is setup by using the guide in your Klaviyo account to edit your DNS settings at your domain registrar.

4. Set up a DMARC authentication policy on your domain to keep spammers from “spoofing” you. This authenticates the email is coming from your domain. It enhances email security by preventing unauthorized use of your domain, reduces phishing and improves deliverability. Set this up by editing your DNS settings at your domain registrar. Here’s a link to a free DMARC record generator.

5. Make it easier to unsubscribe by adding an “unsubscribe” button to the bottom of all of your campaigns.

6. Keep spam complaints low – the acceptable threshold for inboxes is 3 per 1000. Use Klaviyo’s benchmark and deliverability reports to monitor your spam complaints and if they exceed the threshold take steps to reduce them. Steps include list cleaning and segmentation.

If any of the above tips has your head spinning, Claudia is an expert on Store Tasker, and for just $95 she’ll get your account set up and in ship shape. This is money so well spent, because once these changes go into effect on February 1st, you can really hurt your sales by failing to comply.

Claudia has already made a training for this and it’s in the Inner Circle classroom, but if you’re not a member yet, we’ve made it publicly available. Just go to www.thesocialsalesgirls.com/stayoutofspam enter your email address and we’ll send you the checklist.

AND…if you have any ecommerce store owner friends, please forward them this post! I really don’t want anyone losing sales just because they didn’t know about these new requirements, or how to comply with them.

Email is so important. In fact, we tell our members that at LEAST 30% of their revenue should be coming from email. So set aside some time, go through our tutorial, and we’ll get through this together!

In this episode of the eCommerce Roadmap I sat down with our Member Success Coach, Tina Barron. She’s a fellow ecommerce store owner, and she’s an amazing resource. As Tina leads our team of specialized coaches, her focus is to ensure that every member has what they need to find success while enrolled in our course + community.

In this episode we wanted to talk about what’s coming for The Social Salesgirls in 2024, and what we’re doing to help our members pile up wins this year.

Tune in HERE or keep reading to see how we can help you make this year your best yet.

New Year, New Focus

At the end of last year, our team took a little retreat to set the stage for what we’re delivering to our members this year. We really took stock of what’s been working, what our members need, and most importantly, how to scale these strategies effectively. And we all agreed that this year is about giving our members the right tools and guidance to amplify their results.

New & Improved Trainings

This year, we are introducing several new training modules to the classroom. One that we’re particularly excited about is from one of our ecommerce coaches Melissa, and it’s all about organic strategies to drive traffic. Melissa’s fuss-free organic posting strategy emphasizes the power of consistency and community over costly ads, and her results have been nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Another training we’re adding this year is on creating high-converting product pages. After all the hard work of building an audience and driving them to your website, the last thing you want is to lose them at the product page. This new training will offer a formula to overcome any potential customer objections, so your product pages are as compelling as possible. And you don’t have to be tech-y to create them!

You Can’t Control What You Don’t Track and Measure

The heart of our course, since 2017, has always been to focus on numbers and stats. And the whole reason we do that is so that we stay out of our feelings because numbers don’t lie.

They don’t say, I’m a big loser and everything I’m doing is wrong. They show you exactly where you are today, so that you can make a plan to go forward. 

But this year we are really doubling down on tracking and measuring. Understanding your sales funnel and knowing where to focus your attention is critical. And this month we released our new Excel tracker, which members can use to track their progress monthly. Even if you’re not a numbers person” or Excel sheets make your head hurt, this tool really makes it so simple to plug in your numbers and track your progress. It really is fail-proof.

How Many Eyeballs Are You Getting On Your Site?

One of the most critical (and critically un-discussed,) factors in e-commerce success is visibility. No matter how great your product or website is, if people don’t see it…you won’t get sales. This year, we’re re-emphasizing ‘Ads Made Easy’, a program designed to demystify social media ads and help you achieve significant results with minimal investment. We sometimes joke that we should call the course “Ads Made Easy AND CHEAP” because most people are amazed how little they need to spend to reach a big audience.

We often get a little myopic and spend too much of our time on the bottom of our sales funnel (getting actual sales) at the expense of filling that funnel. But having a huge pool of people see your products at the top should be mission critical. So this year we’re shifting the focus to building a large audience, and our new Ads Made Easy course will focus on the most potent of all content – video ads. Even if you’ve done Ads Made Easy before, you really should come and do it again for the video unit.

Marketing First: Repeatable Strategies That Make Sales

The marketing cycle shouldn’t be complicated. Our approach is about creating mini campaigns – simple, effective emails sent weekly to keep your audience engaged. These mini campaigns are coupled with monthly events, providing customers a compelling reason to make a purchase. It’s not always about discounts; sometimes, it’s about creating excitement and novelty. Our ‘Get Sales Now’ unit is packed with these event templates, making it easy for Inner Circle members to execute successful campaigns.

The Importance of Time and Focus

In the realm of e-commerce, your most valuable resources aren’t your products or your website; it’s your time and focus. The success of your store depends on how you utilize these resources. In the Inner Circle, we provide a structured approach to make the most of your time, guiding you on what to work on and when. It’s about being selective and concentrating on impactful activities that drive your business forward.

The Power of Community and Support

One of the most remarkable aspects of the Inner Circle is the community. E-commerce can be a solitary journey, but within our community, members find support, advice, and encouragement. From sharing success stories to helping troubleshoot problems, the sense of belonging and mutual growth is what makes the Inner Circle special.

Our Coaching Dream Team

With nearly 3,000 calls made in 2023 alone, our team of 10 coaches brings an unmatched depth of knowledge. Covering everything from SEO to Google Analytics and Klaviyo mastery, our coaches are seasoned e-commerce store owners themselves, offering practical, firsthand advice. Whatever you might be stuck on, there’s a coach ready to help you find clarity and direction.

Because we see recurring patterns seen across different stores, regardless of product or niche, it’s easy for us to see what’s going on and where the hang ups might be. We are almost always able to identify issues and provide actionable advice in just a half-hour session.

A lot of our members even schedule regular coaching sessions that go beyond problem-solving, so their coaches can gain a deeper understanding of their unique businesses. When you find the right coach you resonate with, and you are working consistently with them, they become your business ally, guiding you through different stages and even directing you to other experts within our network when needed.

The Journey with Reliable Revenue

‘Reliable Revenue’ is our flagship course, designed to teach you how to bring in consistent sales organically. It’s about understanding your business deeply, setting up automations, and creating a marketing plan that results in predictable sales. This course doesn’t just set you up for temporary success; it’s about building a sustainable, thriving business.

Looking Forward to a Year of Growth

As we embark on this year, our focus is clear: to provide our members with the tools, training, and support they need to succeed. Whether it’s through personalized coaching, strategic training modules, or the supportive community, every aspect of the Inner Circle is geared towards empowering e-commerce store owners to reach new heights.

Join Us on This Exciting Journey

If you’re an e-commerce store owner looking to grow your business, the Inner Circle is where you need to be. With dedicated coaches, a supportive community, and a wealth of resources, we’re here to guide you every step of the way. Check out the show notes for links to the podcast episodes with Melissa’s strategies, and get on the waitlist for the ‘Reliable Revenue’ course to receive a free mini-course. Remember, in the world of e-commerce, you’re not alone. Join us in the Inner Circle, and let’s achieve incredible success together.

Transform Your Business with a ‘Marketing First’ Mindset

I always say that “Marketing First” store owners will get more sales than store owners who don’t make their marketing a habit. A Marketing First mindset means strategically positioning marketing at the core of your business activities. Whether you’re a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting out, adopting this mindset will be  immensely beneficial.

I recently spoke with Melissa Davies, owner of Bike Pretty. She’s really the quintessential Marketing First store owner, and I want to share the story of the amazing transformation Melissa made last year.

Melissa was already a good marketer. She has owned her business for ten years so she was consistently posting to social media, emailing her list regularly, running social media ads, etc. But she wasn’t quite connecting the dots of how her social media efforts were translating to sales.

Watch this video and learn:

• How Melissa built an audience of 4.6 million
• What happened when she posted a video for the 5th time
• How her supersized audience affected her sales

Two Game-Changing Trainings

Early last year we introduced a couple of new trainings to the Inner Circle. One was ‘The Big Picture’ in which we showed members how to build a sales funnel, and understand their numbers. The other was Brand Video Creation. In this one, we taught members how to create really effective 45-second brand videos they could use to build their audiences without paying a lot for ads.

So Melissa really was able to visualize her sales funnel for the first time. And she had a lightbulb moment when she realized that she had been underestimating how many people she needed to reach on social media in order to bring in the traffic she would need to reach her sales goals.

Once that was clear, she decided to leverage the second training to make a brand video that she could turn into an ad that would get her business in front of a LOT more people.

The brand video lesson empowers members to craft short, engaging videos showcasing their products and business benefits, accompanied by a strong call to action. These videos are not just fluffy showcases; they are powerful tools for audience growth, especially when used effectively on platforms like Meta and TikTok.

 

A Success Story: Melissa Davies’ Remarkable Year

To truly understand the impact of these lessons, let’s look at Melissa’s mind blowing numbers. She started with a monthly audience of 140,000 – a respectable figure by any standard. But after diligently working on her brand videos and leveraging our ’30 Day Audience Builder’ training (an oldie but a goodie!) she saw her audience explode to a staggering 4.6 million.

Melissa combined the power of consistent posting, strategic use of brand videos, and a deep understanding of her sales funnel to achieve these numbers. Her story is a testament to the potential of ‘Marketing First’ and its impact on sales.

Key Strategies and Tactics for Success

In episode 190 Melissa told us how she got over herself and committed to a 3x/day social posting strategy. That’s how she came to recognize the importance of reposting old content for increased visibility, and embraced the necessity of setting and chasing monthly goals. Once she understood her sales funnel, she began optimizing each stage – from audience building to converting traffic into sales.

Understanding the Sales Funnel

Let’s break down the sales funnel stages that Melissa mastered:

1. Audience: This is where it all starts. Building a large, engaged audience is crucial for funnel effectiveness. Usually, this is on social media platforms like Meta or TikTok.
2. Traffic: Once you have an audience, the next step is to get a percentage of this big pool of people to visit your website.
3. Focused Marketing: This stage involves targeted marketing efforts (like retargeting ads or email campaigns) to people who have visited your website or signed up for your list.
4. Conversion: The final stage, where website visitors turn into paying customers.

Melissa’s approach to each of these stages was methodical and data-driven. By focusing on her audience size and engagement, she managed to significantly increase her website traffic, leading to better sales.

The Power of Video Content

Melissa’s use of video content was a game-changer. Her brand videos, posted across social media platforms, significantly boosted her reach. And since they were working, she kept re-posting them.

And on the SIXTH repost of one of her brand videos? It went viral.

These videos, which were neither high-budget nor technically complex, really resonated with her audience. She attributes this to the down-to-earth, approachable, and on-brand tone of her videos. And rather than bore her audience, Melissa believes that posting them more often actually contributed to their virality.

The Impact of Melissa’s Marketing Strategy

The results of Melissa’s marketing efforts were clear and quantifiable. Her traffic skyrocketed, and while her conversion rate for new visitors was relatively low, the overall impact on sales was substantial. Melissa’s story demonstrates how a focused, consistent marketing strategy can lead to significant financial gains, far outweighing traditional advertising costs.

Lessons from Melissa’s Experience

Melissa’s journey offers several key takeaways for business owners:

• Focus On Your Funnel: Understanding and optimizing each stage of the sales funnel is critical for converting audience size into actual sales.
• Repetition is Key: Reposting content can significantly increase visibility and engagement.
• Reach More People with Video Content: Even if it’s simple and low-budget, video is the single most effective way to increase audience size.

The Path to Becoming a ‘Marketing First’ Business Owner

Melissa’s story really exemplifies the ‘Marketing First’ philosophy in action. She is continually monitoring her data, adjusting her sales funnel, and staying consistent with the type of organic content she knows is working.

This is the type of data-driven strategy we are working on in the Inner Circle this year – setting actionable goals that are based on real numbers, and putting a plan in place so that we get consistent results. Ready to make 2024 the year you become a Marketing First business owner? Join the Inner Circle HERE.

 

RELATED LINKS:

The Stress Free Content Plan That Built A Huge Audience: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-stress-free-content-plan-that-built-a-huge-audience-episode-190/

How Melissa Reduced Her Cost Of Acquiring A New Customer By 44%: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/how-melissa-reduced-her-cost-of-acquiring-a-customer-by-44-percent-episode-191/

There’s nothing like a new year to revisit our goals, is there? If you’re like many of us, this time of year sparks a sense of renewal and the chance to revisit our “why.” And so we kicked off the year the way we always do in the Inner Circle, with our annual 30-day growth plan call. It’s a time for our members and ecommerce coaches to gather together on Zoom, in a quiet and focused way, to study our metrics and get clear about what we need to do next in our businesses.

What I love most about this call is witnessing our community unite, not just in pursuit of goals, but with shared accountability, support, and celebration. This practice is a cornerstone of staying on course and achieving our ambitions as ecommerce store owners.

In today’s episode, I’m excited to bring you a peek into this event. The approach might seem straightforward, yet it’s pivotal; without it, attaining your goals becomes a LOT harder and less clear.

I’ve also got a treat for you. It’s the exact tool we use during these working sessions, that you can apply to your own business strategies.

Watch the video as we delve into the habits that have been instrumental in our members’ success. In it you’ll learn:
👀 The REAL reason you’re not getting the sales you want
📊 How to harness your data (and stay healthy emotionally)
🎨 The art of aligning your focus with your objectives

RELATED LINKS:

Join the Inner Circle: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/inner-circle/

Tina’s year of Collaboration: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/a-year-of-results-that-will-shock-you-episode-120/

Melissa’s Stress-Free Content Plan: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-stress-free-content-plan-that-built-a-huge-audience-episode-190/

How Many “Eyeballs” See Your Products: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/how-many-eyeballs-see-your-products-get-past-this-roadblock-to-success-episode-175/

OUR FAVORITE STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS IN 2024

The ecommerce landscape is evolving, is your marketing plan still relevant? Or is it time for a refresh?

Susan recently spoke to Jane Hamill of Fashion Brain Academy about what we see working NOW for their students. They chose 3 strategies each that focus on practicality, authenticity, and effective communication to stay on top of the game in 2024. 

Listen to the podcast episode here or keep reading for the strategies

Jane’s Top 3 Strategies for eCommerce Marketing in 2024

1. Short Form Video

Jane has found that short-form video has been a game-changer for students lately. Their approach involves creating a consistent video routine, whether it’s one video per week or a batch of four in a month. This content can be shared across various channels, including email and social media, and can provide the basis for the other content you share that week. Jane encourages us to focus on the habit of producing regular content, rather than making each video perfect. Whether it’s showcasing a product tutorial or just offering a glimpse into the personal side of your life, the goal is to establish a routine that keeps your audience consistently engaged.

2. Keep It Quick’n’Dirty

Jane’s pro tip is to keep your marketing “quick and dirty,” trading perfect and professional for messy and intimate. Your followers crave authenticity, so regularly showing up in a genuine, unguarded way is much more engaging than the infrequent “perfect” post. There are certainly appropriate times to go all in, but in the fast-moving world of social media, it isn’t efficient to spend too much time on any one post. And showing up authentically makes you relatable!

3. An Innovative Way To Grow Your List

Jane believes your #1 focus this year should be growing your email list, and something she has seen working for her students lately is what she calls a “product tester event.” This strategy involves inviting customers to test out a new product in exchange for feedback and engagement. This not only generates leads but also provides user-generated content, reviews, and valuable insights into product viability. This is not the same as a giveaway, where entrants may just be seeking free product; this type of event will attract your ideal customer who is excited about what you sell and willing to help your business to succeed. Jane loves that this is a repeatable, low-lift event that you can implement quickly and reap big rewards.

Susan’s Top Tips

1. REACH: The Metric To Track

Many e-commerce store owners waste time and energy obsessing over their social media follower-count. Instead, Susan suggests that REACH is a more valuable metric to track and measure. With the ranked-feed algorithm affecting visibility, your followers may not even be seeing your content at all. Susan suggests studying the content that gains the most reach and creating your content strategy accordingly. By concentrating on reach rather than followers, you can ensure that the content you’re creating is really engaging your audience, not just building a vanity metric that’s worth very little.

2. Get Personal with Email

Unlike social media, email is the one channel that you know your audience will receive. Susan urges us to get more personal with our email marketing in 2024. Recently she has seen Inner Circle members, like Sylvie from eclairlips.com, having huge success by injecting personality into their emails, sharing anecdotes beyond just product promotions. Think of email as a way to build community the same way you would through social media, where subscribers are interested in more than just the products. It’s ok to speak to your audience like friends! Authenticity and relatability trump the traditional, overly polished marketing emails.

3. Volume Over Perfection

In a recent post Susan chatted with Inner Circle coach Melissa from Bike Pretty, who saw her organic reach EXPLODE after she implemented a volume-posting strategy. By posting 3x per day (see Jane’s quick’n’dirty tip above) and repurposing old, successful content, Melissa started driving 15k people to her website per month. FOR FREE. Melissa says the key to getting this right is getting over your desire for a perfect feed, schedule everything ahead of time, then set it and forget it. Commit to an hour or two each week, don’t be afraid to repeat posts, and focus on getting it done rather than making it perfect.

As we step into 2024, these 6 strategies will allow you to adapt to the changing landscape of ecommerce marketing. By showing up authentically and consistently, you’ll be prepared to stay ahead of the curve in the new year. Whether it’s embracing short-form videos, focusing on reach, embracing the quick’n’dirty method, or embracing new ways of growing your list, these strategies will keep you on track for your goals in the coming months.

RELATED LINKS:

Jane Hamill Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jane-hamill-podcast/id1125412597

Sylvie Roy at https://eclairlips.com/ writes the most engaging emails

Hear how Melissa’s content plan got her 15,000 monthly web visitors and reduced her cost of acquiring a customer by 44%
https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-stress-free-content-plan-that-built-a-huge-audience-episode-190/
https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/how-melissa-reduced-her-cost-of-acquiring-a-customer-by-44-percent-episode-191/

6 Strategies To Get Your Sales Back on Track in 2024

2023 has been a tough year for many ecommerce store owners. If it felt like an uphill battle, you’re in good company. While it may be tempting to throw up your hands and blame the economy, there ARE things you can do to adapt and take control of your sales goals.

I was recently joined by Sarah Williams, the founder of Launch Your Box and owner of the successful subscription box Framed, to delve into 6 strategies that are working NOW. As fellow entrepreneurs and friends, Sarah and I share a passion for uncovering the inner workings of businesses and discovering what works.

Read on to get the details, or click here to listen to the episode

Sarah had a rough year 2023. Due to some health and personal challenges, Sarah lost her focus and saw sales take a nosedive in April. By June she realized her business was in trouble, and in July she decided to take the reins and right the ship. Here’s how she did it.

1. Embrace the Basics

In times of uncertainty, it may be tempting to chase after the latest shiny new strategy. But Sarah attributes her success to simply getting back to basics. She focused on 3 things:

• She doubled down on what she knew was already working, which for her was live selling, increasing her live online events from once to twice weekly. This significantly boosted her weekly sales.
• She increased her email frequency, but focused on a single product in each campaign. Surprisingly, that one change boosted email revenue to 65% of her total sales.
• She re-focused her energy on building her list, creating a new opt-in offer (a free phone wallpaper download) and running cold ads to it. This brought in over 6,000 new leads within a few months.

2. Social Media Refresh: Page Like Ads and Live Engagement

Sarah knew that her social media follower count had begun to stagnate, so she re-committed to growing her audience. Sarah initiated a Page Like ad (a type of engagement ad in Meta Ads Manager) to breathe new life into her Facebook and Instagram pages. Then in her live events, she took special care to engage with her new followers–personally welcoming them–which fostered a sense of connection that spilled over to her email campaigns. Since her social audience recognized and liked her, they were much more likely to open her emails.

3. Brand Video

Sarah shared the thing that her students have found is the #1 best growth strategy to use right now: video.

A 90-second “brand video,” highlighting your products and benefits, provides a cost-effective way to grab your ideal customers’ attention and quickly build a huge audience that you can re-target later. Use it in your organic posts, your ads, your e-mails, everywhere! It’s the best way to find and engage your perfect audience.

4. Lead-Gen Quizzes

Leverage all of that new traffic for even MORE list growth by adding a quiz on your site, which can generate and convert new leads at an impressive rate.  Using the App “Shop Quiz” or similar, you can create a short list of questions that lead to an opt-in form so participants can receive their results via email. You can boost your results by running ads straight to the quiz–bringing in $.30-$.50 high-quality leads who are pre-qualified and ready to buy.

5. Amp Up The Email Automation

Sarah emphasizes the importance of personalized experiences through email automations (targeted email flows that are triggered by user actions, such as quiz completions.) So for example, if you learned from your quiz that a customer is interested in skincare, you can send them an email flow featuring your skincare products. Likewise, you can create automations for customers who have bought a product that might be complementary to another. Send them an automation about the benefits of that next purchase, as those customers are likely to make a repeat purchase sooner than later. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box with your automations, use what you know about your customers and create automations to better serve them.

6. Consistency is Key

Regardless of the strategies you choose, Sarah reminds us that consistency is vital. Don’t try something once and give up when it doesn’t change the game–keep going. Your audience responds best when they know what to expect from you, so make a plan and stick to it. If it’s going live, do it on a regular basis. If it’s weekly campaigns, keep it up for several months before you measure your results.

If 2024 is your year to get your business back on track, remember–follow the data. Don’t go chasing after the new, shiny thing until you’ve looked at your numbers and identified what did and did not work. The FIRST step should be doubling down on what was successful, and THEN you can consider innovating based on those insights.

 

Related Links:

Check out Sarah’s Launch Your Box Podcast: https://www.launchyourboxwithsarah.com/blog/welcome-to-the-launch-your-box-podcast

Build A Massive Audience With A Brand Video: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/build-a-massive-audience-with-a-brand-video-episode-162/

The Biggest Opportunity To Get More Sales: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-biggest-opportunity-to-get-more-sales-episode-136/

The One Thing Even Smart Business Owners Continue To Get Wrong: https://thesocialsalesgirls.com/the-one-thing-even-smart-business-owners-continue-to-get-wrong-episode-174/