9 crucial problems with ECOM brands
In the first few months of operating as a consultant, I figured out that they are practically the same as I was solving as a:
- a) 2x founder of fastest growing performance agencies in the region and working across multiple European brands
- b) operating for 4 years as a CMO on an ECOM business that grew from 0 to 40 Mio €
- c) leading the whole marketing department for 3 years with the brand that grew from 0 to 100 Mio €
- d) leading 35+ people team twice
🤔I am curious to find out if you are facing similar challenges.
Are you ready?
Let’s see them. 👀
Most companies struggle with one or more of these problems.
#1 Sales plateau 💸
“Our sales are flat since the last lockdown, and our profitability is 💩.”
That’s the most common sentence I hear.
Sure, the market is harder than it was, but there are still a lot of businesses that are achieving great profitability and are growing.
Understanding where the bottlenecks are, studying the successful brands, introducing new tactics and prioritization are crucial here.
#2 Lack of growth strategy 🧙♂️
How will you get there if you don’t have a plan and goal and are not executing them?
Brands are obsessed with solving daily problems, and they don’t invest time and resources into strategies, tests, prioritization, new funnels, marketing angles, tactics to boost acquisition + retention, and expansion.
That is one of the main reasons why they are not growing.
#3 Tracking success 📊
Companies still have ROAS as their primary success metric and have no idea about their profitability.
Or even worse, they follow the platform ROAS and make business decisions based on that metric. 🙉
To solve this, we are building customized reports or implementing tools like BeProfit, Triple Whale, StoreHero, or Lifetimely.
Remember: The better data you have, the better decisions you can make, and the higher you will be able to scale.
#4 Building an effective marketing mix 🚀
Facebook doesn’t work as well as it did…
TikTok is not meeting our expectations …
We don’t use email marketing …
Those and more are common themes, so that’s why we are focusing on building a strong marketing mix that covers acquisition, retention and community
JK TIP: Don’t go too broad with channels – double down on what works.
#5 Team expansion 🤝
Most companies don’t know their next 3 hires and if they will hire full-time or part-time. How about adding an agency to move faster?
👉 Recruiting and onboarding are “always” a mess.
Last but not least, there are challenges with leading and promoting people.
#6 Inefficient operations 😨
Day-to-day business is super stressful and they don’t have or lack structure in processes.
Well-systemized processes and templates make all the difference when you want to scale and run your business cost-effectively.
JK TIP: My advice on where to start:
- a) Start leveraging project management tools like Asana, Monday, ClickUp, or something similar
- b) Build templates for your most important project, like product launches, sales push, and content creation.
- c) Work with your team directly to understand what can be systematized, automatized and where the bottlenecks are
- c) Lead by example
#7 Content & creatives 🎥
How many creatives do you test? How do you track performance and iterate on winners? How do you produce creatives? & more…
We all know that creatives will make or break an ECOM brand, so upgrading this area of growth marketing is essential if you are looking to make the big leap and become that 8-figure powerhouse.
#8 Brandformance 🎯
Doing performance + branding at the same time.
It doesn’t just mean putting a name on your product and hiring an expensive production team for your creatives.
It’s a lot more, and teams often lack experience in how to do it.
#9 Market expansion 🌍
This is my favorite one, and also the one I have been working on for the last 9+ years.
Many brands reach success in one market, but how to grow beyond borders is what we are solving together and implementing that “GLOCAL ❤️” approach with the customized go-to-market strategy.
To reach new markets with their amazing product, profit and growth! 💪
_____
These are THE 9 main problems with ECOM growth marketing team.
They are also the main ones I am solving with my clients daily. Let’s repeat them:
#1 Sales plateau 💸
#2 Lack of growth strategy 🧙♂️
#3 Tracking success 📊
#4 Building an effective marketing mix 🚀
#5 Team expansion 🤝
#6 Inefficient operations 😨
#7 Content & creatives 🎥
#8 Brandformance 🎯
#9 Market expansion 🌍
Are you facing the same challenges?
DM me on LinkedIn to tell me more about your current problems and if anyone from the list resonates.
It’s a wrap for this week.
Thank you for reading, and stay tuned 🙏
Happy scaling! 🚀
Bests,
Jure (JK) Knehtl
Founder @ JK GROWTH