François Maingret

Other News From November 2024

December 20, 2024 / Francois Maingret / 0 Comments

Like every month, there are some other news pieces I didn’t elaborate on but still found interesting. I’ve shared my thoughts on the linked articles, which come from various sources. I hope you find them interesting! Let me know if you think I missed anything big.

Amazon-Walmart Rivalry and Loyalty Programs

Interesting article on the Amazon-Walmart rivalry. I agree with the author that the two companies are becoming increasingly similar, and loyalty programs could make a difference.

The 5 Most Common Ways of Product Discovery in Ecommerce

November 29, 2024 / Francois Maingret

Other News From October 2024

November 19, 2024 / Francois Maingret

As you can find in the full report, here are some other news pieces I didn’t elaborate on but still found interesting. I’ve shared my thoughts on the linked articles, which come from various sources. I hope you find them interesting! Let me know if you think I missed anything big.

The Challenges of Attracting and Retaining Sellers for Amazon and Temu

Not every Amazon seller is the same, but many sellers are worn out. I think that’s something the article missed.

Online Thrifting in the Age of AI: How to Preserve the Treasure Hunt Experience

November 16, 2024 / Francois Maingret

My favorite thing about thrifting is the treasure hunt. You never know what you’ll find or how good of a deal you’ll get. Thrift stores and garage sales have always been my go-to, but the internet has brought us even more options. Platforms like eBay, Etsy, Craigslist, and Facebook Marketplace offer a million possibilities for finding secondhand items. Some are even industry-specific, like Vinted and ThredUp in the fashion industry. Thrifting has always brought me joy and excitement, but some people worry that the fun of the treasure hunt might be coming to an end.

With new technologies, especially AI, everything is becoming a lot more “optimized”. If algorithms can quickly find the hidden gems, what’s left for people like us? Today, we’ll see how technology has impacted online thrifting and the secondhand market, and how the experience has changed over the years.

Zombies and Witches Favor Online Shopping: How Spirit Halloween’s Online Strategy Meets Their Expectations

October 26, 2024 / Francois Maingret

If you live close to a large city, you’ve probably seen all these Spirit Halloween stores popping up recently. It’s impossible to miss them with their bright orange signs. I find it impressive that a company can generate enough revenue during the Halloween season to have the resources to open all of these temporary locations. But what’s even more impressive is that, even when operating within such a short time frame, they place a heavy focus on the online experience.

Let’s see how this company operates and review some key parts of their online strategy. Spirit Halloween recently added some interesting shipping options and seems to perform well online. Halloween is certainly an interesting time of year for businesses, and I thought it would be insightful to examine one of these extremely seasonal businesses that succeed online.

Interview With Leoni Parkinson – Debunking the Top 5 Myths of Digital Marketing

September 26, 2024 / Francois Maingret

Interview With Malini Ratnam – Digital Retailing Program at the University of North Texas

August 20, 2024 / Francois Maingret

New Flashy Ad Campaigns Won’t Always Fix Your Business – Why Ecomm Entrepreneurs Should Consider All 4Ps of Marketing

August 2, 2024 / Francois Maingret

You’ve probably heard of the “Four Ps of Marketing.” If not, the 4Ps—Product, Price, Place, and Promotion—are the key elements that help businesses strategize how to develop, price, distribute, and promote their offers effectively.

If a company was a house, Price and Place would be how much the house is worth and where it is located—very important elements that are frequently discussed. Promotion would be the fancy cabinets and the fresh coat of paint on the kitchen walls. There are millions of blogs, YouTube channels, and TV shows about home decor, and many homeowners think their house will double in value if they put a fresh coat of beige paint on the walls. Finally, Product is the house itself: the walls, foundations, plumbing, insulation. It is not the “sexy” part of the building, something people even avoid discussing sometimes, but a house with structural issues will be a lot less attractive to buyers.

Levi’s Focus on DTC: Why I Think the Brand Has What It Takes to Be Successful

July 29, 2024 / Francois Maingret

Hot take: I think over 95% of businesses selling on large Amazon would fail miserably if they opened a DTC channel. Anyone can build a storefront on Shopify, list their product, pay $100 a month membership, and start selling. But how many entrepreneurs can sell profitably in significant volume via a DTC channel? People complain about Amazon’s fees without realizing that for many brands, CACs would kill them if they had their own channels.

On the other hand, some brands are seeing massive success with DTC. One of these brands is Levi’s, which claimed to have doubled their DTC revenues in the last decade and now making this channel a major part of their strategy. According to Michelle Gass, Levi Strauss & Co. president: “With the strong momentum and consumer permission, now is the time to accelerate our transition to D2C, where we will evolve our culture and operating model, and our consumer centricity will drive every aspect of how we operate.”

This brings me to think, what makes Levi’s a good candidate for a successful DTC channel, and when should a business stay away from it?

Transcript Extract – Interview With Abby Schommer – Choosing and Working with an Ad Agency

July 27, 2024 / Francois Maingret

If you missed my interview with Customer Chief Officer at RevScience Abby Schommer, you can find the full video of the interview here.

This interview is packed with so much good advice that I couldn’t resist posting an extract of the transcript below.