📦 - Bending Reality

DTC 625 - TikTok Shopping Report, Feals Double CTA, and Level Up Ads   Friday, August 16, 2024 Good morning, As one of our loyal DTC subscribers, we're giving you early access to our Marketing Events site! 👀 Here, you'll find all the online and in-person events in your area. Scroll down to our new Marketing Events section so you don't miss out. 😉 Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC: 📝 TikTok’s What's Next Shopping Report shares how consumer behavior has changed in 2024 and how brands can position themselves for success. 💰 Learn how Feals doubled their orders by adding this CTA to their PDPs. 😇 And…how to level up your ads when hitting publish just isn’t cutting it anymore. You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: [Revel Fit Club](, [Koko Black](, and [Hotchpotch Kids](. 👋   TIKTOK INSIGHTS 🤩 What’s Next Shopping Report Reveals Three Trends TikTok just released its second annual What’s Next shopping report for brands and shared some valuable insights. The app claims this year consumers aren’t just reacting to what’s happening in the world but are active participants in reshaping and bending reality thanks to the speed of social media. Here are three trends shaped by consumers: 1️⃣ Bending emotions: Customers use shopping as a mood booster and a form of escapism from turbulent times. They seek positive content like #Hopecore and gravitate towards brands that share moments of joy. There’s a thread of optimism in their shopping behavior and consumers look for brands that share similar values like sustainability and self-expression. What brands can do: Brands should recognize consumer desire for joy in a saturated market and communicate brand values consistently to highlight selling points like sustainability (e.g., reusable packaging) plus use colorful colors in mood-boosting campaigns. 2️⃣ Bending communities: Communities like Buy It For Life and Shopping Across Borders are growing in popularity and influencing customers globally. Customers prioritize quality products they can use for a long time and show interest in products that are blowing up in other regions or countries. 🌎 What brands can do: Brands can tap into these communities to talk about the longevity of their products. If you offer products to a global audience, make that known on your website homepage so customers can participate in trends that blow up in other countries. 3️⃣ Bending Relationships: Customers are becoming a critical part of the product development process. TikTok users share honest first impressions and reviews, and brands benefit from getting real-time feedback to tweak product formulations and packaging. E.g. TikTok beauty creator Darcei criticized the brand TIRTIR for not having a diverse shade range and the cosmetic brand [quickly responded by releasing darker shades to their line up](. The brand’s swift response and commitment to inclusivity drew major praise online for those who wanted to participate in K-beauty trends. What brands can do: Be an active listener and address concerns quickly. Consumers appreciate transparency! This is a great way to earn their long-term loyalty. The takeaway? By understanding and implementing these key trends and actionable takeaways, brands can better align with consumer expectations and leverage TikTok as a powerful platform for engagement and growth.   TV 📺 Think TV Advertising Is Just for Big Brands? Not Anymore! In June 2024, streaming hit a record high of 40.3% of total TV usage. 🤯 With viewers spending 3+ hours daily binge-watching their favorite shows, if TV is not part of your marketing mix, you’re missing out. [Shoppr.tv]( is the ecommerce-first advertising platform that will help your brand reach and convert customers on TV, starting at just $50/day. - Reach more than 50 platforms and channels like Pluto, Roku, Max, Tubi, Hulu, and more, all under one easy-to-manage account. - Reach the right audiences using their shopping-ready segments or retargeting your website visitors on TV. - Push Conversion using their unique built-in QR code generator to send video viewers straight to your website. 🎁 [Sign up for free](, spend $250, and get a $250 advertising credit on your first campaign! [Get Started Now]( *Sponsored   WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION 💰 How Feals Doubled Orders With This Clever CTA [Feals](, a CBD gummy brand, uses this clever CTA on its PDPs to increase its average order value. On their site, they offer customers the option to purchase once or subscribe and save. However, they added a third option to increase purchases. 💡 And it’s so simple to implement! Feals gets customers to double their orders with the incentive of free shipping. [Pilothouse]( explains why this CTA works so well:👇 [Feals PDP page emphasizes CTA with bold green color and enticing offer] 1️⃣ Color contrast: Their CTA really pops visually against the white backdrop, and using the color green makes customers feel they are making the right decision. ✅ 2️⃣ Emphasizes cost-savings: The CTA button also shows the cost savings for the customer when doubling their purchase. Rather than having the customer do the math to see how ‘worth it’ this offer is, there’s a call-out tab that clearly states they will save 25%. 3️⃣ Attractive incentive: There is also the promise of free shipping to give them an extra nudge to purchase 2x. The verdict? If you are selling an easily replenishable product, this CTA would be worth testing on your PDPs. This call-to-action targets first-time and repeat customers who want to save but aren’t ready to fully commit to a subscription.   📅 MARKETING EVENTS We built a fancy new website ([MarketingEvents.cc]() that lists all the upcoming events in the space. Here’s what’s going on in August: [SEE ALL EVENTS HERE]( [Brand Insider Summit](- A top event for senior retail marketers to refine omnichannel strategies and boost consumer engagement. 🗓 Aug 18-21. 📍🇺🇲 Lake Tahoe, USA. 🏢 Conference. 💰 $495 [Podcast Movement]( - The leading conference for podcasters, offering expert insights, networking, and strategies to elevate content and audience engagement. 🗓 Aug 19-22. 📍🇺🇲 Boston, USA. 🏢 Conference. 💰 $799-$3899 [Modern Retail Marketing Summit]( - An event for retail marketers to explore industry challenges, gain actionable insights, and network with industry leaders. 🗓 Aug 19-21. 📍🇺🇲 Santa Barbara, USA. 🏢 Conference. 💰 $3195-$5195 [DigiMarCon Oceania]( - A conference where industry experts and professionals gather to explore the latest strategies, trends, and innovations in digital marketing. 🗓 Aug 20-21. 📍🇦🇺 Melbourne, Australia. 🏢 Conference. 💰 $297-$1397 [DigiMarCon UK]( - Insights on social media, content strategy, SEO, and more, with expert speakers and networking opportunities for over 1,000 attendees to stay ahead in digital marketing. 🗓 Aug 29-30. 📍🇬🇧 London, UK. 🏢 Conference. 💰 £297-£1297 [SEE ALL FUTURE EVENTS](   🌐 IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE Are your ads not performing the way they used to? It’s time to examine your data and determine what’s turning off users! Understand your audience and their psychological triggers, and then you will start to see growth. Can't view the image? [Click here](   📰 NEWS - Shopify [enters a strategic partnership with Pivotree to develop ecommerce solutions](. - X’s AI tool Grok [can now generate images and is already drawing negative reactions with users](. - Gordon Ramsey and his daughter Holly [team up to promote NYX’s new Buttermelt Blush](.   SPONSOR DTC 📥 Got a B2B Biz? Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 160k brand leaders and founders this year. [Talk to our team to learn more](.   Have you heard our latest podcasts? - 🧊 Brock Mammoser on [Frost Buddy’s $30M TikTok to Meta Pipeline]( - 🤔 [AKNF 429:]( Are Your Amazon Ads Cannibalizing Organic Results? - 🔪 Brandon Horoho on [Scaling Montana Knife Company with VIPs]( - ⭐ [AKNF 427:]( How to Structure Your Google Ads Campaigns - 🥟 Jen Liao on [How MìLà Became a Nationwide Frozen Food Brand]( - ✉️ [AKNF 425:]( How To Fix Email Automation and Improve Retention Don’t forget to [rate the DTC Podcast]( on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) DTC Newsletter is written by [Rebecca Knight]( and [Frances Du](. Edited by [Eric Dyck](. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content. [Direct To Consumer]( Pilothouse, 1011 Government St., Victoria, BC V8W 1X6, Canada [Advertise with DTC]( | [Work With Pilothouse]( [Unsubscribe](