📦 - Proof Is In The Pudding 🍫

DTC 435 - Thrasio Bankruptcy, AI Lead Generation Tool, Creative Ideas, Limited-Time Q4 Creative Offer [DTC X Smart Recognition]( Tuesday, November 21, 2023 It’s Tuesday and here’s what you need to know… Wowowow. It’s been a wild few days in the world of ecommerce. - Open AI is going through all sorts of internal shakeups seeing their former CEO take on a new position at Microsoft. - Meta and Christian Louboutin are joining forces to file a joint counterfeit goods lawsuit. - Thrasio, the well-known Amazon aggregator, has filed for bankruptcy. But… more on that later. It’s also Black Friday week — Basically the Superbowl of the DTC world. We’ve got a few content ideas for you down below in case you need some extra creative inspo! ✨ Let’s dive in: 👇 AI LEAD GENERATION 🤯 New AI Lead Gen Tool Identifies Email Address of Your Visitors* [Smart Recognition]( What if we told you that you can Identify the email addresses of your anonymous [website traffic?]( A new AI-powered tool, [Smart Recognition](, has created the next evolution in lead generation. Rather than getting only 5% of your traffic via an opt-in form, you can now target and email most of your website traffic, [growing your email list and revenue faster](! Here are just some examples of how you can use this: - Capture the email addresses of 1000's of anonymous Black Friday and Holiday Traffic. - Email an irresistible offer to prospects browsing your site. - Send abandoned cart emails to people who don't complete checkout. - Add those email addresses to Meta remarketing audiences. Curious to see how much of your anonymous website traffic you can identify? [Get Started with Smart Recognition]( [Try It Free]( AMAZON AGGREGATE WOES 📉 The rapid rise and fall of Thrasio [Thrasio](, the startup that could, is now filing for bankruptcy. The company had been focusing on acquiring, optimizing, and scaling Amazon FBA brands in the past few years and quickly became the largest Amazon aggregator in the space. From 2018 to 2019 they focused purely on expanding their roster and [earned 160 million purely on acquisitions]( but there was evidence of trouble earlier this year when they began laying off 20% of their staff. So what went wrong? The Amazon aggregator admitted many missteps led to their downfall. While they hastily acquired brands during the first few years, a lot of these brands were overvalued and underperformed (meaning they overpaid and didn’t get their money back). This comes as a huge shock since [they raised a total of $3.4 billion dollars]( and seemed poised for success. Pilothouse’s Lead Amazon Media Buyer shares: “Thrasio's strategy of acquiring brands later in their lifecycle proved costly, as earlier entry would have been riskier but more cost-effective.” ❌ Major mistakes they made: - Slow to drop underperforming brands from its portfolio - Underestimated the intricacies of running an Amazon business - Dealt with inventory issues and rising freight costs during COVID - Experienced funding challenges this year 🔧 How Thrasio plans to pivot: Although the company filed for bankruptcy they aren’t done just yet. They plan on offloading underperforming brands and optimizing their top performing brands to stay profitable. What this means for ecommerce (and in particular brands on Amazon): Since Thrasio was a rising star in their industry, people are going to start being more hesitant in working with Amazon aggregators to supercharge their brand and sales. The Takeaway? 👇 Ample funding cannot cover up a failing business model For brands looking to sell their companies: They may be more apprehensive about working with ecommerce aggregators and do more of a deep dive into their expertise and resources. For ecommerce aggregators in the game: Aggregating doesn’t come without risks. Be prepared to be met with an air of skepticism after the rapid rise and fall of Thrasio. Learn to mitigate risk, diversify and manage portfolio closely, and do your due diligence when acquiring brands. 👋 We’re Breaking Our ‘No First Person’ Rule For This One… Hey DTC readers, It’s Rebecca! I’ve written to you hundreds of times, but never talked directly to you. So hey, hi, and hello. 😊 I spend hours every week on brand websites, ad libraries, and scrolling socials; but I also get to personally witness the creatives Pilothouse Studios delivers everyday (and their impacts on ad accounts) and can attest to the fact that they’re truly at the top of their game. The team is running a very limited-time offer, until December 1st or spots are filled, for [a package of their best, tried and true creatives to help you reach your Q4 goals]( (and beyond). Here’s what you get: - Killer creatives with a 7-day turnaround time to get you through the holiday time crunch. ✅ - Four proven top-performing static ad images and one creator generated content video (no substitutions). ✅ - A 40% discount compared to standard pricing. ✅ There’s only 8 spots available, trust me on this one, [you want one of them](. CREATIVE CORNER 🎬 Podcast Generated, Data-Backed, and Authoritative Ads Welcome back to another edition of the [DTC x Pilothouse Creative Corner](! We know the anticipation for the upcoming Q4 push is brewing, so we’re coming in this week with some fun content ideas you can steal to shake up your ad library and connect with your audience in new ways. Let’s go! 👇 🍄 Four Sigmatic Created by [Pilothouse Studios]( You know what they say, the proof is in the pudding! So we say, give them the goods! It is very easy for brands to preach about the kind of results that their consumers have achieved with their product or service, but where it really gets good is when a brand can break down exactly how a result was achieved. This proves that there really is a – data-backed – method to the madness and helps potential customers to better understand your offerings, how it could benefit them, and ultimately build trust. The strategic use of CGC green screen content and a client testimonial really sends this ad across the finish line. The creator breaks down the important information from a real case study into bite-size chunks and walks the viewer through the entire process. In doing so, the ad tells a story that’s keeping the viewer engaged, and the information becomes easier for the viewer to understand and recall. Add in a client testimonial that speaks to your credibility and you are set for a home run. There’s more where this came from! Want to see how to integrate podcast generated content and creator authority into your ads? [Click here to read on and view examples](. ✌️ SPONSOR DTC 📥 Promote your product to 160,000 digital marketing professionals DTC Newsletter + Podcast reaches a highly qualified audience of Shopify merchants, eCommerce founders, and digital marketers. [Talk to our team to learn more](. ⚡ QUICK HITS 📸 Your UGC (probably) sucks. If your UGC strategy is marketplace ‘actors’ reading your scripts, your viewers are seeing straight through it.[Use this free guide to learn how to get authentic UGC](. * 🚬 Snoop Dogg goes smokeless…for an ad campaign? The longtime rapper fooled fans when he sent out a cryptic message about [putting down the pipe](. 🎁 How much are shoppers actually spending this holiday season? Take a peek into the consumer insights driving BFCM marketing strategies for your DTC peers. [Get Klaviyo’s research report](. * 📹 Meta drops AI video editing software called Emu Video. You can now create short video clips using text prompts and edit images using [Emu Edit](. 🪓 Instagram is axing Guides. If you use the feature for your business then it’s time to download your content and repurpose it elsewhere before it [goes away next year](. 🩷 Dove partners with animated social media star Lennnie to give us a daily dose of positivity leading up to Thanksgiving weekend as part of their [Self Esteem Project](. (And we will admit, the song is really catchy.) 🎶 👀 BANTER WELP. 😅 Have you heard our latest podcasts? - 🤝 [What Leading DTC Subscription Brands All Have in Common]( w/ Anatta + Recharge - 🤑 [CRO to Sell More Stuff](with Nik Sharma and Brett Turner. - 👀 [AKNF 352](: The Incredible Upside of Amazon Ads with Rob and Clifford from Pilothouse Amazon. - 🎈 [CPG and the Art of Starting Small]( with Juliana Casale from Balloon - 📧 [AKNF 350:]( Q4 Email Marketing Survival guide with Will from Pilothouse Don’t forget to [rate the DTC Podcast]( on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) Got an awesome DTC brand story to tell? Calling all brand-side founders and team leaders! Fancy joining us on the DTC Podcast as a guest? [Tap the link to toss in your application](. DTC Newsletter is written by [Rebecca Knight](, [Frances Du](, and [Michael Venditti](. Edited by [Eric Dyck](. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. NEED MORE DTC? 🚀 [Advertise]( in DTC Newsletter. 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]( [Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe](