Beyond the Cart

Changes to your digital strategy can domino across your business. While that ultimately is how real change happens, it can be daunting. Today, we’re discussing the biggest mistakes ecommerce companies make when re-aligning and re-investing in their customer experience (CX) strategies — and how to avoid them. 

Join host Nora as she shares lessons learned with Lightburn's director of client strategy, Colleen Campbell, and the co-owner and cofounder of the UX research company, Lyssna Method, our pal Kristine Howell. 

Top takeaways include:

• Top mistakes business owners make
• Low-cost wins to avoid analysis paralysis
• How to get c-suite buy-in with dedicated data
• Under and OVER-investing in technology
• Customer wants versus business needs
• Reducing risk and welcoming natural tension points

Today's interview will discuss the challenges and opportunities of rebuilding paper processes in a digital environment. Joining us is Camie Grabowski, the Sales & Design Manager at Digital Pix & Composites (DPC). She's spent nearly 20 years strategizing ways to modernize and simplify operations for a business with several moving parts and plenty of room for human error. 

We asked:

• What did the manual process used to look like?
• What were some of your initial reservations?
• What was the lag time between planning and action?
• Did any part of the process surprise you with its complexity or simplicity?
• Did you learn anything new about your users during this transformation?
• Where did this process break down after launch?
• What’s been helpful for your team, clients and customers?
• Do you have any advice you’d give others?

We're ending season two talking about "stuckage." It's totally real. We see it all the time. You're stuck making decisions. You can't get any traction on your project. It happens a lot in ecommerce. And we're gonna talk about how to solve that. We're also gonna apply some of the solutions that we often give our clients to our D2C brand, Bilberry West.

Today’s Topics:

• DIY ecommerce is unrealistic — even for us
• Don’t create problems that don’t exist yet – part one
• The answers are normally obvious but hard to accept
• The "sunken cost" fallacy
• Don’t create problems that don’t exist yet – part two
• How accountability will make or break your business
• How to remove heavy emotional barriers and move forward

Today, we're talking to one of our food and beverage clients about selling swag online. From t-shirts to gift cards, restaurants have evolved from local eateries to brand-name business groups. To tell their story. I've invited Sam Schulte, the marketing specialist for the Lowlands Group, to discuss how their migration from WooCommerce to Shopify helped increase sales by 9% in just 2-months (and it's not even their busy season). 

Today’s Topics:

• A little about Lowlands
• Re-platforming their store from WooCommerce to Shopify
• Learning and leveraging pre-existing themes
• Customizing templates where it matters (keep it simple)
• Creating better checks and balances between product owners
• Creating a dynamic navigation for each restaurant
• Tracking sales, promotions, and product interest
• Analyzing the monetary impact of the new shop
• Trusting in your digital partner

Today we're talking about subscription models. They're all the rage right now, from meal planning kits to makeup. It might seem simple to just add a subscription button to your product page, but there's a lot more to consider. For some expertise on this topic, we're excited to have our friend and former colleague, Kristine Howell, joining us today. 

Today’s Topics:

• Why ecommerce subscription models are so popular
• When to consider offering a subscription service
• Simplifying the buy-in and cancelation process
• Getting feedback from users and stakeholders
• Investing in the emotional experience 

Today, we're talking about abandoned carts. Learn how to avoid leaving money on the table by streamlining the checkout process, reducing distractions, and offering genuine value that connects with your customers. 

• Reducing distractions
• Identifying the barriers
• Investments versus commodities
• Curating the brand experience
• Filling in the gaps

In today's episode, we're talking about the effects of seasonality on your PPC plan, how we approach seasonality as it relates to paid advertising, and the unique challenges of running campaigns for clients with extreme seasonality.

Today's Topics: 

• Advertising highly seasonal products
• Customer engagement
• Following your audience (1-800-FLOWERS)
• Weather-driven seasonality
• Your first year of digital ads
• Revving up digital ad spend
• Communicating with operations

Today we welcome a new guest, Lightburn SEO Analyst Taylor Belmer. During today's chat, we will be exploring how to write engaging, informative, and persuasive product descriptions. We'll break down shopping algorithms and how they're weighted, and we've got some practical advice for increasing product visibility across channels. 

Today's Topics

• Generic and brand-driven keywords
• The problem with duplicate content
• Minimize iterations with thoughtful UX design
• Focus on features and benefits 
• Avoid filler statements 
• Infuse descriptions with brand voice 
• Creating a roadmap for success

Today we're talking about the customer journey. Do you know yours? If you are not sure, then you need to put pen to paper. It is vital that you understand the different types of customers that are purchasing your product, how they interact with your sales process, and what type of support they need.

Today's Topics

• Understanding customer types
• Leveraging your sales process
• The problem with being unreachable
• Documentation and iterations
• The number of products versus customer types
• The impact of lifecycle timelines (featuring two real-world stories)
• Identifying your best customers

Today we're talking about your website's average order value (AOV). Why it's important, how to increase it, and why it must factor into your ecommerce plan. We'll share some of the ways to simplify the checkout process and advice on how to nudge customers towards adding more to their carts. 

Today's Topics

• Your average order value (AOV) and other metrics 
• Increasing AOV with free shipping 
• Considering a loyalty and other spend level rewards
• Showcasing add on accessories or related products
• Product bundling and other incentives

Today's episode is titled "Where Are We Now." If you were listening in season one, you know that we had some delays in getting our product launched. We're going to talk about where we're at with that, user testing, and we're also going to share a little bit more about what season two has in store.

Today's Episode Includes:

• We have a warehouse!
• Product prototypes
• User testing
• Next steps

Today in the final episode of season one, Nora and Andy are talking all things customer service, and how small choices you make can have a big impact on your brand and customer loyalty. From product returns to nurturing campaigns, we touch on many topics that will be sure to get your own ideas flowing. Plus, we'll share a progress update on Bilberry West and what you can expect from season two of Beyond the Cart. 

Today's Episode Includes:

• Customer service as a company-wide responsibility 
• Product Returns 
• Shipping and packaging
• Discount programs 
• Customer nurturing campaigns
• Customer notifications 
• Update on Bilberry West

Today, in episode nine, we're talking tax collection with Meg Higgins, VP and GM, ecommerce and marketplaces for Avalara. Come discover how a tax technology like Avalara is a critical tool for businesses large and small. 

Today's Episode Includes:

• The current landscape of ecommerce taxes in 2021
• What to look for in an ecommerce sales tax solution
• How tax collection impacts customer experience
• Getting started with a tax technology partner
• What the heck "economic nexus" means
• Planning for growth

Today, in episode eight, we're talking to one of our largest ecommerce success stories. Come discover how we brought this traditionally brick and mortar business online with special guests, Callisters Christmas. 

Today's Episode Includes:

• Failing (Twice)
• Types of Products
• Customization & Personalization
• In-Store versus Online Customers
• Finding Success

BONUS EPISODE:  Did you hear? Mailchimp has entered the ecommerce game. We can't help but think... "Um...what?" Today we're taking a break from our previously scheduled programming to discuss this new tool, the evolution of ecommerce platforms, and the abundance of integration options for small businesses.

Today's Episode Includes:

• Mailchimp's Market Share
• "Easy-to-use" Tools
• Options for Retailers
• Taking on Shopify
• Incomplete "Integrations"

Today, in episode seven, we're digging deep into the transactional experiences related to user design. We'll share some of our pet peeves and quick wins you can take action on today. Join hosts Andy and Nora as they welcome our first guest, Lightburn's lead UX/UI designer, Caitlin Mackay to discuss user design and online experiences for your ecommerce website or application. 

Today's Episode Includes:

• Qualitative & Quantitative Metrics
• Identifying User Experience (UX) Issues
• The Mobile Versus Desktop Experience
• The Necessity of Form & Function
• Checkout Through Delivery & Support
• Data Security Certificates
• Optimizing for Mobile
• Shipping & Tracking
• Communication, Communication, Communication
• But Wait, Don’t Let Your Upselling Get Irritating
• Tools of The Trade, Mapping It All Out
• Investing In A Site Rebuild, Redesign, or Remodel?
• Bringing the In-store Experience Online 

Today, in episode six, we're shifting over to marketplaces. How they are a key part of our plan for Bilberry West and why you may want to consider omnichannel marketplaces for your business.

Today's Episode Includes:

• Amazon, Target & Etsy
• Margins & Commissions
• Market Sharing
• Integrations & Fees
• Drop Shipping
• Other Markets & Retailers

When you think of marketing strategy, does do your eyes light up, or do they glaze over? Today, in episode five, we'll help you understand how to get the ball rolling with your own marketing strategy. It's a big, beefy topic and we cover a lot of ground and offer real-world advice on how to move forward without getting in your own way.

Today's Episode Includes: 

• Episode Two Update: Ecommerce Platforms 
• Goals & Objectives
• Competitor & Marketplace Research
• Creating Space for Your Brand
• Understanding Your Customer Model
• Budget & Channel Planning
• Conversions & Returns
• Change & New Technology

Today, in episode four, we'll explore the process of selecting a name for our fledgling company. That's right, it's time to drop the name, project X. We'll miss you project X. You served us well and had us feeling like mysterious super villains, but it's time to move on. We'll give you a sneak peek into how we did this with a startup mindset — that is — quickly and cost-effectively.

Today's Episode Includes: 

• Creating a production process
• Managing feedback overload
• Sourcing product materials
• Creating physical prototypes

Today, in episode three, we've started to skim the surface of product design from folks who have exactly zero experience designing a product. Fun times. We're not even inventing a new product and it's still challenging — the details and all the things that are going into designing our product line and figuring out how we're going to make it work...

Today's Episode Includes: 

• Creating a production process
• Managing feedback overload
• Sourcing product materials
• Creating physical prototypes