The One With 3 North Stars In The Sky
(AKA, sharing 3 Brands that are among my list of Go-to-Market digital North Stars (I recommend you follow them / watch them / and learn from them)
1. Madhappy: (Drop strategy, SMS list growth, Collaborations, Brand consistency)
In my opinion, there is no better DROP STRATEGY out there than Madhappyâs.
You can be subscribed to their SMS list, you can click the link in the SMS the second you receive the text, AND YOU CAN STILL MISS OUT ON THE COLORWAY OR SIZE (OR BOTH lol) of the item you were eyeing.
Madhappy drops OFTEN (1x a week), drops only once (once theyâve sold out of that style/ collab/ colorway â kiss it goodbye forever), and drops the same way every.single.time.
When you shop Madhappy, YOUâRE SHOPPING A MOMENT IN TIME.
Every week is a new chapter – and you have to battle your way into checkout (if this was retail, Iâd be THROWING ELBOWS if I saw you eyeing the style or size I had dibs on â BACK OFF).
Madhnappy isnât cheap – thatâs the point.
Itâs a club, and itâs not invitation only, itâs first come first serve, baby.
What saves Madhappy from becoming oversaturated â and therefore a lame club to be a part of â is the fact that each week the brand reinvents its style, but never its product (the hoodies, T-shirts, shorts, surfboards lol, and pants are always made of the same 5ish fabrics + materials).
What changes is the design â making each drop a new opportunity to set your alarm for the limited edition sweatshirt of your daydreams.
(^^ something Aviator Nation didnât do but should have – same shit, different day – 2017 is calling, and Aviator Nationâs styles HAVENâT CHANGED – the only thing thatâs changed is that you can go to the airport and see 14 people wearing the same 5-stripe pattern).
WHAT TO DO: 1. Sell out (aka stock out), build a waiting list, build HYPE. Donât be scared to âmiss outâ on revenue by blocking orders / depleting inventory. If you build it, and then take it away, and then bring it back, they will shop. 2. Mix up your designs, the vibe of your products, the styles of your collections. However, your quality better be consistent. I MEAN IT – NO CUTTING CORNERS HERE. Itâs all about cost per use – if you sell something shitty that is low quality, youâre gonna have a bad time. 3. Drop often! We shouldnât be launching 50 SKUs at once – launch a small collection, educate your customers on that collection, squeeze every last bit of momentum out of that drop, and then DROP AGAIN.
2. Dr. Squatch: (Humor, Performance > Brand, Bundling, Channel Diversification)
Dr. Squatch made a boring category HILARIOUS (buying menâs soap online isnât usually a party).
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This marketing team deserves all of the glory that they get – when Dr. Squatch shows up, they SHOW UP. Paid Search. Paid Social. TV. YouTube. Onsite. Their team is definitely batshit crazy, which I fully support (it works so well for them).
P.S. Dr. Squatchâs bundling strategy is world-class.
Every single item is well-priced, and their cart value should be low (in theory). By the time youâve checked out, however, youâve giggled and accidentally added 4 items to cart.
Laughing their way to the bank.
WHAT TO DO: 1. Study Dr. Squatchâs ads (theyâve been this funny for YEARS – lots of good stuff to sort through. Study this the next time youâre feeling grumpy – I bet the brand will turn that frown upside down. 2. Build a brand that goes to market with a sense of humor – weâre selling products, not E.R. DOCTORS. Ari says RELAX 3. Merchandise your website, and make your Average Order Value your priority – as this trends up, good things tend to happen. Cross-sell, upsell, bundle, and test your way into winning combinations. The more money we make per order, the fewer orders we need.
3. Assouline: (Status, Retail, Association)
You might not know the name of this brand, but I bet youâve seen these books SOMEWHERE.
But, not just anywhere, somewhere SPECIAL.
At a 5-star hotel. In the background of the photo on Instagram or Pinterest of the living room of the oh-so-perfect influencer you follow, at the office of an architect.
Assouline = STATUS.
Each book is $95. Which is a lot.
But, what is a $95 Assouline book doing inside of a Chanel Boutique in Europe?
Why does Chanel have the book so proudly on display? (these books arenât made by Chanel!!)
Assouline has made its brand synonymous with luxury, by associating with the top brands of the world.
When Going-to-Market, be sure youâre playing in the sandbox you want to be in FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.
WHAT TO DO: 1. Identify the brands your ideal customer would hold in great esteem. Buy easily recognizable, HERO items from said brands, then have those items oh so subtly in the background of any lifestyle content you shoot for your product. Who we hang out with we become. 2. Collab with brands that are on your level (or above – we are down to climb high). 3. Be the Assouline in the Chanel boutique – act confident and nobody will question you.
GO-TO-TWEET:
~Fire~ Tweet from Kaleigh Moore
Screaming, crying, throwing up at how much the above Tweet speaks to me (the Sharma Brands team had a field day/ laughing fit when we first saw this on Twitter).
