[ BDSN ] ⭐ How to get 99% open rates on Amazon promos

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POWERFUL OUTBOUND MARKETING
EXCLUSIVELY FOR SUPPLEMENT BRAND OWNERS
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🪄 THIS STRATEGY has made me MILLION$

My background is direct marketing. I was selling millions through the mail before Amazon or Google existed. If you are under 40, you probably don’t understand how effective it was then, and very much still is now.

In 2019 I did a presentation to Helium 10 Elite and Billion Dollar Seller Summit audiences, then several months later a similar talk to group of 2,500 Chinese sellers at a live event in Shenzhen.

It was about how to integrate postcard marketing into your Amazon business, complete with step-by-step instructions and a bunch of resources.

Very few Western sellers listened and implemented (they poo-pooed it as old fashioned marketing). The Chinese sellers, on the other hand, implemented the strategies I showed and many are still crushing it to this day using postcard marketing to Amazon (and other marketplace) buyers.

I have personally made millions of dollars using postcard marketing. You are literally leaving free money on the table if you are not doing this.

With today’s technology, you can also send 20-50% of the visitors to your website or a landing page a handwritten postcard in the mail automatically without them telling you their address, and even include a dynamically placed photo of the last product they looked at on the printed postcard!

The supplement brand Obvi gets it. The company has a fun and vibrant collagen-supplements brand that is a huge success.

Just three years after launch, Obvi has more than $30 million in sales from over 200,000 customers around the world.

But like every DTC brand, Obvi has been facing marketing headwinds. Ad costs are up, email open rates are down, and retargeting is a serious challenge.

So this innovative company turned to an “old” marketing strategy—with a modern twist.

Postcards.

They leveraged Post Pilot’s concierge service to create a postcard campaign in just 2 days, featuring personalization, discounts, unique coupon codes, and dynamic expiration dates.

The goal was to reactivate churned customers who hadn't purchased in 90+ days and weren't responding to ads or emails. PostPilot enabled ROI tracking and customer purchase behavior after postcard delivery too.

The results:

• An initial 1,100 postcard test campaign generated over $20,000 in sales, a 1,835% ROI (37X ROAS).

• Postcard marketing provided high deliverability compared to email/SMS, simplicity with minimal effort required from Obvi, predictable results despite iOS privacy changes, and longevity with physical reminders driving multiple purchases over time.

• Obvi is currently scaling postcard marketing with more granular RFM segmentation, expecting their next campaign to achieve 3,000-3,500% ROI.

Why postcard marketing should be part of your marketing mix:

1. It can be a highly effective and often cheaper way to reactivate customers and drive repeat buys, complementing email, SMS, and ads.

2. Outsourcing postcard campaign creation and management to a specialized service can provide excellent results with minimal time and effort required from the seller.

3. Detailed tracking, personalization, and segmentation capabilities allow for campaign optimization and scaling to maximize ROI.

4. In an e-commerce landscape with rising ad costs and privacy restrictions, postcard marketing offers a promising alternative to reach customers, build brand affinity, and drive profitable growth.

You should consider testing postcard marketing as part of your overall customer retention and revenue growth strategies, as it has proven to deliver substantial results for myself and brands like Obvi.

🛠️ GENERATE 3D PRODUCT VIDEOS with EASE

If you have an iPhone 11 or newer, you can generate outstanding 3D product videos like the ones below with speed and ease using Doly from Animi.

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🛠️ THE CHINESE MAY HAVE a SORA KILLER

A Chinese AI video generator called Kling developed by Kuaishou Technology just dropped that is wowing those using it.

The model can generate highly realistic videos up to 2 minutes long at 1080p resolution from text prompts, rivaling the quality of OpenAI's invitation-only model, Sora.

Kling employs advanced techniques like 3D Variational Autoencoder and spatiotemporal joint attention mechanism to create detailed, physically accurate videos. The model is accessible for free through the apps Kuaishou, Kwai, and KwaiCut, but currently requires a Chinese phone number.

Kling excels at generating immersive, realistic videos spanning various genres, from action scenes to fantasy series. The model currently has some limitations, such as struggling with accurately depicting skin color.

Kling's arrival may pressure U.S.-based AI video model providers like OpenAI and Runway to improve their models' quality and resolution. A full U.S. release without the need for Chinese phone numbers may be coming in the near future.

⭐⭐⭐ ½ HOW to LOSE $1.5 MILLION on AMAZON

The Youtube presentation linked below by Kevin King and Steve Simonson was originally shared in the 2021 BDSS Virtual Event. Most people only talk about their successes selling on Amazon, but it is important to study the failures too.

Bookmark the video. It is worth an hour of your time to watch. It contains key lessons for every seller about how an Amazon product launch can succeed initially but still end up losing significant money.

In March 2020, a group of experienced Amazon sellers, including Kevin King and Steve Simonson, saw a big opportunity to launch a hand sanitizer and wipes brand called Germ Shark to meet surging pandemic demand during COVID.

They thoroughly researched the market, developed a quality brand identity, secured necessary approvals, lined up manufacturing, and overcame supply chain hurdles to bring the products to market.

The June 2020 launch was very successful, rapidly achieving $40,000 in daily sales and high rankings on Amazon. The company reached $1 million in total sales within a month.

However, a cascade of serious problems followed: Some product quality issues, negative reviews, Amazon repeatedly taking down listings, stocking inconsistencies, and the market becoming saturated as major brands like Purell returned to availability out of the restricted Covid Store.

Sales fell steeply while grappling with these setbacks. Despite heavy investment in inventory, the company lost over $1.5 million on the project.

The case illustrates that even diligent preparation, an all-star team, and a strong brand and launch provide no guarantee on Amazon.

Unforeseen issues with suppliers, Amazon's systems, competitors and market dynamics can quickly unravel a product's viability. Surmounting these obstacles is a tremendous challenge on Amazon.

The Germ Shark experience underscores the immense financial risks in launching products on Amazon and can serve as several valuable lessons for sellers.

Fortunes can reverse from glittering success to dismal failure with shocking speed. Sellers must be prepared for a rocky path with no certainty of a positive destination. Do yourself a favor, and watch the video when you have a chance.

💵 WHAT is YOUR E-COM BUSINESS WORTH?

Want to get an idea of what your e-com business may be worth based on a number of factors you currently have going on?

The FBA Guys created a free valuation tool that has an easy series of questions you can quickly answer to generate an estimate for you like the one below.

It can be a great way to get a baseline of where you are at and an idea of things you may need to improve before going to market.

LAST TWO BDSN NEWSLETTERS …
June 13 → ✍️ The best keywords to use for Prime Day
June 10 → 🛒 Oops, you left something in your Amazon cart

KEVIN’S LATEST AM/PM PODCAST:

🚂 RIDE THE TRAIN with KEVIN & NORM FARRAR

Collective Minds in a unique experiential mastermind for e-commerce sellers.

No presentations. Just networking and bonding over an amazing shared activity.

Norm and I find the best insights, bonding and learning often come from relaxed conversations. Not from formal presentations.

During the Collective Minds Society Canadian Rocky Mountain Train Experience, we’ve completely reimagined the mastermind experience.

Put yourself in the middle of meaningful personal stories and business strategy conversations flowing with exquisite food, drink, first class lodging and the beauty of the Canadian Rockies as a stunning backdrop.

As Abe Chomali, who attended the first CMS event, says, “The time we spent together was fantastic. The bonds I have made are lifelong. It was a perfect experience - an 11 out of 10 for me.”

You’re invited to join us on the Collective Minds Society Canadian Rocky Mountain Train Experience – a mastermind like no other.

The best part, other than your airfare, it’s all-inclusive.

Click below to learn more about the Collective Minds Society's Canadian Rocky Mountain Train Experience this August 4-9 starting in Vancouver, Canada.

✌🏼 BDSS Market Masters is coming in September with the Dream 100!

See you again on Thursday …

The answer to today’s STUMP BEZOS is
$714 billion was returned (14.28%)