How I Built This (2 lessons learned)
As a podcast enthusiast, I’m always up for an episode of How I Built This by NPR. A recently re-aired episode documented the story of how co-founders Niraj Shah and Steve Conine came to build Wayfair. I was struck by 2 lessons they learned that align with advice we often give clients who are using DRTV to build their business.
1. Listen to and learn from your customers.
Long before Wayfair, Shah and Conine started their first e-commerce site, selling stereo racks and stands. In those early days, they answered their own customer service calls and immediately tweaked the site and their inventory as a result of the feedback
When developing and optimizing your DRTV campaign, it’s a best practice to monitor calls, keyword phrases, chats, emails and social posts to listen to your customers. You will find ways to improve your creative messaging, test new offers, spot a new target audience or find a new benefit to communicate about your product. An optimized DRTV campaign will benefit from all of these insights and generate more sales as a result.
2. Eventually, you’ll need branding.
In 2011, after building their e-commerce network to over 250 shopping sites, they realized they would need to focus on their brand in order to reach the next stage of growth. As a result, they engaged with experts, chose the name Wayfair and positioned the brand as the “ultimate home goods shopping experience”.
Many DTC brands are launched using acquisition-based marketing – search, social, eventually DRTV. Over time, it will also become necessary to build a brand that connects with consumers in a more emotional, less rational manner. At this point, we recommend layering a brand TV strategy on top the DRTV campaign. As we’ve shared here, a dual strategy can help drive further growth for brands with a rich marketing mix and active competitive set.
While there are many building blocks that go into growing a successful business, these two lessons really stand out for me. Listening to customers can harvest some of your richest, most actionable data. And adding brand marketing to your acquisition efforts is a natural step in planning your long-term strategy.
For more information on we approach the many stages of growth for our clients, feel free to reach out to me at delia.marshall@eicoff.com