Getting Started
In this series, I have addressed the four funnel friction fractions and proposed solutions to each of them:
- 1/100: Mitigating Attention Recession with Inbox Commerce through the use of email shops
- 1/33: Countering Red Journeys on brand properties with Green Journeys, powered by iDarpan to predict the next best course of action
- 1/3: Overcoming Dormancy and Churn by partnering with a Reactivation Progency
- 1/2: Resolving Adtech AdWaste with a Near-Zero Acquisition Cost strategy
Addressing these frictions must take precedence for CEOs and CMOs of ecommerce brands. By resolving even one or two of these, a brand can significantly enhance profitability, setting it on a course towards exponential forever profitable growth. For the ultimate achievement of creating a fortified business and a “profits monopoly” (profipoly), ecommerce brands must strive to resolve all four friction points. Such a comprehensive approach separates ordinary businesses from extraordinary, enduring, great businesses.
As initial steps, I recommend beginning with Inbox Commerce and Reactivation Progency. Both interventions can seamlessly integrate into existing marketing activities, demonstrating quick success without requiring extensive tech integration. The crucial aspect is to identify a Martech 2.0 partner who is willing to adopt a performance-based pricing model for both initiatives.
The subsequent phase should involve addressing AdWaste. A successful reactivation program will contribute substantially towards solving this issue. Encouraging referrals from ‘Best’ customers through AMP email footers can further this endeavour. Finally, employing the Best Customer Genome data to influence the acquisition of ‘Next’ customers can provide a comprehensive solution to this challenge.
Here’s an alternate perspective on these four solutions:
- Inbox Commerce targets all customers (especially Best customers) to optimise lifetime value
- Green Journeys for Rest and Test customers aim to predict the next best action
- Reactivation Progency strives to re-engage Left customers and prevent Test customers from becoming dormant
- Near-Zero Acquisition Cost focuses on Next customers
Achieving just a 10% increase in revenues and a 30% reduction in marketing spends (primarily by halving AdWaste) can transform the company’s P&L, potentially more than doubling the profits.
Thus, successful execution of these four funnel interventions opens the pathway towards building a “profipoly.”
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To conclude, I’d like to highlight that these strategies are primarily designed for eCommerce businesses that maintain direct customer relationships. But what about businesses operating through offline stores or marketplaces, where acquiring customer digital details is a challenge? And what about the unidentified website browsers? These circumstances might well represent a potential fifth friction point within the sales funnel.
For such businesses, my advice is to start by collecting at least an email ID from every customer, thereby establishing a direct digital communication channel. As I touched upon in a previous essay: “The strength of marketplaces comes from their access to customers and the data they accumulate over time. For D2C brands, the lack of buyer data means that they stay dependent on the marketplaces. In some categories, it may be possible to include options to get end customer information. For example, a brand could include an extended guarantee or a discount on a future purchase if buyers provide their email address and mobile number.”
Ultimately, businesses that maintain the closest relationships with their customers will emerge as big winners. Even those dealing with anonymous or unidentified customers should endeavour to implement a Know Your Customer (KYC) program – “Anon-to-Known” – and build direct and deep connections.
