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- [LWN] 😱 I Lost $85k Overnight...
[LWN] 😱 I Lost $85k Overnight...
Lunch With Norm's Weekly Newsletter - Thieves In My Company, Sponsored Product Campaigns, and COSMOS
😱 There’s a Thief Among Us…
How an employee borrowing a jacket lead to embezzling $85 000 in a blink of an eye.
What you’ll find in this week’s newsletter:
😱 There’s a Thief Among Us [True Story]
🧐 The Branded Campaign Conundrum
🎙️ What You Missed Last Week
🗞️ Amazon News & Updates
✅ Avoid THIS With Your Freight Forwarders
Hey — it's Norm. I loved the comments you wrote in response to my last story. I've included my favorite comments at the bottom of this email. Feel free to check them out.
🧐 There’s a Thief Among Us [True Story]
Back in the '90s, I was the co-founder of a promotional company. I landed a sweet gig crafting 16 handmade IndyCar jackets for Molson's big 10th race in Toronto.
Hand-cut and oh-so-cool, these jackets were the envy of car enthusiasts everywhere.
See a picture of the jacket in the “Memory Lane” section down below.
Now, let's talk about Julie, our trusty bookkeeper.
We got along swimmingly, but little did we know, trouble was brewing.
These IndyCar jackets were worth a pretty penny, around $1500 each back in the '90s. Naturally, my partner and I snagged one for ourselves and kept an extra as a sample.
Behind our office, we had a fulfillment center where, occasionally, our drivers would drop off inventory.
Julie, ever helpful, would lend a hand and occasionally borrow our sample jacket on chilly days.
Seemed harmless enough, until one day, the sample jacket went missing.
Who else but Julie strolls in, wearing our prized possession like it's no big deal.
My partner and I exchanged a glance and asked, 'What are you doing with that jacket?'
Her excuse? “Ah, it was cold last night, so I used it to go home. Didn't think it'd be a problem.”
We gave her a stern warning and reinforced company policy.
But as we dug deeper, we uncovered something unsettling—Julie had pilfered over $85,000 from us. It was a mix of product and cash, even a fancy photocopier!
Lesson learned?
When it comes to business, there's no room for complacency.
What starts as a harmless borrowing spree can quickly spiral into something much bigger.
So next time you spot a red flag, don't just brush it off. Your bottom line will thank you later.
Enjoy the rest of the newsletter.
— Norm
Whose fault was this?After voting, share your thoughts! |
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
My favorite tweet of the week
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS THE BEARDED GUY?
Can you find Norm in the picture below? Scroll to the bottom of this newsletter to see the answer!
🔍 The Branded Campaign Conundrum
This tip is courtesy of Recast
Are branded Sponsored Products campaigns incremental for your brand OR a waste of ad dollars?
For some Amazon advertisers, the answer to this question is worth tens of thousands (even millions) of dollars.
What Can Make Brand Search NOT Incremental?
🍖 Cannibalization of Organic Traffic: If your prospects were already going to click and convert on your organic product placement, paying for higher SERP position may be a waste of ad dollars
🙋♂️ Attribution Challenges: Conversion credit is typically skewed towards branded campaigns and neglects the initiatives that actually drove the search for your product
What Can Make Brand Search Incremental?
🛡️ Protection of Brand Positioning: If you advertise in a highly competitive space, bidding on your brand’s keywords and adjacent products may stop competitors from stealing your best customers with higher placement in the SERP
📈 Cost-effectiveness and Traffic Volume: CPC is typically lower for branded campaigns and ROAS is usually stronger, making them an attractive option for marketers looking to drive traffic and conversions at a relatively low cost
How can you test the incrementality of your branded campaigns?
A few options to try:
✅ Geo-lift tests
✅ Go-dark experiments
✅ Working with a Media Mix Modeling vendor
WHAT YOU MISSED LAST WEEK
👇 Highlights from last week’s Lunch With Norm podcast episodes👇
Expanding to Retailers in 2024
Differentiate Your Product 🧰 Look for unique features or benefits that can make your product more appealing to both retailers and customers
Packaging should be eye-catching, informative, and reflective of the product's value and emotional appeal, and fit for retail
Understand Your Numbers 💰 Aim for a 7x multiplier on your retail price. Consider all expenses, including Amazon fees or retailer markups
Build Strong Relationships with Suppliers 💪 Establish a partnership based on mutual benefit with your suppliers can lead to better pricing, exclusivity, and support
No, you do not need to personally meet your supplier in China as a first time seller
Level Up Your Content Game with AI
Main Takeaways:
AI Integration for Efficiency 🤖 Streamline and enhance your marketing strategies, making tasks like content creation, research, and email marketing more efficient and effective
Utilize Various AI Tools 🛠️ Explore different AI tools for diverse tasks.
Perplexity for answer-driven insights
Claude, Copy.Ai, Jasper, Originality.ai for copywriting
Gemini for task integration that can significantly enhance productivity
SEO Optimization with AI ✅ Try using AI for SEO tasks, such as internal link placement and metadata optimization, to improve your website's search engine ranking and user experience
Amazon Prime Day Prep in 2024
Main Takeaways:
Ensure You Have Verified GTINs ✅ Start by making sure your products have unique identifiers (like GTINs from GS1 US) for listing on Amazon
Plan Inventory and Anticipate Demand 📝 Properly forecast demand and ensuring adequate stock levels before Prime Day is critical. This helps avoid stock-outs and capitalize on the increased traffic during Prime Day
Article on Introduction to the Serial Shipping Container Code
Verify your product by GS1 here
TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE
Here’s the jacket from my story from today’s newsletter!
Still fits like a glove.
THREE UPCOMING PODCASTS
You can watch all episodes on YouTube or on my Facebook page at 12 pm ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!
**Guests and topics are subject to change**
Monday - Power Warranty Marketing on Steroids
Michael Kaufman - Co-host of the Brand Fortress HQ Podcast
Specializes in "Power Warranty Marketing"
Michael technique combines brand loyalty, responsive email lists, and immediately profitable Amazon product launches insulated against the potential pitfalls of selling on the Amazon platform.
Watch LIVE 👉 Sign up here
AI Wednesday - How AI Is Changing The Amazon Search
Jo Lambadjieva - Founder of Amazing Wave
Co-Host of New Frontiers Podcast
Worked with 50+ brands including Panasonic, and the NFL
Subscribe to Jo’s AI for Ecommerce and Amazon Sellers newsletter below 👇
Watch LIVE 👉 Sign up here
Friday - Why Most Sellers do Accounting Wrong
Ryan Hurley- Founder of SellAnalytix, an automated accounting & financial analysis tool for Amazon Sellers
7 year Amazon veteran
Has sold hundreds of thousands of dollars primarily in the home improvement niche.
Watch LIVE 👉 Sign up here
🗞️ AMAZON NEWS & UPDATES 🗞️
What’s happening in the world of Amazon today…
Amazon’s "Common Sense Knowledge Generation" system, COSMO is now out 🤖 But what does it mean?
TikTok facing ban in US… 😮 Is this the end of TikTok Shop?
Chinese shopping app Temu spent $2B on Facebook, Instagram ads 💰
AVOID THIS WITH YOUR FREIGHT FORWARDER
Provided by Steven Selikoff of the Product Development Incubator
Do NOT pay your freight forwarder upfront.
I have been shipping goods from China to the US since 2005, that’s 19 years and hundreds upon hundreds of shipments. In that entire time, I have never paid upfront.
Never.
They have your goods.
That’s the best collateral in the world. Why do they need upfront payment unless they are financially unstable or are afraid of being shut down at any moment?
If your Freight Forwarder makes you pay upfront, there’s something questionable about them.
Find a different Freight Forwarder.
PRO TIP:
Do NOT use your Freight Forwarder for inspections.
They may tell you it’s more convenient to treat them as a one-stop shop, but your freight Forwarder only makes money on items that they ship.
Therefore, they have financial motivation to overlook defective items and put them on the boat.
They will lose money if they diligently find defects.
Always use a 3rd party, registered, inspection agency.
Learn more ➡️ Product Development Incubator
🌎 UPCOMING EVENTS
MARK DOWN THESE EVENTS!
March 10 - 13 - Las Vegas - Starting at $55
April 3 - Sofia Bulgaria - Starting at $220 - Use NORM10 for 10%
May 1 - 2 - New York City - Starting at $397
May 18 - 23 - Kauai - Hawaii - Starting at $4997
Looking for events? Get the full list of events in the Amazon Ecom space put together by Danan Coleman
→ FULL CALENDAR ←
Beard Nation comments from last week’s story 👇
And that’s it, Beardos!
Let me know what you’d like me to feature in the newsletter by replying back to this email.
P.S. Make sure you don’t miss any updates by joining our community here.
See you next Monday!
- Norm
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