Amazon unlocks the holy grail of social attribution 🤝 [MDSR #22]

Welcome back to the 22nd installment of MDSR. 

Can we interest you in some fresh eCom intel and (free) million dollar advice? Let’s get into it.

Hot Off The Presses 📰

Big DTC brands are facing diminishing returns on their usual digital marketing plays, so… They’re flocking to Amazon in droves to get seen by consumers. 

That means more saturation in an already crowded marketplace. These new players in the Amazon arena will be far less sensitive to things like kick-in-the-gut seller fees. But they will probably feel the effects of consumers trading down to the cheapest Amazon products across categories as TikTok wires younger generations’ money brain.

Nonetheless, small businesses are optimistic about the eCommerce outlook with online spending already up 7% year over year. To get in on the gold rush, you might want to add some videos to your marketing emails and incorporate Buy Now, Pay Later payment options onsite — because they definitely helped U.S. consumers spend $331.6 billion online in the first four months of 2024 alone. 

Despite booming online sales, Shopify’s stock is slumping and marketing budgets are falling to a post-pandemic low, forcing businesses across the board to do more with less. 

Some good news on that front for any Amazon sellers tightening the purse strings — a recent study found that adding a coupon to an ASIN drives a 17.2% increase in search visibility on Amazon. And Amazon cracked the code on social attribution, so sellers will finally be able to scale ad spend (and hopefully retarget shoppers) on the most effective channels for their brand. 

They also added new metrics and recommendations on the Build Your Brand page to help sellers lift their conversion rates. But Amazon isn’t the only platform sweetening the deal for advertisers. Meta is rolling out new AI tools to help brands create better ads and see better results. And amid rising search ad costs and declining conversion rates, Google is introducing “conversion annotations” on Google Shopping ads to show consumers social proof re: product popularity directly in the ad unit. 

Oh, and there may be a way to get Instagram to recommend your posts without paying 30% Apple tax to boost them: Post original content. 

Million Dollar Advice 💸 

If you’re an experienced FBA seller, you know better than anyone that the market landscape never stays the same — and the best sellers are the ones who keep their ear to the ground and adapt their strategy with the times.  

And whether you’re focused on private label, retail arbitrage, or wholesale at the moment, it’s always worth understanding the broader ecosystem of business models. 

Because you never know when opportunities — or seismic shifts in the market — will come knocking. And the best sellers have to be ready either way. 

Listen to Private Label vs. Retail vs. Arbitrage vs. Wholesale: Which Amazon Business Model is Best for FBA?

Re-engagement Rundown 📧

Spending too much to attract new customers? Not in this economy…

Most of us are better off trying to win back inactive customers. After all, Salesforce data shows that the odds of converting a first-time buyer are just 5-20%, while the odds of getting an existing customer to buy again are 60-70%.

If you’re not running any re-engagement email campaigns yet, this roundup of ideas and inspiration from Sendlane will convince you to give it a try. 

Here are a few of our favorite concepts: 

❓Feature a fun questionnaire or interactive quiz about relevant products to engage lapsed customers — and uncover valuable customer insights in one fell swoop. 

🎂Use special occasions or holidays as a reason to re-engage with customers via email — think: offering limited time coupons or discounts on their birthday.

📌Segment your inactive customers based on their purchase history and use your email campaigns to offer up product recommendations that pinpoint their exact interests. 

🔗If you have a loyalty program, remind your lapsed customers that they can unlock perks by returning to make another purchase.

Think this list is helpful?

The Amazon Advertising Report 🗄️

If you’re on the hunt for recent data to help dial-in your Amazon ads, you’re in luck. 

This week Jungle Scout published something we look forward to every year: The 2024 Amazon Advertising Report. 

The full 40+ page report is worth the read, but here’s a sampling of stats that stood out to us: 

• Return on ad spend dipped across most Amazon ad types this year, causing more sellers to advertise on Google for better results: On average, Google campaigns directing to Amazon listings led to 203% return on ad spend.

• When it comes to promoting pricier products, return on ad spend dropped 40% year over year due to consumer price sensitivity.

• In 2024, 38% of Amazon sellers consider driving external paid traffic (from Google, social media, and other platforms) to their listings a top priority. 

• Health & Household is still dominating the total share of ad spend on Amazon despite falling 5% year over year — while Clothing, Shoes & Jewelry saw the biggest increase in share of ad spend, and Pet Supplies saw the biggest decrease.

Don’t miss the full report from Jungle Scout.

Partner Spotlight 🔦

Did you know you can turn Prime members into your customers with Buy with Prime? 

Picture this: an average 25% increase in shopper conversion by offering the trust of Prime on your site. Imagine offering your customers fast, free delivery, crystal-clear delivery times, hassle-free returns, and a checkout experience that's trusted by millions of shoppers. 

Simply use the Buy with Prime badge across your site, socials, and emails, and watch shopper trust skyrocket. 

Worried about delivery? 

With Amazon fulfillment centers at your disposal, enjoy a stellar >97% on-time delivery rate, every day of the week. Already using Fulfillment by Amazon? Tap into the same inventory pool to fulfill orders from multiple sales channels. 

Give your e-commerce business the Prime advantage today – get started now!

MDS in the wild 🐾

In case you missed it, our very own Million Dollar Sellers co-founder Ian Sells was featured on a live episode of the PickFu podcast last week.

Hit play to learn how to make A/B testing a game-changer for optimizing product listings, scaling your brand on Amazon, and skyrocketing your sales. 

If you like these mastermind insights, then you’ll love what we have in store for MDS Inspire 2025…

eCom Stock Watch 📊

AMAZON → Last earnings report on April 25, 2024, next earnings report is TBC

Amazon stock started 2024 at $151.94. Today Amazon traded at $187.07, up +1% this month and +23% from the start of the year. Their forecasted price for the end of 2024 is now $219 (+17% from today and +44% YoY). Prices are expected to hit $237 by summer 2025 and $274 at year end (+46% from the current price). 

SHOPIFY → Last earnings report on May 8, 2023, next earnings report on TBC

Shopify stock was $77.90 at the top of 2024. Today they traded at $58.03, down -14% this month and down -26% from the start of the year. By the end of 2024, their price is expected to hit $66.77 (+15% from today, and -14% YoY) — and $84.97 by the end of 2025 (+46% from the current price).

ALIBABA → Last earnings report on February 7, 2024, next earnings report on May 16, 2024

Alibaba stock started 2024 at $77.51. Today they traded at $79.51, up +16% this month and up 3% from the start of the year. By the end of 2024, their price is expected to hit $87.24 (+10% from today and +13% YoY) — and $94.62 by the end of 2025 (+19% from the current price).

WALMART → Last earnings report on February 20, 2024, next earnings report date May 16, 2024

Walmart stock came into 2024 at $157.65. Today they traded at $59.93, down -1% this month and -62% from the start of the year. By the end of 2024, their price is expected to hit $79.20 (+32% from today and -50% YoY) — and $87.88 by the end of 2025 (+47% from the current price).

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Until Next Time ✌️

As always, thanks for sticking with us until the end. 

If you’d care to share your thoughts on this newsletter, we’re all ears. Just hit reply to sound off. 

See you next time with more of the latest and greatest content you need to succeed this year 🔥

Sincerely, 

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