Modern Lifecycle Marketing flies in the face of most of what you’ve been told about how eCommerce and marketing works. And frankly, that’s a good thing.
Oh no, it’s another internet marketer telling you how to run your business, probably trying to sell you something.
I understand the suspicion. But before you close the tab in disgust, let me tell you why Modern Lifecycle Marketing is absolutely vital to the sustained growth and success of your eCommerce business.
To do that, I’m going to pose a question. When it comes to eCommerce and marketing analytics, we have MORE than any other point in history. More tests, more tools, more data, more dashboards, and more gurus telling you what to do with them.
So why, despite all of this MORE, does any business ever fail to make their sales plan? It seems like the only thing we have MORE of is volatility.
I have been asking myself this question since 2014, when I started working in eCommerce. And I think the answer is pretty simple: this “wealth of resources” fails to give P&L owners and marketers a complete understanding of what really drives their businesses.
With the right product, tactics and financial resources you can get an eCommerce business across the seven figure line in a few years.
But crossing the eight figure mark and beyond requires MORE than the milquetoast tactical “insights” provided by most blogs, vendors and twitter feeds. And doing it profitably requires MORE than a fat pile of institutional money.
That is where Modern Lifecycle Marketing comes in.
What Is Modern Lifecycle Marketing?
Modern Lifecycle Marketing is a set of principles and frameworks that explain how products, customers and marketing channels interact–working with or against each other to accelerate growth (or make your life miserable).
The goal of Modern Lifecycle Marketing is to make the most of any advantage your business may have, and to make decisions that benefit you both today and in the future.
Traditional “lifecycle” marketing will offer you tactical “advice” like “launch a referral program” or “make sure you set up a 3-email abandoned cart series”.
Modern Lifecycle Marketing is going to give you a deeper understanding of customer behavior so you can use it for momentum when you need to, and try to retrain your customers when it suits you.
Traditional “lifecycle” marketing will offer you tactical “insights” like “it’s cheaper to retain a customer than to acquire a new one!”
Modern Lifecycle Marketing will help you figure out how to leverage your product assortment to increase LTV and reduce CAC.
What Is This Guide?
The ultimate guide to Modern Lifecycle Marketing outlined below will give you everything you need to know to make better strategic decisions for your eCommerce business and unearth “free money” hiding out in your assortment and customer file.
I’m writing this guide for two main groups of people:
Group 1: Business Owners and P&L Owners of eCommerce businesses that are doing at least $10M in revenue, or those who aspire to get there.
Group 2: Brand and agency employees who have a desire to understand their business or their clients’ businesses better. Essentially, I am writing to myself six years ago, when I wish someone would have compiled all of this information for me.
The concepts that I’m going to cover here are going to fly in the face of most eCommerce and marketing “best practices”. And frankly, that’s a good thing, considering how well the average non-Amazon retailer is doing nowadays.
These concepts are also going to be a little more abstract and complex than run of the mill marketing advice you will read on the internet. But I promise to make them digestible and, dare I say it, even fun to read.
The ultimate guide to Modern Lifecycle Marketing is outlined below. Each week, 1-2 new outline items will become an active link with a new piece of content. Some content will be available to my newsletter subscribers only–aka I will send it via email.
Sign up to be notified when new content is released, and get access to subscriber-only content. I only send out 2 emails per month, typically every other Sunday morning.
The Ultimate Guide To Modern Lifecycle Marketing
Marketing Mythbusting: before we move forward, we need to blow some things up.
Digital Marketing Myths, Busted
Loyalty Program Advice: Myths And Facts
Advice From Agencies and Vendor Partners
All Revenue Is Created Equal [Subscribers Only]
Foundational Principles: how customers and products tend to behave.
What Is Cohort Analysis And Why Should You Care?
The 6 Customer Types In Every Brand’s File
3 Reasons People Buy Things They Don’t Need [Subscribers Only]
The Customer Lifecycle: 8 Rules To Help You Understand It
Understanding The Product Lifecycle
The Relationship Between Customers, Merchandise And Channels [Subscribers Only]
Put It To Work, Make Paper: self explanatory.
Making The Most Of Each Customer Type
First Principles Guide To Facebook (And Other Programmatic Prospecting) [Subscribers Only]
Getting The Most Mileage From Your Marketing Dollars [Subscribers only]
Running Smart Promotions
Launching A Loyalty Program That Doesn’t Suck
Training your customers
Managing Risk
Learn From My Mistakes: don’t fall into these common traps.
Brand Repositioning
Skunking Your Customer File/“Online Sample Sale”
The Hot Item Problem
Doing the exact opposite of everything in this outline, to disastrous results (a tale from my resume) [Subscribers Only]
The Squishy Human Part: this won’t work unless you do.
The Business Lifecycle
Operators vs Cowards