Gary Vee is an inspiring person; his tenacity and fortitude are incredible. In the spirit of his wisdom, I have written this article about how to embrace the process.
"To be great, I think you have to fight. My success as a product is largely because I’m willing to outwork people. Stay humble and work hard on your craft, and you’ll see some great things happen." —Gary Vee
Amazon e-commerce is a vast, vast world. A brand's journey is much like the intricate art of taxidermy, where meticulous details differentiate between success and stagnation.
Today, I want to share a thrilling e-commerce tale that involves embracing the process:
How to Boost Revenue by 30% in 30 Days
Dead On Display offers unique niche hunting and trophy skull market products. Their featured product, Skull Hangers, is designed and patented to hang European skull mounts.
Unlike traditional taxidermy that involves chemical processes to retain the animal's face, European skull mounts showcase a beautifully bleached white skull adorned with antlers, horns, or sharp teeth if it’s a predator.
Before we stepped into the picture, Dead On Display faced a pressing challenge: their large, medium, and small hangers and their angle bracket add-on were scattered across Amazon, making it strenuous for customers to locate their products.
Working with Amazon Seller Support, especially with the outsourced, third-party call centers in India, was an experience.
The language barrier, connection issues, and cultural differences often made conversations challenging.
"What a lot of people don’t understand is accountability sits very close to happiness. Blame everything on yourself, and you’ll be stunned by how happy you become." —Gary Vee
Explaining a niche product like the European skull mount to someone possibly unfamiliar with hunting was akin to explaining abstract art's nuances to a toddler. Needless to say, I was frustrated on more than one occasion.
Yet, the solution was simple: master the Amazon jargon. Once armed with the correct terminology, I categorized the skull hanger variations under "Sports and Outdoors hunting trophy mounts."
Before My Retail World’s involvement, Dead On Display ranked #50th in skull mounts. By October 23rd, 2023, Dead On Display shot up to #14th, with their large hangers bagging the prestigious 'Amazon's Choice' badge.
The journey wasn't without its fair share of bumps. Adding the angle bracket to the variations was a test of my patience. While the angle bracket was an aesthetic add-on, Amazon's system recognized it differently, causing backend issues. We emphasized its role as an "add-on" to the main product to avoid customer confusion and subsequent returns.
However, this led to Amazon classifying it as a 'bracket' rather than a 'hanger,' requiring more rounds of discussions to rectify. Like five or six one-hour phone calls, most of which I was on hold.
Humorously, while we wanted to scream, "Hey, folks! It's an add-on! Look closely!" “Don’t BE STUPID.” We chose the polite route.
We updated the product details, giving customers “Pro Tips” and cheekily referring to them as “Expert Interior and Exterior Decorators.”
Throughout this process, Cami, one of the owners of Dead On Display, showcased incredible patience. Cami and Landon were integral to the brand's e-commerce journey, and their collaboration was a testament to the power of collective efforts.
The Results spoke for themselves:
Total products sold YTD surged by a whopping 67% last month and 69% YTD this month.
Small Skull Hanger sales rose by 31%.
Medium Skull Hanger observed a 38% spike.
Large Skull Hanger leaped by 88%.
Angle Bracket Add-On sales might have decreased by 29%, but here's the silver lining: its return rate plummeted by 500%. Fewer returns meant reduced negative reviews and more satisfied customers.
The journey of Dead On Display on Amazon explored patience, learning, and understanding the nuances of cross-cultural communication. Together, we recognized that the milestones achieved would've lost their luster without relishing the journey.
"The most successful entrepreneurs are driven by legacy over currency. It’s not about what’s in my bank account. It’s about how many people will show up to my funeral. When you care about your legacy, it eliminates short-term financial aspirations." —Gary Vee
Working with Dead On Display and watching their rise on Amazon has been exhilarating. As with all success stories, it wasn’t the destination but the journey, with its challenges, laughs, and learning, that made all the difference.
Note: Some links here might give me a tiny commission. The passion behind the words? That's 100% free and all mine.
