STL Marketers

We had an ecommerce leader come to us with hundreds of Pinterest conversions (purchases). They knew something seemed off. Sure enough, when we checked the data, there should have only been a few dozen purchases from Pinterest. Why? Because Pinterest—like many ad platforms—tracks multiple types of conversions. If you don’t know exactly what’s being counted, you could end up making decisions based on inflated numbers. They faced this issue trying to build their own reports before working with PenPath: 👉 Their dashboards showed inflated performance because they weren’t using the right data. 👉 They relied on platform-reported metrics without filtering for actual purchases. 👉 A quick audit revealed their conversions included add-to-carts and other custom events. 👉 This distorted downsteam KPIs like CAC and Cost Per Purchase, leading to misleading insights. Here’s how PenPath solves this problem: ✅ Our platform is built for ecommerce leaders—tracking only real purchases. ✅ We standardize conversion tracking across all ad channels (including currency conversion). ✅ We combine insights so brands can see everything in one place and trust their numbers. With accurate conversion tracking, our customers can confidently measure performance, optimize spend, and make data-driven decisions that actually grow their business. We also provide the guidance they need to build a strong measurement strategy. If you’re making big decisions based on ad platform data, make sure you know exactly what’s being counted. What’s been the biggest challenge you’ve faced in getting accurate insights? Follow me for more actionable marketing tips. ♻️

When your campaigns finally hit that ROAS target you want, it's an amazing feeling. But then you need to scale. Here’s where I see e-commerce brands slip up: 🚨 Not tracking ad spend regularly enough → missing single day anomalies kill performance 🚨 Messy or missing UTMs → this adds too much friction to see what’s working and why 🚨 Decisions made on opinions → Not having data-backed decisions means you aren’t focusing your limited resources correctly 🚨 No mapped-out customer journey → You may be optimizing bottom of funnel and totally ignoring top of funnel 🚨 Fear of data → Many feel intimidated by data and this stops them from being more involved when they need to scale - they may only default to increasing spend which isn’t always the answer So, how can you fix this: ✅ Set strict budget limits and monitor spending daily ✅ Use structured UTMs to track every campaign & conversion ✅ Base decisions on data, not guesses or opinions. Shifting your process to a data-first approach will change everything… → See which campaigns are giving the best ROAS → Segment your best performers to understand exactly how much to scale → Develop forecasting models that will help you prioritize what to scale and why → Save time so you can only focus on where you’ll have the most impact Remember, data isn’t scary with the right approach and tools. Losing money is. What’s been your biggest challenge when scaling ROAS?

If your ecommerce conversion rate is 2.5%, is that good? 📈 We often get questions about what "normal" performance should be. These are valid questions! However, the answer ultimately depends on your industry, price point, and growth strategy. Fortunately, there are many ways to reach your profitability target, and it's ok for the KPIs you optimize and prioritize to evolve over time. With that said, here are five essential marketing ROI metrics for a healthy ecommerce strategy AND a ballpark range of what's typical to see: 1. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): Understand the total revenue you can expect from a customer over their entire relationship with your business. Aim for a CLV to Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) ratio of 3:1. For every dollar spent on customer acquisition, you generate three dollars in revenue. 2. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Measure the total cost of acquiring a new customer. On average, U.S. eCommerce businesses spend $70 to acquire a customer. Costs vary by industry, with beauty and food on the lower end, and electronics and jewelry on the higher end. 3. Conversion Rate: Track the percentage of website visitors who complete a purchase. A healthy conversion rate typically ranges from 2% to 3.5% from visit to purchase. 4. Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): ROAS measures the revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising. Similar to CLV, aim for a ROAS ratio of 3:1. For each dollar spent on ads, you should earn $3. Ecommerce leaders can significantly improve ROAS with the proper measurement and growth strategies. 5. Churn Rate: This metric indicates the percentage of customers who stop purchasing over a given period. Keeping a churn rate below 5% is ideal, as retaining existing customers is more cost-effective than acquiring new ones." How are you tracking your ROI metrics? Where do you feel you struggle most? Let us know in the comments below 👇 Would you like to know what your stats should look like? Shoot me a DM, or head to PenPath and book a time to chat. We'll take a look and diagnose your growth drivers. #Ecommerce #MarketingROI #DigitalMarketing #CustomerAcquisition #DataAnalytics #ConversionRate #ROAS #CustomerRetention #PenPath #MarketingMetrics #BusinessStrategy #2024Trends #Shopify

I wanted to remind an ecommerce leader who wanted to bring all his platform data together something very important... Data from different platforms doesn’t always play well together. The Economist famously said data is the new oil. I disagree. I think everyone has too much oil, what we need are refineries. Because PenPath is a “refinery” we know all too well that data doesn’t always integrate. Some ecommerce leaders like the idea of having all their data connected, but that only sometimes makes sense to do. Because ultimately, having all your data in one place doesn’t mean you'll have actionable insights. A good way to think about it is to chunk the data based on its utility. 💡 Use the 80/20 Rule: Sometimes, it's more sensible to group data by relevance, such as all revenue-related data, budget allocation data, or inventory data, rather than trying to mix all aspects of the business. 🧐 When Seeking Insights: Ask yourself, what can you DO with the information once you access it? Sometimes insights confirm you are on the right track and provide peace of mind. Other times, insights enable critical decisions or adjustments to sustain or scale performance. Group data sources that lead to action, facilitate understanding, or accelerate communication is critical for success. You can’t improve what you can’t measure.

If you’re an eCommerce leader in #STL grappling with data or reporting challenges, I’ve prepared a presentation just for you. 📈 Join me this Thursday at COLLUSION on Fintech where I’ll be sharing insights on Proven Ecommerce Revenue-Generating Activities. RSVP here: lnkd.in/g4cSTAyd In my presentations, I aim to maximize value by striking the right balance between two critical elements: 🚀 Strategic Value: I'll share mental models and frameworks that I've personally benefited from. These provide a helpful lens for understanding complex topics. 🔧 Tactical Value: I’ll lay out actionable, step-by-step processes that can drive tangible results. It's all about finding the balance between strategy and tactics. Too much strategy leaves you wondering 'What's next?' while too many tactics can make you feel lost in the details. If you're interested in boosting eCommerce sales through data-driven insights, I hope to see you there! 📊💼 #eCommerce #DataAnalytics #BusinessGrowth #EcommerceAnalytics #insights

I’ve accepted the fact that whatever Chick-fil-A drive through line I pick will be the slowest.

Data helped me drop 8% body fat and gain 9 lbs of muscle. Here’s how… I took the #75Hard Challenge: 1. I measured calories consumed vs burned     2. I worked out twice a day     3. Measured my body composition daily I looked and felt unbelievably better! Here’s the kicker, I weighed exactly the SAME. The body fat lost was replaced by muscle. Do I still consider this a win? Absolutely. ________________ Many business operators we work with focus on a single metric. They look at their “weight” if you will. They miss other relevant upstream or downstream metrics… They also don’t measure activity or consistency. You might be looking at revenue. But miss the fact that your new customers are not returning. Data helps tell a more complete picture. We had a customer recently streamline their entire product line after noticing that their DTC side of the business was growing faster than B2B. They were growing and used data to tell a more complete story. Many businesses could feel and look much healthier if they addressed the underlying metric fluctuations too. #ecommerce #Analytics #DataDriven

Ecommerce leaders, the deck is stacked against you… You rarely have time to become proficient with your data. Here’s what we’re seeing: Being a true operator takes up most of your time and already requires multiple disciplines. Keeping up with the basics in analytics to understand your insights would be nice, but you rely on spreadsheets, agencies, and spot checking different platforms to get by. This works as you’re initially growing, BUT when the business starts to scale, things start to break. You’re going to need more insights to manage growth. You’re going to need more flexibility with your dashboards. You should learn data interpretation: 1. What do these metrics REALLY mean? 2. What actually matters? 3. What can you do with this info? Becoming data-driven is a journey. The good news is you’re not as far behind as you might feel and getting started is easy. I get asked all the time where the best place to start is… I suggest answering these two questions: 1: How do I get more customers? 2: How do I get customers to pay me more? I’ll be sharing more content on my feed around what I’ve seen work in this space. #ecommerce #analytics