Weird Marketing Strategies to 2x your Shopify Store with Sheets & Giggles Colin McIntosh (episode 410)

31st October by April Buencamino-dy

Colin McIntosh is the founder and CEO at Sheets and Giggles, selling sheets, mattresses, comforters, and covers via their Shopify store and Amazon, from the USA to the world. It all started in 2018 with a crowdfunding launch, in the first 12 months they hit $1m in sales, and within 2 years hit $1m a month; AND they’ve just been named number 309 on the Inc 5000 list of the fastest growing companies in America.

Colin McIntosh Sheets and Giggles on eCommerce MasterPlan Podcast

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Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility

Sustainability has been part of Sheets & Giggles’ mission since its inception. Aside from this, Colin says corporate social responsibility is an essential part of the business that he really loves.

They’ve donated sheet sets to the Denver Rescue Mission and given over $100,000 to charity. Colin is proud not only of the growth they’ve seen in the business, but also being able to give back to their community.

Expanding the Sheets & Giggles Product Range

Colin says they’ve expanded their product range since he last guested on the podcast.

Aside from selling sheets, they launched their sustainable eucalyptus mattress and are going to release pillows soon. They’re also moving into pajamas by the end of this year and are looking into releasing their own line of underwear and socks by next year.

The addition of more products is the result of a combination of client demand and the brand’s natural trajectory. And with customers only really buying several sets of sheets at most, it is part of Sheets & Giggles’ retention strategy to come up with related products and not force their core products onto the customers continually.

Abandoning Facebook and Instagram Ads

This year, when everyone else’s acquisition costs are rising, Sheets & Giggles’ has gone down by 30%. Colin shares that this is because they abandoned Facebook and Instagram ads in January.

The biggest lesson for them is that they spent money in the wrong places for too long, which has also led them to look for other marketing strategies that are not too common for eCommerce brands.

Going the Podcast Advertising Route

The brand’s main marketing strategy for this year is podcast advertising, with one particular Basketball show that has several million listeners.

They’ve focused on curating content related to the show mainly on their Twitter channels, and this increased their conversion significantly through word-of-mouth marketing because they get mentioned on the show constantly.

Colin went specifically for this podcast because he has been listening to it for the last 18 years since it first started out on the radio. He had to wait for some time before spending on ads on the show because of the budget but the return has been great.

eCommerce Book Top Tip

Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business Paperback by Gino Wickman

Commerce Traffic Top Tip

Give your personal attention to the little things, such as the way you communicate with your customers using your website banners and through your customer service.

Tool Top Tip

Slack messaging app
Loom video messaging tool
Notion project management platform
Latana brand tracking app

Growth Top Tip

From an operational standpoint, inventory planning, capital planning, and cash flow planning are very important. On the marketing side, know what your customers love about your product and focus on your primary value proposition, then communicate this to your audience.

Interview Links

Related episodes

259: Colin McIntosh explains how he took Sheets & Giggles to $1m in 12 months
373: How Sustainability and Community are super-powering this fashion brand with Katie McCourt from Pantee
394: Startup manufacturing and cashflow problems, crowdfunding, and organic social with Frankly Delicious

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