The Unofficial Shopify Podcast

How Herb'N Eden Marketed Their Way to Sold Out Success

25 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Quinton Lewis sells soap. A lot of soap. So much soap that customers wait weeks for their order to be produced. And he only started in the last few ye...

Q4, USPS, Themes, & Joe Biden's Teeth

18 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Also available in live hi-def action on YouTube:  youtu.be/khPjZKvOPhsIn this episode:Our Q4 BFCM predictionsWhat's up with USPS?KeySmart's Andy Bede...

How a Better Brand Voice Built an 8-figure Business

11 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Alex Brown has been launching e-commerce companies for over 5 years, starting with multiple successful crowdfunding campaigns (like Coolbox which ende...

Get Your Money Right: Bookkeeping, Profitability, & Pre-orders

04 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we discuss listener-suggested topics: bookkeeping, profitability, and pre-orders.And then we tear down the official LEGO store.Links ...

How Melita Cyril Achieved Six-figure Sock Sales & Social Impact

28 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A recovering banker and management consultant, Melita Cyril had her eyes (and ears) open for different entrepreneurial ideas during her maternity leav...

Things that Annoy Merchants: Lawsuits, PageSpeed, & Blogging

21 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We discuss what an accessibility lawsuit costs, why Google PageSpeed is our Emperor Palpatine, building better blog pages in Shopify, and finally we t...

Steal Beyoncé's Instagram Strategy

14 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

From planning & scheduling your content for Instagram to what does and doesn't work in 2020, our guest today lays out a complete strategy to organic I...

The Web has an Accessibility Problem

07 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In today's episode:Why now may be a good time to upgrade your themeThe broken promises of accessibility and what to do about itAnd finally an Away Tra...

Carbon Fiber Kickstarters: Building a Disruptive Manufacturing Business on Shopify

30 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

After raising $164,775 on Kickstarter, this husband & wife team is disrupting carbon fiber manufacturing.You'll the hear answers to:How they raised $1...

Your Menu Sucks: Navigation Optimization Made Simple

23 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we discuss:Kurt's run-in with a KarenHow to optimize your main menu navigation for higher conversionsA spicy website teardown of Chic...

Crowdfunding $380k for a Better T-shirt

16 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Years ago, Dan Demsky wanted to buy a merino wool t-shirt for travel to lighten his load... and he couldn't find one. It haunted him. He knew this pro...

Black Lives Matter

09 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we have an uncomfortable and necessary conversation about racism.If you disagree with anti-racism or feel that this conversation does...

How a University Student Started a 7-Figure Vintage Clothing Business

04 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Through his love of vintage clothing, Rory Westbrook founded True Vintage out of his bedroom while still a student at the University of Portsmouth. Gr...

Launching a Journal to Make Men Stronger

02 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, you'll hear how a designer and entrepreneur from the UK turned a personal tragedy into a compelling story and business that has helpe...

Re-Unite Recap

26 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is also available with video on YouTube.Last week at Shopify Re-Unite, a webinar keynote, Shopify's leadership team revealed new and upco...

Why Revenue is a Vanity Metric (and what to watch instead)

21 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Using accounting as a useful business tool is harder than it sounds. Most of us don't really know what we should be looking at or how to interpret it....

King Kong Apparel: Selling 60,000+ Gym Bags on Shopify

19 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Stefan Gehrig, a former Research Scientist, started King Kong Apparel in 2011 when he was heavily involved in the still-niche sport of CrossFit. Since...

Everyone's Going Online: 2020's Ecommerce Boom

12 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The world is changing, and a core part of that change is everyone and everything finally getting online.Ecommerce is booming. Let's talk through it:We...

Comedy in Commerce: Help Customers Love You More

07 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, Shopify merchants will hear how they could be better using humor in their marketing copy (especially email!) to improve conversions.H...

The Fundamental Truths of Million Dollar Ecom Brands

05 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Our guest today has a long track record with ecommerce: both successes and failures. We're joined by Ryan Daniel Moran, founder of Freedom Fast Lane a...

Listener Q&A: Marketing & Retention Edition

28 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this listener Q&A episode, we answer nine merchant's pressing questions regarding marketing their Shopify stores. We even try something new and cal...

Shopify SEO: Lessons from the #1 SEO App Developer

21 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today we're joined by long-time Shopify Partner and SEO app developer Rhian Beutler to discuss your SEO questions.In this Shopify SEO Crash Course, yo...

Brian Dean's Shopify SEO Strategy

07 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

As we look for more ways to generate quality organic traffic to our stores, SEO will come to mind.In this episode, you'll will hear how to get more se...

Surviving & Thriving in Uncertain Times

26 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today we're joined by a Business owner sharing experience of surviving 3 recessions in 25 years. This episode is about actionable advice.What's the up...

The Fashion Designer Bringing Latex from Beyonce to Consumers

24 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode, we're joined by Laura Petrielli-Pulice, a fashion designer who has designed for celebrities and icons of art and culture including La...

Casting a Voice for Your Brand

10 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Your story is the ultimate way to create an emotional connection with your customers so that they not only become raving fans, they share your story w...

Make Your Website Accessible (and Avoid Lawsuits‎)

25 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we learn what it means to have an accessible website, why you should care, and how you can benefit.You'll hear the answers to:What do...

A Shiti Story: $1mm/yr Rebranding Coolers

11 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

“We had no idea writing the word “SHITI” on a napkin and taping it to an old cooler would have such a following behind it”In 2016, Trevor and ...

[Q&A] PPC Traffic & Sales Funnels

04 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In today's listener Q&A episode, you asked, we answered:Should you advertise on Pinterest?What's the deal with financing apps?Remarketing strategies w...

Focus on Fun & Profit: What a Firefighter Learned Selling Thousands of Wallets

28 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Jake Starr, a former firefighter, started Recycled Firefighter in 2013 when he noticed decommissioned fire hoses being thrown into the landfill, took ...

An Alleged $75 million Ponzi Scheme

21 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Last Spring, a listener invited me to lunch with the Courtrights, a couple who ran a business that invested in Shopify stores– hundreds of Shopify s...

Serial Success on Shopify

14 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Our guest today is Thomas "Tommy" Tartaglia, the self-described World's Okayest Exerciser, who sold more than $100k in t-shirts with "W...

Generating Traffic & Revenue in 2020

07 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this Listener Q&A episode, we talk:Post-purchase email marketingContent strategies when you can't run adsMigrating sales from Amazon to ShopifyNeve...

Manufacture Your Product: Finding the Right Factory Partner

30 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

One of the hardest parts of ecommerce entrepreneurship is manufacturing your first product, but as retail and technology has changed, it's also become...

Creating a Socially-conscious Fashion Brand at 22

23 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Emily Jaime is the designer and founder of YIREH. She started the brand early in 2014 (when she was 22 years old!), without a background in fashion or...

Differentiate or Die

17 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Today's guest has twenty years of ecommerce experience and believes that "You can't survive as a commodity dropship retailer. You have to differentiat...

BFCM Post-Mortem 2019

10 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is also available on YouTube.Shopify merchants broke records with $2.9+ billion in worldwide sales over Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend...

Turning Handmade Wallets into a Million Dollar Business

03 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ryan Popoff founded a leather goods company after learning leather working as a creative outlet. Bootstrapped and run solo in 2013, Ryan is now leadin...

2020 Presidential Shopify Store Teardowns

26 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is available on YouTube. Watch now: https://youtu.be/mjeP1M5cgEgIts too late to change anything on your store now this close to Black Fri...

Turning iPhones Into Hollywood Cameras and Revenue

21 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

First we'll hear Dave's journey from Hollywood Producer to High School teacher to international mobile filmmaking seller.At the end of the episode, Da...

How to Establish a Successful Jewelry Brand

19 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Megan Auman is a jewelry designer, metalsmith, educator and entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in selling art through a variety of channels...

Lessons Learned from 7-figure SMS Marketing

14 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

After early success in 2017 with SMS while working at Lumee - Kim Kardashian's favorite selfie case - Jeremy Horowitz went all in on SMS marketing.You...

Black Friday Hot Takes & SEMA Take Aways

12 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

You asked, we answered:"So Kurt if you were to start a store what niche would you start in?""You mentioned the importance of building an email list- a...

Your 6-figure Product Launch Blueprint

07 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ever wonder the best time and day to promote a product or sale? Or what strategy to use to get orders all day long? In this episode, 7-figure Shopify ...

Shockingly Good Customer Service

05 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, 7-figure merchant Tyler 'Sully' Sullivan from Bombtech Golf teaches us his approach to customer service and how his focus "is sh...

Your 2019 Black Friday Facebook Ads Strategy

31 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, you'll learn a three stage strategy to set your Facebook ads funnel up for success before and during Black Friday.Facebook Ads are mo...

Listener Mailbag: Conversion Rate Secrets, Pop-up Optimization, and More

29 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we open with a deep dive into conversion rates across devices and traffic sources, and how you can apply that info to your store.This...

Get 99% open rates – affordably – by leveraging this channel

25 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We've seen SMS drive 20x ROI for our clients, but Shopify merchants have been slow to adopt SMS marketing. If you've been ignoring SMS as a channel, t...

The Wriggler: Launching a New Product with No Experience

22 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Aileen McCauley is a mom to two kids, a school psychologist and, together with her husband James, is co-creator of The Wriggler, which is the first po...

Shopify vs. Shopify Plus [Listener Mailbag]

15 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In today's episode we open with ecommerce news, Shopify feature updates, and some lingering questions from Klaviyo:BOS.This episode is also available ...

$38 million in 10 Weeks Selling Hover Boards

08 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Today's guest has had tremendous adventures in ecommerce – from managing Jack Threads' 16-million person list to earning $38mm in 10 weeks selling h...

Live from Klaviyo:BOS Conference 2019

01 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

On September 25th & 26th, Kurt went to Boston to attend Klaviyo:BOS Conference 2019. You'll hear interviews with real merchants using Klaviyo to own t...

Set up Klaviyo Like a Pro

27 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Want to know what's working for us with Klaviyo right now? We turn to ecommerce marketing wizard Kurt Bullock to get an update and learn the exact blu...

How Ezra Firestone plans to make a million dollars on Black Friday (with this exact blueprint)

24 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, Ezra Firestone generated $700K over Black Friday, with $100k alone on Thanksgiving for his Shopify store BOOM by Cindy Joseph.This year he pl...

[Q&A] 9 Worries from Merchants Prepping for Q4

17 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this listener mailbag episode, you'll hear nine questions from merchants preparing for Black Friday:How to manage your app addictionThe power of SM...

How a Fashion Designer Started a Niche Brand At 21

10 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Rivky Itzkowitz is a 24 year old fashion designer living in NYC. As a practicing Orthodox Jew, she was frustrated at not being able to find modest spe...

Homepage Design Made Simple

03 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Who else wants lower bounce rates and higher conversion rates from visitors to their homepage? We discuss: Should your homepage be a squeeze page? Wh...

How Tactical Baby Gear Scaled to Seven-Figures

27 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Shopify Plus merchant Tactical Baby Gear is disrupting the booming world of baby products — estimated this year to produce more than $11 billion in ...

The Boring Ways Seven-Figure Stores Got There

20 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

You'll hear the answers to: With all the shiny toys available for merchants, how should you prioritize them? If someone feels totally overwhelmed as ...

Boredwalk: How a Husband & Wife Team Grew a 'Cult' T-shirt Business

13 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Creative husband and wife team Matt Snow and Meredith Erin, owners of Boredwalk T-Shirts, take us through their entrepreneurial journey building a cul...

Have Your Best Black Friday Ever by Starting Now

06 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Instead of waiting until November to take action, let's discuss what you can do right now to put your store in the best possible position to capitaliz...

[BONUS] Effective Facebook Ad Funnels for 2019

02 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Want to know what's working with Facebook ads right now? We turn to ecommerce marketing wizard Kurt Bullock to learn the exact blueprint he uses to ac...

Maximizing Your Facebook Ad Budgets

30 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Facebook ads are getting increasingly competitive and expensive– and it's not stopping anytime soon. That's scary for those of us that rely on Faceb...

Optimize Everything

23 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this listener mailbag episode, you'll hear the answers to: What is the biggest factor conversion rate? Where should you send cold traffic? What sh...

How Chubbies Built a Shorts Empire with Content Marketing

16 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What happens creativity and comedy empowers your business? Weekend shorts purveyor Joey Avery, the Ecommerce Content Manager at Chubbies, will tell us...

Profitable & Durable: Staying Small in Business

09 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we talk about why we choose to stay small, and the tools we use to maximize efficiency and profits. Ultimately, our goal is to build ...

[BONUS] Using YouTube Ads to Drive Awareness & Sales

05 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, you'll learn how to use YouTube Ads to grow your brand and drive sales from recurring guest Brett Curry, CEO of OMG Commerce, a digit...

Sci-fi Books & Rad Leggings

02 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

On this show, we've found a common pattern to merchants' entrepreneurial journeys on Shopify. This is not one of those stories. This is the journey of...

Is Apple Business Chat The Future of E-Commerce?

26 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

If this show had a mantra, it might be, "People buy from people, not brands." There is no personal commerce channel than conversational comm...

Your Shopify Unite 2019 Recap

25 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Last week Shopify announced their most ambitious features to date at the fourth annual Shopify Unite partner conference. Paul and I attended, and brea...

Forming Successful Business Partnerships

11 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this listener mailbag episode, you'll hear: The hardest decisions we've ever made in our business Why Kurt thinks retail arbitrage is better than ...

Six-figure Info Product Sales with Christina Scalera

04 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Four years ago, today's guest found herself dreaming of pursuing a more creative path, and she started to look for alternatives to her in-house legal ...

Capitalizing on the CBD Gold Rush

04 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Today's guest put his money where his mouth is when he joined ecommerce incubator Chillest Capital to launch and manage direct to consumer brands sell...

Listener Mailbag: Paul Punches the Monkey

28 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In today's listener mailbag episode, we discuss topics and questions chosen by you. You'll learn: How the shadiest internet villains illicitly advert...

HOONIGAN: Building a Lifestyle Brand

21 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

According to Wikipedia, Hoonigan Industries is "an apparel brand for auto enthusiasts." According to its 20 million fans, it's an car cultur...

The Problem with Google PageSpeed Insights

14 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Websites should be fast. No one is arguing about that. What constitutes fast has somehow been perverted by an anxiety-inducing score assigned by the c...

[BONUS] How Agency Owner Kelly Vaughn Builds Seven-Figure Stores

10 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

At the age of 24, she quit her job to freelance full time— and in her first year, she earned $137,000. Joining me in studio is Kelly Vaughn, founder...

How Julie Elster Generates 10,000 Organic Visitors

07 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Last fall, my wife started a Shopify store and told us the struggle is real in a podcast episode. It became one of our all-time top ten episodes. On M...

Split Tests That Win: How to Start Optimizing Your Shopify Store

30 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode recorded in front of a live audience, CRO Wunderkind Nick Disabato will teach you his exact methodology for winning 67.2% of split-tes...

Getting Customers for Life through Email

23 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, you'll learn how the customer experience extends beyond support tickets. Automated emails, on-site messaging, and even the 'from:' na...

Turning Shopify Analytics into Actionable Insights

16 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

You can use Shopify's analytics and reports to learn about your sales and customers in great detail. Or you can tear hair out, create unnecessary pani...

From 0 to $4 Million with Physical Product Licensing

09 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

At 53, Paul Miller began his private label business on Amazon in 2015 selling headphone headbands called CozyPhones. Two years later, he had grown his...

MailChimp & Shopify Break Up– Now What?

02 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In the wake of the Shopify x MailChimp breakup, we're talking nothing but email in this episode. You'll hear: What's going on behind the scenes with ...

Being Profitable

26 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Revenue is a great vanity metric, but profit gets you paid. In today's episode, we talk through a simple strategy to get yourself profitable, then bra...

How to Run Heatmaps, Facebook Groups, & Your First Store

19 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this listener-inspired episode, we break down the answers to your questions. You'll hear: How to use Hotjar's free plan to easily conversion rate ...

Google Ads Success in 2019

12 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Google ads is more complex than ever before. Truthfully, it's downright scary if you don't know what you're doing, and an exceptional good way to lose...

Myth Busting, Finding Your Voice, and Growth Hacks

05 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In our second listener mailbag episode, we answer three topics chosen by you. You'll hear: Myth Busted: Debunking popular merchant myths How to find ...

Bringing The Ultimate Gym Sneaker to Market

26 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Chief Everything Officer and footwear designer Darin Hager couldn’t find the sneaker style he craved at retail. His own designs were hindered by the...

Building a Business for the Life You Want

19 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In our first listener mailbag episode, you told us what to discuss, and we deliver. You'll hear: Podcasting 101: learn everything you need to know to...

Pop-up Profits: Actionable Tactics from Collecting 100 million Emails

12 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Learn the current state of on-site conversions from Privy founder Ben Jabbawy. After capturing over 100 million emails with Privy, Ben Jabbawy reveals...

Building Perfect Product Pages

05 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Building on our last discussion of the "perfect homepage" we move onto the next step in the sales funnel: Product Detail Pages. In this epis...

Actionable Analytics: Setting up Google Analytics for Shopify

29 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Most of us have Google Analytics running on our stores. But what are we doing with that? And is it reporting correctly? In this episode, we'll learn h...

Building The Perfect Homepage

22 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

You can think of your Shopify store's homepage as the storefront of your store. Just because someone walks by, doesn't mean they're going to come in a...

Klaviyo Update: Beyond Black Friday [BONUS EPISODE]

18 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this brief bonus episode with Klaviyo's senior marketing manager, Alicia Thomas, you'll learn: What seven and eight figures brands are doing diffe...

The $700K Sale: Steal These Strategies

15 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Shopify wunderkind Ezra Firestone walks us through his $700K holiday sale. DONT MISS THIS EPISODE. We'll find out: How 14,573 of their most engaged s...

How to Lose Tens of Thousands of Dollars Starting an Online Business

08 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Every year around this time, we see an influx of new people to our community looking to add to their income by starting an ecommerce business. Accordi...

Bigger isn't Better: Why Staying Small is The Next Big Thing in Business

02 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Jarvis joins us to explain why he believes the real key to richer and more fulfilling work could be to not create and scale something into a mass...

Can You Design Your Way To Success?

26 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Wrapping up the year, my business partner (and producer of this show) Paul Reda joins me to discuss his experiences as a Shopify theme developer with ...

How an ER Doc Built a Soap Company in 9 Months

18 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This is the story of how a lemonade stand became turned into a successful skincare line. In less than one year, today's guest began manufacturing all-...

Lessons from Growing Two 8-figure Companies

11 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Tom Ness is co-founder and former CMO of Truth Nutra and former CMO at Kinobody, and has since left both companies to pursue his new venture, Rugged N...