Ecommerce Playbook: Numbers, Struggles & Growth

Common Thread Collective
  • 4.9 (73)
  • Business
  • Updated Weekly

2020 transformed the world of ecommerce forever. For the modern DTC brand, the rewards have never been greater. But the waters have also never been choppier, and the way forward has never been more uncertain. So how do you navigate this dangerous new reality? No matter how you do it, you’d better not do it alone. That’s where the Ecommerce Playbook Podcast comes in — join Common Thread Collective’s Taylor Holiday & Richard Gaffin as they bring you guiding insights from across CTC’s portfolio of growing DTC businesses. Whether you need a clear view on the macro issues affecting the world of ecommerce, or want to reorient your business around groundbreaking new big-picture strategies, Taylor & Richard are here to help answer the tough questions about what it takes to scale — and sustain — an ecommerce business.

  1. 23h ago

    Your Black Friday Sale Doesn’t Need to Last All November

    Kyle Yeoman, President of Groove Life, joins Taylor Holiday live at Commerce Roundtable in San Diego to explain why the brand is pulling back on discounts. With profits tripling, Kyle breaks down the changes behind Groove Life’s turnaround, from cutting operating expenses to rebuilding product pages. He also shares the brand’s Black Friday plan: start the Wednesday before, run the sale for one week, and stop.In this episode: What changed when discounted sales grew from 20% to 40% of revenueWhy brands get stuck in “discount prison” and what it takes to get outGroove Life’s 2026 plan to reserve discounts for Father’s Day and the holiday seasonWhy fixing operating expenses came firstThe product page changes that lifted conversion rates 61% YoY on the updated pagesWhy Groove Life is keeping its Black Friday sale to one weekHow the brand approaches linear TV and YouTube beyond traditional attributionOne thing worth noting, Kyle reports that site changes cut Meta CPA in half, measured on the same seven-day click attribution window. Key stat: Kyle reports that site changes cut Meta CPA in half, measured on the same seven-day click attribution window. This episode is brought to you by:Trybe: https://bit.ly/4xXvD08Alia: https://bit.ly/4yuP8ONBill: https://bit.ly/4e9JQQm Show Notes: Q4 waits for no one. AppLovin is offering $5K ad credit when you spend $5K. Go to applovin.com/ctc to set up your first campaignExplore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engineThe Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  2. 5d ago

    The Video Volume Secret Behind Every Winning TikTok Shop Program

    Tyler and Alex from TBAR just joined CTC — and in this episode, Shack sits down with them right after their first-ever stage presentation at Commerce Roundtable to break down everything they know about building winning TikTok Shop programs. This is the tactical breakdown behind one of the fastest-growing creator commerce agencies in the space: how they built their client roster (Ridge, David Protein, Jones Road and more), why video volume beats virality every time, how they structure creator communities in Discord, and where social commerce is heading next. In This Episode: Why TikTok limits views on shoppable videos (and why that actually doesn't matter) The GMV Max algorithm explained: why it's a slot machine, not a science How to get 3 videos back for every sample you send The creator community flywheel: Discord, coaching, competitions, retainers Halo effect to Amazon, Shopify, and retail — when to expect it and how to measure it Where social commerce is heading: YouTube Shop, Meta Reels, and live selling Show Notes: Go to https://bit.ly/4cbihFx to Claim $25,000 in Lutiq platform credits Explore Tikok Shops; https://commonthreadco.com/pages/tiktok-shop-agency Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  3. Sep 24

    The Machine: How We Back-Check Every Q4 Plan Before BFCM

    8 year CTC veteran Garrett Hord sits down with Randall to break down what separates the brands that crush Q4 from the ones that scramble. For many ecommerce brands, 50% of annual revenue and contribution margin lands in a single 30-day window, November 13 through December 13. Most brands treat it like any other month. The ones that win treat it like a machine. In this episode, Garrett walks through the frameworks, patterns, and tactical mistakes he's seen across 8 years and hundreds of brands — including CTC's "four peaks theory," the October cohort principle, and why squeezing the sponge is the most common Q4 killer. Topics covered: Why 50% of revenue hits in just 30 days — and how to be ready "The Machine": submitting your Q4 plan for a back-check before BFCM Pulling revenue forward: the right way vs. the wrong way CTC's four peaks theory for Q4 promotional strategy The October cohort — why it has the highest short-term LTV of the year The "double dip" strategy: acquire new customers pre-BFCM, convert them on the spike Squeezing the sponge: the most common Q4 mistake Why brands that miss July–October targets almost never catch up in November What season of ecommerce are we in, and who will win the next 5 years Want to put your Q4 plan through The Machine? https://commonthreadco.com/pages/contact Show Notes: Go to http://outersignal.com/thread to get 50% off your first two months Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  4. Sep 22

    We Acquired the Fastest-Growing TikTok Shop Agency.

    CTC just acquired TBAR Partners — the fastest-growing TikTok Shop agency in the country. In this episode, Luke sits down with co-founders Tyler Brechbiel and Alex Rudolph to walk through the origin story, the playbook behind their results, and what this partnership means for ecommerce brands. Tyler and Alex built TBAR from a college dorm room in June 2025. Sixteen months later they're managing over $5M in monthly GMV for brands like Ridge, HexClad, and Grüns — and now they're part of Common Thread Collective. In this episode: How TBAR went from zero to managing Ridge, HexClad, and Grüns in under 18 months The creator recruitment and Discord community system that 3x's video output per sample Why video volume and GMV have a direct correlation — and how to use that The "blitz launch" strategy that sold Naked Sundays out of inventory overnight How Ridge's tracker card — their worst D2C seller — became their top TikTok Shop product The volume-based competition that generated 7,000 videos in a single month for Ridge Why 90% of TikTok Shop revenue comes from the top 10 affiliates — and how to find them fast What GMV Max actually is and how to feed it correctly TikTok LIVE selling and the halo effect into Meta, Amazon, and retail How Statlas will track the full demand cascade for TBAR's brand roster Show Notes: Go to https://bit.ly/4cbihFx to Claim $25,000 in Lutiq platform credits Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  5. Sep 17

    Why September Is the Most Important Month of Your Q4

    Black Friday is not won in November. According to CTC data, brands that grow their active customer file by 10% or more this year have a 77% chance of beating last year's BFCM — with a median result of 40% growth. The brands that hold back in September are the ones that underperform in Q4. Topics covered in this episode: Why your active customer file is the single biggest predictor of BFCM performance The data: 77%, 50%, and 30% — what your customer file growth tells you right now How CTC defines and measures the active customer file across Shopify brands Why short-term LTV peaks in the first 30 to 60 days after acquisition Why that window gets heightened heading into BFCM, not reduced The case for leaning into acquisition spend now rather than saving it for November How to measure the incremental impact of your media spend in September vs. BFCM What incrementality factors are and how CTC has seen them across brands The step-by-step September playbook: file, scenarios, moments, measurement Why the fear of pulling revenue forward or confusing your BFCM offer is overblown Show Notes: Q4 waits for no one. AppLovin is offering $5K ad credit when you spend $5K. Go to applovin.com/ctc to set up your first campaign Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  6. Sep 15

    The Supplement Industry Is Broken, Sports Cheating Is Rational, and Influence Is Misunderstood

    Taylor and Andrew dig into three topics that have more in common than you think: why the supplement industry struggles to build real moats, whether the Dodgers and Clippers crossed ethical and legal lines, and the most important marketing distinction almost nobody is making between influencers and creators. Topics covered in this episode:  Why no supplement brand has a defensible customer acquisition cost AG1, Gruns, and how a form factor change can destroy a cohort IMA's billion-dollar debt facility built specifically to fund CAC Where the real moats in health and wellness actually are: hardware, data, and telehealth Mark Walter, insurance float allegations, and the Dodgers cheating scandal The Clippers punishment: $30M and five first-round picks Parity in sports: why big markets winning is actually better for the product Joy as the delta between expectation and reality Creators vs. influencers: why this distinction matters more than your entire creative strategy The Mark Dowdle and Rapid hat story: what real influence actually looks like How to approach influencer marketing at $0 vs. 8-figure revenue Equity deals, embedded influencers, and the Jason Khalipa model DHH on AI: the most optimistic take Taylor has heard Agency cash management: should you hold reserves or get a revolver? Show Notes: Visit eCapital  to see how much working capital you may qualify for: https://bit.ly/4xO3VDd Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  7. Sep 10

    The Re-Hire Nobody Saw Coming

    One of CTC's earliest hires just returned after years away. He left to build his own media agency, acquired a major email and retention agency, then co-founded a beverage company where mastering subscription economics was the only path to survival. Now he is back, and the skills he forged along the way make him a different kind of asset for 7-to-9-figure ecommerce brands than when he first walked in the door. Our guest today is a returning member of the CTC family — a media buyer turned agency founder turned beverage entrepreneur, now rejoining as a senior leader focused on retention strategy, media, and industry events. Find out who it is in this episode. Topics covered: The original CTC hiring story and what early platform arbitrage taught him about finding edges Why he left CTC and what he set out to prove by building his own agency Acquiring a top email and retention agency and what running lifecycle marketing for real clients taught him Co-founding a beverage company and what subscription economics looks like from inside a real P&L Why Statlas and CTC's current scale made returning the obvious move The financial forecast connection: why email revenue expectations must be tied to the paid calendar Where offer-to-ad-to-landing-page continuity breaks down at most brands Deep storytelling vs. volume tactics: a real example of what actually drives conversion Active vs. lapsed customer strategy and the economics of subscription reactivation Commerce Roundtable events and Hyrox Anaheim Dec 3-4 Show Notes: Go to http://outersignal.com/thread to get 50% off your first two months Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

  8. Sep 8

    The Service That Turned a Brand's Worst Summer Into Its Best.

    CTC's Marketing Moments service is built to create new revenue spikes for 7-figure brands through structured offer testing, targeted landing pages, and high-volume creative. In this episode, host Richard Gaffin sits down with Roberto Fink, Profit Engineer at CTC, to break down exactly how the service works and why every brand that has signed up has seen at least one meaningful unlock. In this episode: What Marketing Moments is and the COAL framework behind it (Content, Offer, Acquisition funnel, Landers) What each brand gets: 2 marketing moments per month, 1 landing page + 20-25 creatives each How the program evolved from calendar-event hooks to evergreen offer testing year-round The 100% hit rate: every enrolled brand has unlocked incremental spend, better efficiency, or higher AOV Why CTC's view of a brand's P&L and margin profile lets it engineer offers that improve margin AND unlock higher CPA bids The men's grooming brand that had its first ever profitable summer, with offer campaigns driving 75% of account spend Show Notes: Go to https://bit.ly/4cbihFx to Claim $25,000 in Lutiq platform credits Explore the Prophit Engine: https://commonthreadco.com/pages/prophit-engine The Ecommerce Playbook mailbag is open — email us at podcast@commonthreadco.com to ask us any questions you might have

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2020 transformed the world of ecommerce forever. For the modern DTC brand, the rewards have never been greater. But the waters have also never been choppier, and the way forward has never been more uncertain. So how do you navigate this dangerous new reality? No matter how you do it, you’d better not do it alone. That’s where the Ecommerce Playbook Podcast comes in — join Common Thread Collective’s Taylor Holiday & Richard Gaffin as they bring you guiding insights from across CTC’s portfolio of growing DTC businesses. Whether you need a clear view on the macro issues affecting the world of ecommerce, or want to reorient your business around groundbreaking new big-picture strategies, Taylor & Richard are here to help answer the tough questions about what it takes to scale — and sustain — an ecommerce business.

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