A New Framework for Content Scoring with Gary Hammerschlag - Episode 393

🎙️Interview with Erica Groussman of TRUBAR   DESCRIPTION This final Category Disruptors episode brings the series full circle in the best way. We hope you enjoyed it! In this final episode of the series spotlighting powerhouse female CEOs and founders, we’re joined by Erica Groussman, co-founder and CEO of TRUBRANDS, the company behind the fan-favorite TRUBAR and its mission to bring “Indulgent Nutrition” to the masses. It’s a high-energy, insightful conversation that captures exactly what this series is all about: bold ideas, fearless leadership, and brands rewriting the rules in their categories. A fitting finale to an inspiring lineup. Don’t miss it!   It felt like a million challenges. From finances to ingredients, or packaging, we had issues along the way in every aspect. But we try to forget the hard parts. Because nothing worthwhile is ever easy. Erica Groussman   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Erica, Julie, and Jordan discuss:  Erica’s entrepreneurial background and what inspired her to found TRUBAR, identifying a gap in the protein bar market. The importance of developing bars that don’t sacrifice taste or make you feel bad after eating—her “indulgent nutrition” philosophy. How Erica approaches product development, drawing inspiration from popular desserts and comfort foods, and turning them into healthy snacks. Real talk on challenges during development—including flavors that didn’t work out and the persistence needed to get them right. How TRUBAR prioritizes women in leadership, pay equity, and employs organizations that support mothers and women returning to work. Erica’s methods for celebrating every win—big and small—while overcoming countless challenges in supply chain, packaging, and scaling distribution. Lessons learned along the founder journey, such as the value of redundancy and preparedness, especially in the face of supply chain disruptions. The evolution of TRUBAR e-commerce strategy—from direct-to-consumer startup struggles to explosive Amazon growth—and the ongoing importance of controlling the brand experience online. Sneak peeks at what’s next: new flavors, the launch of a kids’ collection, and hints at future product innovations for Trubrands.  

DESCRIPTION The Category Disruptors Series continues!   It’s time for Part 3 in our series spotlighting the female CEOs and founders behind some of the fastest-growing and most innovative brands in their categories.   In this episode, we spotlight Laurel Orley, co-founder and CEO of Daily Crunch—the sprouted nut snack brand shaking up what they call the “trusty but dusty” nut category.   It’s a thoughtful conversation and another strong addition to the series—tune in for the full story.   "There's a lot of FOMO out there. You see unicorn brands doing amazing, and it's so easy to think: how did they make $1M in 5 minutes? Why not me? But you have to stay on your path." Laurel Orley   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Laurel, Julie, and Jordan discuss:  Laurel Orley’s transition from a career at major brands like Unilever to founding Daily Crunch Snacks, inspired by her aunt’s unique sprouted nut process. How Daily Crunch’s sprouted, dehydrated nuts stand out for their crunch, health benefits, and clean label. The creative process behind their flavors, including collaborations with other brand and the upcycling of pickle ends for sustainability. Daily Crunch’s commitment to women-owned certification and giving back through mental health initiatives Laurel shares how her corporate background provided valuable skills, but also discusses the steep learning curve and differences when moving to a founder role. The role of accelerators like SKU, mentorship, and the Vanderbilt intern pipeline in helping Daily Crunch grow and evolve. Hard-earned lessons in supply chain, pricing, product launches, and the realities of growing a snack brand during the pandemic. Exciting updates for 2025, including a new flavor and refreshed packaging highlighting nutritional benefits. The importance of staying focused on your own brand journey, leveraging available resources, and maintaining a mindset of continual learning.  

🎙️Interview with Anouck Gotlib of Belgian Boys   The Category Disruptors Series continues!   We’re excited to share Part 2 in our series spotlighting the female CEOs and founders behind some of the fastest-growing and most innovative brands in their categories.   This episode features Anouck Gotlib, co-founder and CEO of Belgian Boys—the company behind the high-quality, ready-to-eat Belgian waffles, pancakes, and crêpes we all know and love.    Belgian Boys was recently named Instacart’s #1 Fastest-Growing Emerging Brand in 2024, a reflection of its strong momentum and growing presence in the market. Don’t miss the full story—it’s another great one in the series.   "Beyond the ingredients or the packaging that evokes emotion, we found our success in solving a real problem. I'm a mom of now three kids, I get it, those mornings are stressful.” Anouck Gotlib   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Anouck, Julie, and Jordan discuss:  Brand Origin Story: How Anouck’s background in fashion design and her husband Greg’s experiences as Belgian expats inspired the founding of Belgian Boys and the mission to "spark a moment of joy" through food. Values & Family Influence: The importance of joy, warmth, and food in their families and how those values shaped both their business and personal lives. Navigating Partnership: Insights on co-founding and running a business with a life partner, including the keys to aligning on big-picture goals, embracing trust, role evolution, and supporting each other's strengths. Product and Retail Strategy: The decision to focus on breakfast products, the innovation of introducing refrigerated breakfast to the US market, and the challenges of discontinuing products to build a more focused core lineup. Female-Led Culture: Evolution of Belgian Boys into a female-focused brand and workplace, with women-led initiatives, a majority-female board, and organic team dynamics. Adaptation & Growth: Pivoting quickly during the pandemic, lessons learned from ecommerce expansion, and leveraging platforms like Instacart for online growth. Personal & Team Growth: Anouck’s journey of building CEO confidence without a traditional business background, the power of coaching, prioritizing strengths over weaknesses, and assembling a dynamic, diverse team. Looking Ahead: Sneak peeks into innovation in breakfast products, partnerships (including with Costco), a back-to-school focus, and what’s coming next for Belgian Boys.

🎙️Interview with Loren Castle of Sweet Loren’s DESCRIPTION The Category Disruptors Series is finally here! 🎉   We are releasing 4 parts spotlighting the female CEOs and founders behind some of the fastest-growing and most innovative brands in their respective categories.   We’re thrilled to kick things off with a true trailblazer—Loren Castle, founder of the wildly popular cookie brand, Sweet Loren’s.    Loren's story is as bold and inspiring as the cookies she bakes. Diagnosed with cancer at just 22, she completely transformed her lifestyle and turned to clean eating. But when she couldn’t find a dessert that met her new standards, she made her own. What started as a personal health mission became a national movement in the freezer aisle.   Don’t miss the full story—it’s one you’ll want to hear.   Quote: “It was obvious to me I wasn't going to improve the product, sales, and the relationship with the consumer if I didn't improve the packaging. So I just kept listening, testing, and learning.” Loren Castle   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Loren will share:  The incredible origin story behind Loren and creating Sweet Loren’s: Surviving Hodgkin’s lymphoma and how it inspired her passion for health, wellness, and clean eating. The creation of Sweet Loren’s: Identifying a white space in the market for delicious, healthier baked goods made with simple, non-inflammatory ingredients. Product development: The journey from home kitchen experiments to national distribution, including the challenges of perfecting recipes and scaling up. Navigating growth: How Loren managed the operational demands as the company scaled, including key hires and delegating roles to focus on her strengths. Standing out in a crowded CPG category: Challenges convincing retailers to shelve Sweet Loren’s alongside traditional brands and the importance of allergen-friendly, non-GMO options. The evolving consumer: Discussion on how today’s shoppers are increasingly health-conscious and driving demand for “better for you” products. Balancing entrepreneurship with motherhood: Loren’s reflections on guilt, role modeling for her children, and the importance of building a supportive team. Future plans: Sweet Loren’s new R&D center, exciting upcoming product launches, and continued growth in both grocery and food service channels.  

🎙️News Review with Armin Alispahic and Ross Walker DESCRIPTION Welcome to another edition of The Retail Round Up: your monthly recap of the biggest headlines and developments in the retail world. We're recording at the tail end of May and we’re already halfway through 2025. But the pace of change isn't slowing down. New product launches and platform updates are coming fast, and we've got a lot to cover. As always, we’ve brought back our go-to experts: Armin Alispahic and Ross Walker. Together we’re diving into a packed lineup—from product page content updates to Prime Video Ads, and yes, the continued march of AI into every corner of retail. Let’s get into it.  The scary part is that Amazon seems to be keeping the scraped information in their backend. And even though that content is not live on your PDP, you may be called out on a specific compliance requirement and your listing may get affected. Armin Alispahic KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Julie, Jordan, Ross, and Armin discuss: Amazon’s Two-Part Titles Are Coming Titles will split into a short core and a dynamic highlights section personalized to the shopper. Brands should prepare structured, search-aligned titles despite limited guidance. Ads Enter Amazon’s Q&A Section New ad placements appear within PDP Q&As, but targeting and performance remain unclear. Monitor listings to ensure ad relevance and protect brand messaging. Prime Video Ads Become More Interactive Pause ads and real-time shoppable formats offer new engagement, mainly for larger brands. Early adopters should use DSP safeguards and creative built for interaction. AI Listing Tools Scale—But Scrutiny Increases Amazon’s AI tool is widely used, but external content scraping can trigger compliance issues. Keep messaging consistent across channels and maintain documentation. Instacart Expands with Uber Eats and Fizz Instacart adds restaurant delivery and launches Fizz for group alcohol/snack ordering. Brands should watch these surfaces for new ad opportunities targeting social, low-consideration moments.

Welcome to The Ecommerce Braintrust podcast, brought to you by Julie Spear, Head of Retail Marketplace Services, and Jordan Ripley, Director of Retail Operations. In today’s episode, we’re diving into a topic that’s been heating up since Amazon unveiled it at Unboxed last October: using AMC audiences for Sponsored Products.  It’s a conversation that’s gone from a slow simmer to a full-on boil in recent months, and we’ve brought in two of Acadia’s sharpest retail media minds to break it all down: Ross Walker and Carlos Sastre. We’ll be exploring where the real impact is showing up, what’s working, and what this shift means for the future of Sponsored Search. Tune in to find out more! "I don't care about winning every single eyeball for a keyword. I only care about winning the subset of eyeballs that are most likely to convert, be a high lifetime value customer, or be most likely to purchase multiple products in my assortment. That is the new game that we are moving towards in the future." Ross Walker KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Julie, Jordan, Ross, and Carlos discuss: Overview of AMC Audiences for Sponsored Ads: The distinction between using AMC audiences in DSP vs. Sponsored Ads. In Sponsored Products/Brand Ads, AMC audiences act as bid modifiers rather than strict targeting mechanisms. Limitations and Current Capabilities: Advertisers can only boost bids for specific audiences, not exclude or exclusively target them. Only one AMC audience can be applied per campaign currently, which introduces campaign complexity. The "crawl, walk, run" approach: Start simple by identifying the campaign goal (upper vs. lower funnel) before layering in AMC audiences. Recommendations to duplicate existing campaigns and layer AMC audiences for more efficient targeting. Strong results from using purchaser and subscriber lookalike audiences (doubling ROAS and improving conversion rates). Cautions against hyper-granular audience building, which may limit scale and statistical significance. Leveraging “out of the box” audiences first before building complex custom audiences. Keep initial testing straightforward, scaling complexity only if justified by results. Notable reductions in CPCs and significant increases in ROAS for test campaigns that adopted AMC audiences. Dual campaign strategy allows efficiency gains without sacrificing overall volume. The introduction of more AMC-style features directly in the Amazon Ads console (e.g., new-to-brand bid boosting). The shift from keyword/product targeting towards audience-based bidding and what that means for campaign architecture and ROI. Amazon’s continued pace of innovation in ad products enables proactive brands to gain an edge. The future of advertising on Amazon involves refining audiences beyond keywords, focusing spend on high-value customers. The importance of adapting campaign strategies to stay ahead as the platform evolves.  

🎙️Interview with Gary Hammerschlag DESCRIPTION Welcome to The Ecommerce Braintrust podcast, brought to you by Julie Spear, Head of Retail Marketplace Services, and Jordan Ripley, Director of Retail Operations.   Today, we're joined by our in-house organic strategy expert, Gary Hammerschlag.    He'll walk us through the evolution of content scoring, share how top brands are approaching content audits today, and give us a sneak peek into where the industry is headed regarding organic excellence. Tune in to find out more! Quote: Optimization never ends. There are always improvements in organic rank that can happen. I don't think it's ever set-it-and-forget-it.  Gary Hammerschlag   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Julie, Jordan, and Gary discuss:   The Evolution of Content Scoring on Amazon: A history of content audits—starting from highly manual, page-by-page checks, moving through early automations, and now to sophisticated frameworks that combine qualitative and quantitative data. From Binary to Nuanced Scoring: The shift from basic checklists (like “Does this listing have six images?”) to systems that weigh the true quality and impact of each part of a PDP (product detail page). Modern Content Audit Methodologies: Current best practices for scoring content, including the new variables at play (like user-generated content and the role of Amazon’s AI assistant, Rufus), and why brands need to update their frameworks as the landscape evolves.   PDP & Storefront Optimization: The buckets and categories considered during optimization—from images and titles to mobile formatting and SEO—and how brands should prioritize and frequently assess their catalogs.   Importance of Continuous Improvement: Content optimization isn’t a one-off project, but an ongoing process. Gary emphasizes using leading indicators, A/B testing, and regular audits to keep PDPs and storefronts performing at their best.   Future Trends & Technology: The rapid pace of change on Amazon, the likely rise of tech-driven and AI-assisted content evaluation, and how staying ahead is key to organic success.   Real-world examples illustrating how deeper content audits can uncover hidden opportunities, even for brands that already look “optimized” on the surface.  

Welcome to The Ecommerce Braintrust podcast, brought to you by Julie Spear, Head of Retail Marketplace Services, and Jordan Ripley, Director of Retail Operations. We’re back with Part 2 of our special Prime Day series, and today we’re diving deep into Ad Strategy. Joining us today is Damiano Ciarrocchi, our Senior Retail Media Manager. With years of experience managing Prime Day ad strategies — both at Amazon and now for our clients — Damiano is a Prime Day pro who’s seen it all. Today, he’s sharing his insider insights on how this year’s Prime Day is shaping up to be different from years past. Don’t miss it — tune in now!   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Julie, Jordan, and Damiano discuss: The Buzz Starts Early: Brands are already fielding Prime Day questions by late April: What’s changed this year? How should we budget? What creative assets need to be ready now? Early alignment is critical. Prime Day Is Won Before It Begins: Success isn’t defined by the deals you run during Prime Day—it’s shaped in the weeks and months leading up to it. A New Playbook for 2025 Advertising: This year demands a shift in budget planning and campaign strategy. With evolving consumer behavior, flexibility becomes your strongest advantage. Unlocking Amazon’s New Ad Tools: 2025 marks a new era for advertisers. Tools like Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) audiences are no longer reserved for elite brands—they're now accessible and essential for all. May & June: The Setup Phase: Your early lead-in tactics dictate your visibility and performance during the event. Use this time to build awareness, optimize recall, and prime conversions. Real-Time Agility on Prime Day: Ideally, you’re so well-prepared that surprises are minimal, but when the unexpected hits, your ability to pivot fast will set you apart. The Surge Doesn’t Stop on Prime Day: Prime Day isn’t the finish line—it’s the launchpad. Smart brands ride the demand wave into post-event momentum and longer-term growth. Navigating Tariffs and Supply Chain Disruption: With tariffs and ongoing logistics challenges, brands need tighter forecasting and contingency plans baked into their Prime Day strategy.   MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Don’t forget to check out part 1 of this Prime Day Prep series! Access this in blog format! Part 1 here! Connect with Senior PPC Manager, Damiano Ciarrocchi Connect with our host, Julie Spear Connect with our host, Jordan Ripley

Welcome to The Ecommerce Braintrust podcast, brought to you by Julie Spear, Head of Retail Marketplace Services, and Jordan Ripley, Director of Retail Operations. This is your April edition of the Retail Round-Up! In today’s episode, we dive into the latest trends shaking up the retail media landscape, from AI-driven shopping innovations and Walmart’s evolving media strategy to concerns about Prime Day restock limits and the ongoing impact of tariffs. The retail media space is moving fast, and there’s no sign of slowing down. We’re excited to welcome special first-time guest Shahrez Anjum, Senior Account Manager at Acadia, alongside our media expert and friend of the pod, Ross Walker, Director of Retail Media at Acadia. Tune in to stay ahead of the curve!   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Julie, Jordan, Ross, and Shahrez discuss: Amazon recently introduced two major AI-driven features that signal a fundamental shift in how product discovery and shopping journeys will operate: Interests AI and Buy for Me. Interests AI is a product discovery tool that allows Amazon shoppers to enter detailed prompts reflecting their hobbies and passions.  Buy for Me, currently in beta, uses agentic AI to place orders on third-party brand websites directly from the Amazon app. Amazon has introduced tighter control over off-site placements, which allows advertisers to manage their spend on external platforms more effectively. Walmart has made two significant updates to its media offering through Walmart Connect, adding Vizio inventory for media buying and the ability to do advanced targeting for on-site display ads.  Amazon has made significant strides in simplifying and enhancing how advertisers can interact with its audience targeting capabilities, particularly by integrating AMC (Amazon Marketing Cloud) audiences into its ad console. Native Bid Boosters: Amazon is making it easier for advertisers to access and use audience segments directly within the ad console. The ongoing discussions around tariffs and their potential impact on retail prices have become a recurring topic in the e-commerce space, especially in relation to Amazon. As Prime Day approaches, concerns about restock limits and potential supply chain challenges are rising. In particular, there are indications that Amazon may reintroduce restock limits, a measure previously used to manage inventory flow.

Welcome to The Ecommerce Braintrust podcast, brought to you by Julie Spear, Head of Retail Marketplace Services, and Jordan Ripley, Director of Retail Operations. Today kicks off a special two-part series designed to get you fully prepared for Prime Day. In this first episode, we’re diving deep into the operational, promotional, and organic strategies you should focus on as the big shopping days approach. We’re excited to be joined by Joanna Otto, an Account Manager on Acadia’s Retail team. With more than a decade of experience spanning brand-side roles, agencies, and Amazon itself, Joanna brings a seasoned perspective on how Prime Day has evolved. We’re also welcoming Predrag Vetnic, one of our lead strategists for tentpole events. He’ll be sharing key data insights and best practices for building an effective merchandising strategy, drawn from our work across a wide range of client partners. Tune in to find out more!   KEY TAKEAWAYS In this episode, Julie, Jordan, Joanna, and Predrag discuss: Start Preparing Early: Begin your preparations by April, as deadlines and operational tasks need to be handled well before Prime Day. Important Dates & Deadlines: AWD inventory by May 15, Deal scheduling closes May 23, FBA inventory deadlines: June 9 (minimal shipment splits), June 18 (Amazon-optimized splits). Sales Velocity & Reviews: Focus on increasing sales and reviews using programs like Vine and Product Win to boost organic ranking. Organic Prep: Invest in keyword optimization, competitive scraping, and high-quality content, including images and infographics. Prime Day Duration: The event has expanded to four days, so expect consistent sales throughout. Merchandise Fees: PED fees have doubled to $100; the new coupon fee structure starts June 2. AI Search: Amazon’s AI assistant, Rufus, influences up to 35% of search traffic. Optimize your listings for this. Competitive Monitoring: Be ready to monitor competitors and pivot quickly if issues arise. Expect the Unexpected: Prepare for unexpected challenges, like account health flags and listing suspensions. Economic Pressure: Pricing strategies are more complex due to tariffs and market volatility, so be cautious with price hikes. Invest Strategically: Focus on targeted organic and paid efforts, including influencer and UGC campaigns, to drive relevance.