Chris Meade from Crossnet discusses how his company handled a 400%+ sales boom due to increased demand for outdoor activities during COVID-19. He shares actionable strategies for managing rapid growth, including proactive supply chain communication, leveraging customer service, and maximizing user-generated content, offering a blueprint for other ecommerce businesses experiencing or preparing for sudden market shifts.
Key takeaways
Implement a 'pre-order' sales model with clear communication to manage customer expectations during inventory shortages, including estimated delivery windows and regular email updates.
Develop a robust post-purchase email flow that not only provides shipping updates but also builds excitement and educates customers about the product (e.g., setup guides, gameplay tips, community engagement).
Outsource customer support using services like FreeUp to handle increased inquiry volume efficiently and cost-effectively, freeing up internal teams to focus on strategic growth initiatives.
Actively encourage and leverage user-generated content to further brand growth, especially during periods of high demand when organic reach can be maximized.
Continuously assess business pain points and proactively hire for those areas to sustain growth without overwhelming the core team, even for a few hours a day.
Chris Meade is one of the three co-founders of Crossnet, a business started in September 2017 that hit over $2m in sales in 2019. Crossnet is a business based on a game the 3 invented in order to escape the 9 to 5, which they’ve grown in a low-risk, life-friendly way! Since Covid-19 struck sales have quadrupled giving Chris and the Crossnet team a supply, and customer service challenge. Plus a massive marketing opportunity. in this candid chat Chris shares lots of detail about how they've coped with it all including their Facebook Ads and email strategy, which includes how to get your email sign up rates to over 10%.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Spotify Ad Analytics - https://www.spotify.com/us/legal/ad-analytics-privacy-policy/ ---
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Implement a 'pre-order' sales model with clear communication to manage customer expectations during inventory shortages, including estimated delivery windows and regular email updates.
What does this episode say about supply chain & operations?
Develop a robust post-purchase email flow that not only provides shipping updates but also builds excitement and educates customers about the product (e.g., setup guides, gameplay tips, community engagement).
What does this episode say about customer retention?
Outsource customer support using services like FreeUp to handle increased inquiry volume efficiently and cost-effectively, freeing up internal teams to focus on strategic growth initiatives.
What does this episode say about brand & content?
Actively encourage and leverage user-generated content to further brand growth, especially during periods of high demand when organic reach can be maximized.
What does this episode say about dtc strategy?
Continuously assess business pain points and proactively hire for those areas to sustain growth without overwhelming the core team, even for a few hours a day.
