Things I’ve learnt over three years marketing WooCommerce

When I joined the WooCommerce marketing team in July 2014 we were three. Today we’re a team of thirteen and the landscape of how we work, what we produce, and how we engage users, has changed a lot. Also, WooCommerce has changed a lot! Including being acquired by Automattic. This is a talk I delivered at WordCamp Europe 2017 in Paris, June 16.

Transcript

1. Things I’ve learnt over three years marketing WooCommerce @marinapape marinapape.com
7. The world of WordPress was a very technical, I didn’t understand a lot of what people were talking about. It seemed the people who coded were the kings and queens. Data mattered a lot. The products were 100% digital with no physical touch points. It was also very global. What did marketing look like in this new world?
8. Learning to embrace change Dwelling on strengths Unconscious bias Content should exist to serve The importance of connecting to ‘the who’ Social media and R.O.F. Emailing as you grow Data and instincts
9. Learning to embrace change Balancing hope and realism Unconscious bias Storytelling and connecting to ‘the who’ Social media and R.O.F. Emailing as you grow Data and instincts
11. CHAPTER 1 Learning to embrace change
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14. “ ” MOLLY GRAHAM, ‘GIVE AWAY YOUR LEGOS’ There’s a unique feeling of ambiguity, chaos and stress that comes with doubling or tripling your team every six months. If you don’t manage scaling proactively, you can end up in trouble. firstround.com/review/give-away-your-legos-and-other-commandments-for- scaling-startups/
16. CHAPTER 2 Balancing hope and realism
17. “ ” JOHN MAEDA It’s important to find the right balance of hope and realism, not becoming too gloomy about the future or unrealistically optimistic about our current state.
20. CHAPTER 3 Unconscious bias
21. “ (FROM A DEFINITION OF UNCONSCIOUS BIAS) The brain uses social stereotypes in order to simplify the massive amount of information that it receives from the world. And heightening the effect is the human preference for people who are similar to us. The vast majority of these processes are invisible to the conscious mind.
22. ? &
25. How do we create inclusive marketing?
26. CHAPTER 4 Storytelling and connecting to ‘the who’
32. I don’t think you can really have a sense of the ‘why’ of your organisation, if you aren’t deeply connected to ‘the who’ it is you exist to serve.
33. Including customer stories in your marketing plan:
 Set up regular User Research calls Turn the conversations into stories Tell them externally* and internally.
 
 *Not going make you heaps of money necessarily.
35. CHAPTER 5 Social media and R.O.F.
38. Like with blog posts, we measure success in terms of traffic and revenue – but always have room to do things that are just for fun, or to make someone smile. R.O.F.
42. I have always believed, and still firmly do, that there is something healthy about brands that have room to do creative things ‘just because’.
45. “ In a company, creative thinking must occur on a spectrum between art and commerce. ” RON CARUCCI hbr.org/2017/05/how-to-nourish-your-teams-creativity
46. CHAPTER 6 Emailing as you grow
50. kb.mailchimp.com/lists/manage-contacts/about-contact-ratings
51. ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
54. Social media and emails are just channels and chances to speak to people. It’s what you put in them that makes all the difference.
55. CHAPTER 7 Learning to love data
57. We will never stop doing things by our gut. If and when we’re wrong, we course correct. We experiment, we iterate based on the results, we trust our gut, we trust data.
58. IN CONCLUSION Branding today
59. medium.muz.li/when-everythings-the-same-it-s-the-brand- that-makes-the-difference-a60e5b40fdf9
62. TO END A definition
63. Marketing is about reaching people – fetching, converting and keeping them. It delivers value above the noise and creates emotional connections. It seeks to serve, include, understand and delight. It requires empathy, flexibility and humility of its makers. It thrives when powered by instinct and data. Marketing is an invitation.
64. Thank you Marina Pape