Lots of Plants

Overview:

Lots of Plants is an e-commerce plant store that specializes in selling large outdoor plants. Despite being in the online plant industry since 2017, the company was struggling to scale efficiently while maintaining a healthy ROAS target. They decided to partner with RocketShip HQ to unlock performance and scale going into their peak season: Spring 2023.

With Rocketship HQ’s expert guidance, Lots Of Plants was able to achieve these results within just a few months of the start of the engagement.

To achieve the results, we utilized a combination of tactics that were focused on channel expansion and creative testing. We started by identifying key opportunities for growth and designed a comprehensive digital marketing plan that included the following strategies:

1. Granular keyword structuring on Google Search
2. Channel-wise budget optimization
3. High-performing creatives
4. Customized dashboards and rock-solid processes
5. Team coordination, communication & rapid response time

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Here are a few takeaways that helped us unlock scale that can hopefully help you unlock performance and scale as well:

1. Channel-wise budget optimization

A lot of historical spend had been on Google’s performance Max campaigns. While these reported astronomical ROAS numbers, these revenues weren’t always incremental based on our experience – since PMax campaigns include search and retargeting as well. As we shifted our focus to an incrementality-based approach, we started dialing down the budgets from the Google PMAX campaign.

In order to focus on accurate metrics, we also switched to using Shopify to report on actual revenue and ROAS, rather than rely on platform reported numbers.

We gradually started scaling on Facebook, as well as non-automated campaigns on Google and saw a significant improvement in the overall blended ROAS, achieving a target of over 300%.

2. Granular keyword structuring on Google Search

We focused on targeting high intent keywords on Google and thematically grouped the keywords into categories. We then structured the keywords into targeted ads and landing pages optimized for conversions, improved quality score and performance.

We adjusted the bid strategy according to the performing plant category.For example, we got more conversions from Camelia which are in demand throughout spring, and lowered the bids for the generic plant categories such as Outdoor Plants.

We also tested ROAS optimized campaigns in addition to the CPA optimization, and saw the former having a stronger performance, and thus scaled the campaign accordingly.

In addition to the regular search ads campaign, we also tested Dynamic Search Ads, which covers the content of the entire website (mainly recommended for eCommerce stores that have a vast structure) and auto-generates ads according to the user search term. Based on the initial strong results, we gradually scaled this campaign alongside our regular search ads campaigns.

3. High-performing creatives

We created visually appealing creatives that showcased Lots of Plants’ core value propositions, such as their large outdoor plants and top-selling plant categories: Camelia, Azalea, Rhododendron, etc. We tested various combinations of the value propositions and ad formats such as:

• Listicle type ads: 3 Reasons Why Bigger Plants Are The Better Choice.
• Value proposition #1: Bigger, larger plants
• Value proposition #2: Immediate visual impact
• Value proposition #3: Stronger root systems

4. Customized dashboards and rock-solid processes to ensure profitability is in sync with operational complexity

We set up a customized dashboard with key acquisition metrics that were available at the touch of a button – segmented by channels, campaigns and daily/weekly time durations.

This saved a ton of time that used to be spent on ad-hoc analyses and pulling data from disparate spreadsheets and various platforms (FB, Google and Shopify analytics in our case).

In addition, we set up a rigorous operational and review cadence that allowed us to be on alert for any significant changes in spend and performance. This, in addition to our Slack-first, remote-first team structure allowed us to react quickly and effectively to changes in the marketing and product configurations.

5. Team coordination, communication & rapid response time

The team maintained a high level of coordination and communication throughout the project, which helped to ensure that everyone was aligned on the goals and objectives. This included regular team meetings, progress reports, and updates on key milestones. We also prioritized rapid response time to ensure that issues and challenges were addressed quickly and effectively.

In addition, we have implemented a strong operational and review process to ensure that we are always vigilant for any significant changes in both spending and performance.

Our process includes:

1. Health check: daily
2. Campaign deep dives: 3x a week
3. Creative deep dive: 3x a week
4. Weekly update: 1x a week
5. Creative production: 1x a week

Our team follows a Slack-first and remote-first structure, which allows us to respond to any modifications to marketing and product configurations quickly and efficiently.

In summary, this was a low-down of what Rocketship HQ achieved for them:

• ✅ 365% increase in revenue
• ✅ 400%+ ROAS
• ✅ 300% increase in order volume

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Unlocking this growth required the collaboration of a community and the synchronization of several intricate components:

1. Granular keyword structuring on Google Search
2. Channel-wise budget optimization
3. High-performing creatives
4. Customized dashboards and rock-solid processes
5. Team coordination, communication & rapid response time

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All of this is to show how it’s STILL possible to unlock tremendous growth for an eCommerce business post-ATT.

It’s not easy – but by applying the rigor of full-funnel strategies, deep user understanding, & channel expertise, it is absolutely possible to grow month on month.

It’s what we run day to day in our agency Rocketship HQ.

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