Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands & Links with Linkifi! Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder & CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
In this episode we welcome Thomas Gleeson — StoreHero co-founder and former Shopify Merchant Success lead — who helps e-commerce brands grow profitably by prioritizing contribution margin, LTV, and cashflow over vanity metrics like ROAS.
Key Talking Points
✅ Why ROAS Misleads — Ad costs up, attribution messy, ops + COGS + returns rising; profit ≠ revenue, and ROAS ignores VAT, discounts, shipping, fees ✅ Contribution Margin First — Net revenue (ex-tax) minus COGS minus marketing = the North Star for budget and channel decisions ✅ The “Allowable CAC” Mindset — Winners engineer higher CAC ceilings via pricing, bundles, and offer structure—so they outbid competitors ✅ Offer Structure > Blanket Discounts — Use bundles, threshold free shipping, GWP (free gift with purchase), selective promos to protect margin ✅ Black Friday Playbook — Pull last year’s SKU-level data: target higher-AOV, high-margin items; test tiered offers; don’t copy “site-wide 30%” by default ✅ Reality of Margin Compression — Discounts, free shipping/returns, BNPL, transaction fees can halve gross margin if you’re not tracking the math ✅ Small Catalogs Can Win — Build a simple break-even ROAS calculator per offer; know fees, returns, shipping, taxes, and COGS before scaling spend ✅ Cohorts & Retention — Nov/Dec buyers often gift-led and less loyal; use Shopify cohort charts to set realistic LTV expectations ✅ LLMs as a Channel — Early signals that ChatGPT/Gemini can drive discovery; solid SEO + authority increases likelihood of being cited
Quotes from Thomas Gleeson
📢 “There’s an industry-wide obsession with ROAS. It’s flawed. Your P&L pays the bills, not ROAS.” 📢 “If gross margin drops, your marketing must overperform just to stand still.” 📢 “The game isn’t ‘lowest CAC’—it’s highest allowable CAC. Engineer offers that let you spend more than rivals.” 📢 “In Black Friday planning, increased revenue doesn’t automatically mean increased profit.” 📢 “Be honest about COGS and fees. That ‘80% margin’ often becomes 40–50% once reality is added back.”
Actionable Insights
🧮 Know Your Numbers (Before BFCM)
- Build a per-offer break-even ROAS: RRP → discount → COGS → VAT/tax → shipping/returns → payment fees → expected return rate.
- Track contribution margin weekly; tie ad budget increases to profit deltas, not revenue.
🧰 Offer Engineering
- Prefer bundles, GWP, and free-shipping threshold tweaks over blunt site-wide cuts.
- Surface SKUs with above-average AOV and margin; push with creative + merchandising, not just discount.
💸 Budgeting by Margin
- Improve gross margin (trim “conversion candy” that erodes it) to unlock 2–3× more ad budget at the same profit target.
- Separate goals: one motion for profit, another for top-line—don’t let revenue targets force margin-killing promos.
📈 Cohorts & Segmentation
- Expect lower LTV from Nov/Dec new customers; design tailored post-purchase flows and realistic payback windows.
- Reward loyal segments; avoid penalizing them while testing new-customer carrots.
🔎 LLM Visibility
- Solid SEO foundations, authoritative mentions, and clear USP language increase odds of LLM citations (early but growing opportunity).
About Thomas Gleeson
Thomas Gleeson is the co-founder of StoreHero and former Shopify Merchant Success lead. He helps brands centralize e-com, marketing, and finance data to make profit-first decisions—shifting teams from ROAS worship to unit economics and contribution margin. 📬 Connect with Thomas:
LinkedIn: Thomas Gleeson · storehero.ai
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links
At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today: 🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍
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