As a leader in the field of ecommerce, Nik Sharma has worked with numerous direct-to-consumer brands to launch and scale their businesses. He has a proven track record of delivering for the companies that have come to him for guidance. Drawing upon years of marketing and advertising experience, he has developed technology-driven strategies that can be used to successfully bring your entrepreneurial vision to life.
An essential part of thriving in the cutthroat world of online business is arming yourself with the proper software tools. This can often be the difference between getting left behind by the competition, and being able to make pivotal decisions that propel you forward.
Here below is a curated selection of highly effective platforms that come personally recommended by Nik Sharma, and can be leveraged to take your digital operation to the next level.
The Nik Sharma DTC Tech Stack: what software tools does Nik Sharma use?
Simply put, the right tools make it easier to execute ideas. The same way you wouldn’t show up to a construction site with just a hammer, a wide array of applications gives you greater flexibility when running your enterprise.
Having software at your disposal allows you to do everything from automating flows, to boosting order values, to connecting and communicating with your customers. Whether you’re looking to upsell, cross-sell, or increase conversion rates, with the right combination of programs, all of this (and more) is possible.
Let’s take a look at Nik’s essential DTC tech stack, shall we?
1. Shopify
If you’ve explored the DTC ecom landscape in any capacity, odds are you are at least somewhat familiar with Shopify. It might be best thought of as an all-in-one commerce platform that can be used as a home base for your online presence.
Shopify offers a suite of customizable themes that allow you to list your products and make them available to purchase. Essentially, you are able to create a virtual storefront all your own. With your brand on full display, shoppers can browse what you have to offer and buy to their heart’s content.
Within the platform, you are able to set up payments and accept major credit card transactions through a service called Shopify Payments. When your store is live, you can also sell through multiple channels. Say you intend to make sales on Walmart or eBay, you can use Shopify to connect your catalog with other sites.
With your products flying off the metaphorical shelves, and everything flowing through the central hub of Shopify, the backend provides a series of dashboards and reports that allow you to track your analytics and metrics. This enables you to keep tabs on the performance of your business at all times.
Additional applications can be integrated into your Shopify store directly. These built-in tools are discoverable on a lively online marketplace called the Shopify App Store. Having access to this variety of plugins expands the scope of what you are able to accomplish with your storefront, beyond the native features alone. If you hope to grow your reach, it is critical to equip yourself with a host of worthwhile add-ons.
2. Postscript
Postscript is one such add-on, and is designed to help manage your SMS text marketing. With Postscript, you can use your store data to initiate automated conversations with your customers. You can utilize this to do things like contact those who have abandoned their cart, for instance, and entice them to complete their purchase with exclusive discounts.
3. Klaviyo
Klaviyo is a marketing tool that allows you to create highly targeted email campaigns, as well as build extensive contact lists. You can segment your shoppers by different criteria like order history and past browsing behavior, and can deliver fully customized, branded emails that are crafted to boost engagement.
4. Okendo
Okendo allows you to collect and highlight reviews on your site. You can use a range of display widgets to showcase product ratings and other user generated content. As any consumer-facing company knows, social proof like this means everything.
5. Gorgias
Gorgias provides streamlined, efficient customer service in an automated fashion. It consolidates your support interactions, which might be spread across multiple channels, into one easy-to-use feed. You are also able to create and use templates to address common requests that people might have, leading to more satisfied buyers and less time wasted.
6. Disco
Disco accelerates the process of gaining new customers. This tool enables you to target high-intent buyers and lower your cost per acquisition. By leveraging a network of independent stores, you are able to forge partnerships and gain data-fueled insights to find your ideal audience.
7. Dovetale
Dovetale serves as a catalyst for establishing valuable relationships with social media influencers. You can use the platform to create application pages and keep track of your affiliate offers. Wanting to measure the total product sales generated by each content creator who’s promoted your items? This is the app to do it.
8. Tydo
Tydo provides analytics that effectively take the pulse of your business. With just one glance, this tool can show you an overview of key metrics like your conversion rate and advertising spend. It connects to all of your ad accounts to paint a complete picture of your performance. In addition to visually appealing dashboards, emailed reports can also be generated.
9. Builder
Builder puts you in control of what your customers experience when they arrive at your site. It allows you to personalize your content to tailor what prospective buyers see, dramatically increasing the chances of your landing pages leading to conversions.
10. Smartrr
Smartrr gives you the capability to service your shoppers with premium subscriptions. This means offering benefits like membership discounts, gifts, and exclusive perks. Above all else, it means locking in recurring revenue.
11. Neutrl
Neutrl contributes to sustainability by allowing customers to make their orders carbon neutral. In their cart checkout, shoppers can reduce their environmental impact by adding carbon offsets (or you, as a merchant, can decide to cover this yourself). Neutrl then uses the funds to finance carbon removal initiatives. Consumers are increasingly seeking brands that are driven by larger missions, a desire this app can help you tap int
12. Motion
Motion is a tool that paves the way for brands to produce powerful pieces of creative, and evaluate what type of content is meeting goals and objectives. It is a collaborative workflow platform that helps companies determine the images and videos that have resonated with audiences the most. It uses hard data around metrics like click-through rate and return on ad spend to deliver clear insights.
13. Malomo
Malomo is devised to reduce customer service inquiries by providing top-notch communication following purchases. With branded tracking pages, and frequent, detailed shipping updates sent via email and SMS, the platform keeps customers informed about their order status at every juncture. This is sure to keep your shoppers pleased from the moment they hit the buy button to the moment your product hits their doorstep.
There you have it. Acquiring all, or even some, of these applications recommended by Nik Sharma can put you leagues ahead of other DTC brands. With this list of crucial tools, and the knowledge to understand what they can achieve, you are now in possession of the resources needed to facilitate your next big move in the world of online business.
.jpg)
