The Problem
With a unique product – all natural, aspartame-free, fair trade bubble gum – Glee Gum had a lot going for them, but the ecommerce side of their business wasn’t running so smoothly.
Like so many sellers, Glee was struggling to tame the beast that is Amazon. Damaging reviews from customers who were confused about the product they would receive, were threatening to hurt sales. Also, since they were lacking experience with brand registry and MAP agreements, resellers were eating away at their prices, threatening to take the Amazon Buy Box.
Then, there was the simple matter of time. As a company with a small team, the hours the shipping department spent on Amazon every week were not only costly, they were a distraction – from marketing, branding and product development.
The Solution
When WBX Commerce stepped in two years ago, they brought expertise at dealing with the ups and downs of selling on Amazon. Shipping and inventory management was a huge piece of the puzzle that was passed along to our experts, who are familiar with the common snags of ecommerce.
Knowing that poor product reviews often stem from a place of misunderstanding, WBX Commerce helped Glee Gum to develop materials to head off confusion. In Glee Gum’s case, this meant including an informational card with every order.
“The card introduces our product and explains its attributes,” explained Molly Lederer, Director of Communications and Marketing. “This helps customers know what to expect.”
WBX Commerce also worked with Glee on brand registry, putting a stop to price erosion and ensuring that customers receive products directly from Glee and vetted resellers, and not from unknown resellers.
The Results
After establishing brand registry, price erosion has been much less of an issue. Glee Gum consistently has the Amazon Buy Box, which funnels customers directly to their product, and allows for easier and more consistent quality control.
WBX Commerce helps Glee grow their sales with keyword optimization and running sponsored ads on Amazon, bringing in new customers. Meanwhile, customer reviews continue to improve because customers don’t expect mainstream bubblegum anymore, but rather an all natural alternative. The inclusion of a descriptive card with every order informs customers that the product is health-focused by being free of additives and chemicals that are generally found in mainstream gum.
As a result of WBX Commerce’s help, Glee Gum also has more time to reach new customers with social media and cross promotions. For example, they just shipped sugar free products to over 600 ambassadors in the field of dental health. And this fall, Glee plans to ship thousands of natural treats to retail partners hosting healthy Halloween events.
Since they began working with WBX Commerce, Glee Gum has felt a huge weight lifted off their shoulders and seen growth as a result. In their first year, they saw a 29% online sales increase, and a 2% jump in overall revenue. In the first half of 2016, they have already seen a compounded 6% increase in sales compared to the same time frame last year.
“Working with Amazon directly was a huge hassle and took a ton of time to manage,” said President, Deborah Schimberg. “We were constantly getting charged random fees, and we had no support at Amazon to help us with our online sales growth. Plus, our profit margins and sales volume are increasing dramatically.”
You can read more case studies on our WBX Commerce Clients page here.
