Ok! Welcome back to my podcast: The Marketing Playbook with Mark Friedman! Presented by Details Interactive. Here, you’ll take away 3 game-winning marketing plays every episode to take back to your team. I’m your host, Mark Friedman, and my career has been focused on direct-to-consumer marketing; direct mail, physical retail, and digital commerce.
This is Episode #39 and today’s guest is Emily Griffith. She is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Lil Bucks. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and your other favorite podcast spots – follow and leave a 5-star review if you have your playbook!
Podcast Episode #39: Emily Griffith – Founder and CEO of Lil Bucks
Emily Griffith, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Lil Bucks, adds her page to the Marketing Playbook. Hear how to clearly communicate your message to customers, wear many hats while staying productive, be patient and allow time for unforeseen circumstances, raise crowdfunding, and how Emily is introducing sprouted buckwheat to the US. This episode covers everything from getting distribution at Whole Foods to approaching fundraising as a food brand. Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:
- What did Emily Study at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business
- What does sustainability mean when it comes to food
- How did Emily choose sprouted buckwheat
- How does she think about pricing
- Was she bootstrapping from the beginning
- How did she raise crowdfunding on Republic
- What is something early on that was way harder than she expected
- What is a superpower Emily wishes she had
Try Lil Bucks at LoveLilBucks.com and on social media at @LoveLilBucks.
Let’s open the playbook. Ready? Break! Check out the episode, show notes, and pictures below for much more detail.
Show Notes
- Intro
- [0:23] The Marketing Playbook with Mark Friedman
- [0:25] Details Interactive
- [0:31] Connect with Mark at Mark@DetailsInteractive.com, on Twitter at @DetailsInteract, and on LinkedIn
- [0:38] Try Lil Bucks at LoveLilBucks.com and on social media at @LoveLilBucks
- [1:26] Thank you as always to Max Branstetter of MaxPodcasting and the Wild Business Growth Podcast for producing this podcast. You can reach him at Max@MaxPodcasting.com to bring your podcast to life
- Emily’s Page of The Marketing Playbook with Mark Friedman
- [2:05] Emily on Episode 21 of the Wild Business Growth Podcast
- [2:43] What is something remarkable about her story
- [2:52] Entrepreneur
- [3:08] Marketing
- [4:07] What did Emily Study at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business
- [4:28] What did she do at Burson-Marsteller
- [4:42] PR (Public Relations)
- [4:57] Chipotle, Hormel Foods
- [5:10] Social Media
- [5:44] Bank of America, Four Loko
- [6:07] What does sustainability mean when it comes to food
- [6:26] Carbon Footprint, Regenerative Agriculture
- [6:57] Sustainable Packaging
- [8:01] What drew Emily to Australia
- [8:57] Rip Curl, Kellogg’s
- [9:29] Where did Emily’s love of food come from
- [9:54] Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
- [11:26] How did Emily choose sprouted buckwheat
- [12:42] Hero Ingredient
- [13:27] Gluten-Free, Grain-Free
- [13:49] What was the first thing Emily had to do as a business owner
- [14:57] Operations, Logistics
- [15:10] Google, HTML
- [16:51] Freelancing
- [17:30] Where is Lil Bucks sold today
- [17:37] Omni-Channel
- [17:54] Amazon, Wholesale, Whole Foods
- [18:11] What does Lil Bucks’ Whole Foods distribution look like
- [19:10] Direct-to-Consumer (DTC), Online Business
- [19:23] What does Lil Bucks’ rebuy rate look like
- [19:40] Velocity, Customers
- [19:53] Reorder Rate, Automation
- [20:12] How does the Lil Bucks subscription model work
- [21:35] How did Emily hire people to her team
- [21:55] Pandemic
- [22:50] Retail
- [23:11] Digital Marketing
- [23:34] Email Marketing, Field Marketing, Influencers
- [23:52] KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
- [24:13] Engagement
- [24:22] How does Emily think about pricing
- [24:35] Margin
- [25:37] Kroger
- [25:54] Economies of Scale
- [26:13] Target
- [26:24] Mass Market
- [26:54] Do you have a Direct-to-Consumer business? I enjoy connecting with guests on this podcast because it reminds me what I love to do: strategic and tactical consulting for businesses like yours. If you’d like to speak with me and see how you can add a fresh set of eyes to your team, contact me at Mark@DetailsInteractive.com
- [27:31] Was Emily bootstrapping from the beginning
- [27:46] Venture Money
- [27:54] Farmers’ Market, Sales, Side Hustle
- [29:06] Food Trade Show, Networking
- [29:45] Friends & Family Round
- [30:48] How did Emily raise crowdfunding on Republic
- [31:14] Uber, RXBAR
- [32:08] Hail Mary
- [32:16] iMovie, Lawyers, Accounting, Financials
- [32:47] Investors, Fundraising
- [33:08] How much funding did Emily think she would raise
- [33:54] Advertising, Database
- [34:42] Pitch Competition
- [35:11] Early-Stage Founders
- [35:20] What is something early on that was way harder than Emily expected
- [36:20] Consumer
- [36:50] Comms (Communications)
- [37:03] Marketing Funnel
- 2-Minute Drill
- [37:33] Patagonia
- [37:54] Instagram
- [38:00] Amazon, Kween.co Granola Butter
- [38:23] What is something Emily wishes she were better at
- [38:36] Surfrider Foundation
- [38:41] What is a superpower Emily wishes she had
- [38:47] What is her most prized possession other than family
- [39:06] Hint Founder Kara Goldin on The Marketing Playbook with Mark Friedman
- Outro
- [39:22] Try Lil Bucks at LoveLilBucks.com and on social media at @LoveLilBucks
- [40:11] This week’s 3 Game-Winning Plays are as follows:
- Clearly communicate your message to customers
- Wear many hats while staying productive
- Be patient and allow time for unforeseen circumstances
- [41:23] If you want to check out more pages of The Marketing Playbook, make sure to follow on your favorite podcast spot and leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts
- [41:32] Connect with Mark at Mark@DetailsInteractive.com, on Twitter at @DetailsInteract, and on LinkedIn
- Theme Song: Jazzy Man Funk Rock – Auditone Music Library – provided by Jamendo
What is The Marketing Playbook with Mark Friedman?
Mark Friedman (that’s me) knows direct-to-consumer marketing. The 30+ year industry veteran has served as the President of eCommerce at Steve Madden, Chief Marketing Officer of Brooks Brothers, mentor to dozens of startups, and even youth sports coach. You’ll take away 3 fundamental tips every episode to help your team knock it out of the park, and draw up strategies for digital marketing, eCommerce, customer monetization, and pivoting with the brightest all-stars in business. Do you have your playbook?
How can I work with Details Interactive?
That’s it! Today’s game ball goes to Emily Griffith. Thank you, Playbook Marketers, for listening. If you want to check out more pages of The Marketing Playbook, make sure to follow on your favorite podcast spot and leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. You can also follow us on Twitter at @DetailsInteract and learn more at DetailsInteractive.com. Until next time, The devil is in the details.