Revenue & Traffic Authority

Revenue & Traffic Authority is your secret weapon for explosive growth. Our expert team specializes in SEO and stunning web design, ensuring your website doesn't just exist but thrives.

We’ll catapult you to the top of search results, create captivating user experiences, and flood your business with qualified leads. With our laser-focused strategies, you’ll leave competitors in the dust and transform clicks into cash.

Clients have seen traffic skyrocket by 200%, conversion rates double, and revenue surge to new heights. Don’t just dream about success—let’s make it a reality. Contact us today at kris@revenueandtrafficauthority.com and embark on your journey to digital supremacy!

Founder

Curran Acquisitions, LLC

Thinking about selling a B2B or B2C SaaS business? Feel free to reach out for a free, confidential, and no obligation exploratory conversation any time: KCurran@CurranAcquisitions.com

Curran Acquisitions is a leading private equity firm specializing in the acquisition of internet and technology related web properties with a primary focus on SaaS, lead generation, and digital marketing companies.

Primary specialties and areas of interest include: SaaS, B2B/B2C, Digital Marketing, Website Development, PPC Advertising, SEO, Lead Generation, E-Commerce, Affiliate Sites, Amazon FBA, Info Products, Content Marketing, and Web Hosting. 

Criteria for B2B SaaS/Digital Marketing Investment: 

-Less than 30% revenue concentration among top 10 clients
-Minimum of 2 years in business 
-Minimum of $300K Revenue
-Minimum of $100K EBITDA
-Minimum of 60% monthly recurring revenue (MRR) 
-Able to take a controlling position

Secondary specialties and areas of interest include absentee run brick and mortar businesses in the NY tri-state area. Must have at least 300K steady or growing revenue per year, 3+ years of operating history, and an EBITDA of 100K+.

Founder and CEO

Nobody Studios

At Nobody Studios, we are startup artisans, serial entreprenuers who curate the best ideas, expedite company creation, and craft successful ventures in succession. We are proud to be crowd first and people first.

Nobody Studios aims to create 100 compelling companies in the next five years, guiding them from ideation through MVP to full-scale company validation. 

The close-knit powerhouse team of talent at Nobody Studios is stacked with industry experts in the areas of marketing innovation, e-commerce business strategy, wellness, RE tech, fin-tech, data science, product innovation, and beyond.  Nobody Studios is larger than any one personality, and is unified by its principles of rapid and frugal innovation, a ‘people first’ mentality, crowd first execution in everything, and transparency to its core.  

Nobody Studios will embark on their first significant crowdfunding campaign mid-year 2021 where anyone can be an investor and come along on their journey to build companies that resonate with the crowd.

Investor

RevTech Advisory

RevTech Advisory is an AI-leveraged lead generation agency that offers a 100% done-for-you experience by an award winning B2B marketing strategist and campaign team with a real-time reporting and analytics dashboard.

So far, we've booked over 5200 meetings for 120+ clients.

Brilliantly

We are Fractional CGOs positioning SaaS companies for A-Round and we love it!

We help high-achieving SaaS founders like you position for A-Round or that next big milestone thru scaling your perfect, exceptionally happy customer. High revenue customers who enthusiastically adopt features. Customers who are excited to be a part of the journey; who evangelize your product as if it was their own. - The epitome of growth.

I work with a team of proven growth leaders who are really good at this stuff. We help design unique strategies that actually work. Strategies that begin with the end in mind and unify teams and processes. Strategies that are metric-driven, easily explained and followed. With everyone on the same page, scaling your SaaS business becomes repeatable and affordable.

Advisor and Growth Marketer

Blogsvertise

The key to any great Infuential marketing campaign is creating great content! Content that is compelling to its target audience, authentic to the storyteller’s voice, and delivers against your brand objectives. Our bloggers are capable of amplifying your marketing message quickly and effectively by becoming your brand advocates to their audience.  

Founded in 2006, and run by agency executives, Blogsvertise is the original influencer marketing platform. We've been matching advertisers to influencers since before influencer marketing was even a catch phrase. Through the years we've matched more than 10,000 brands to our worldwide database of over 100,000 bloggers for every type of campaign imaginable -- from new launches and product reviews, to brand awareness, list building, and SEO. 

Your campaigns can be launched as quickly as you need them, and the targeting can be as specific as you require. We offer Do-It-Yourself and Do-It-For-Me models. Check out our Service Packages to get started.

Did you know that 95% of people would rather trust recommendations from people they don't know over branded content? Or that 75% of people trust reviews and testimonials to make purchase decisions? If not, I bet you had no idea that 40% of people discover new brands and products through social conversations and that 50% of people trust social forums and Q&A sites to discover new products. 

So what are you waiting for? Come check us out at www.Blogsvertise.com or feel free to contact my team at: 

Sales:                          Chris@blogsvertise.com
Support:                      Eric@blogsvertise.com
For Everything Else:  Kris.Curran@blogsvertise.com

Principal

Taxaroo

Taxaroo is a 5 year old tax practice management platform that has helped over 3,000 tax, CPA, and accounting firms save over 40 minutes per return by automating and streamlining their business so they can focus on revenue growth.

Kris Curran's Prior Experience

Healthcare Analytics & Data Warehousing SaaS/Service Hybrid

Sales Manager

Boutique Executive Search Firm Specializing in the Systematic and Quantitative Trading Space

Sr. Quantitative Financial Headhunter

Boutique Medical Recruitment Firm Specializing in Psychiatry and Advanced Practice

Sr. Medical Recruitment Consultant

Boutique Executive Search Firm Specializing in Accounting & Finance, Tax, Treasury, M&A, Legal, and Compliance

Manager, Financial Executive Recruiter

Independent Business Consultant

Fractional & Interim CEO for technical founders and I Acquire and Grow B2B SaaS and Digital Agencies

Hard truth: 75% of users never scroll past Google's first page. If your website isn't there, you're invisible to 3 out of 4 potential customers. How many sales and conversions are you losing right now?

Imagine competitors celebrating record profits while your site sits idle. Feel the panic as potential customers leave, taking their wallets elsewhere. How long can your business survive with a website that's just a digital brochure?

Enter Revenue & Traffic Authority – your secret weapon for explosive growth. We transform underperforming websites into revenue machines with:

-SEO that puts you on top 
-Designs that convert  
-PPC that delivers hot leads 

Our clients see:

-Up to 300% revenue surges
-Skyrocketing profit margins
-Unbelievable customer lifetime values

Don't let another day of lost sales slip away!

If you're ready to flood your business with revenue, send me a DM or email me for a free website audit at: Kris@revenueandtrafficauthority.com now!

Private Equity | SaaS | Founder | Sales | RevOps | Growth Marketing | Automation | Fundraising | Leadership | Executive Search | SEO

😎 Kris Curran 😎

Seth Waite

Schaefer

Schaefer is the only buyer psychology consultancy dedicated to the food & beverage industry. We help brands understand why people buy—then turn that insight into marketing strategies that drive sales. Our work supports marketing, brand, and growth leaders across CPG, manufacturing, foodservice, private equity, and every corner of the food & beverage value chain.

YOU MIGHT NEED US IF...
👉🏻 You can’t afford for your go-to-market approach to flop when you’re launching a new initiative.
👉🏻 You want to reach a new, untapped customer segment with an existing product.
👉🏻 You’re expanding and entering a new geographic market with an existing product.
👉🏻 You’re looking to develop and/or market a new product to an existing customer segment.
👉🏻 You’re unsure if a market exists for a potentially new yet-to-be-developed product.
👉🏻 You’re unsure (or unconvinced) where your highest potential growth opportunities lie.


WORKING TOGETHER
✨ A TEAM - Only senior-level talent. No bait and switch.
✨ EXPERTISE - Strategic, hard-working peers with hands-on experience.
✨ WHY FOCUSED - Pursue depth and action anchored in facts.
✨ TOP 1% - Unlike anyone you've ever worked with before.

Partner & Buyer Psychologist

Algrthm

Sold to investor to pursue opportunity more closely aligned with my personal mission.
Artificial Intelligence company focused on developing and researching new A.I. capabilities in real-world authentication of luxury goods and collectibles. Focused specifically on mobile device models that measure perception through multi-sensor, multi-modal methods. Developed 8 new patent-pending technologies.

Founder & CEO |  (Sold to Investor)

UniGroup

ACQUISITION: UniGroup acquired my startup Handled.
INTEGRATION: I was brought in to lead Technology & Growth across the United Van Lines and Mayflower moving ecosystem during the year-long integration period.

Teams reporting to me included: 
- Marketing, Brand, and Creative
- UX/UI & Product Design
- IT, Infrastructure, & Security
- Product Development & Engineering
- Data Science & Business Intelligence
- Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

Chief Experience Officer & EVP (Leading Integration & Transformation)

Handled.

ACQUIRED by UniGroup. Disrupting the moving & storage industry and helping the world feel at home with industry-leading customer experience, product development, and cutting-edge computer vision and AI/ML.

Founder & CEO (Acquired by Strategic)

RevUnit

- Key strategist for corporate vision, M&A, and growth ventures
- Leader of Strategy Consulting practice & services
- Intellectual Property & Tools Development
- Value builder for transferrable assets

Chief Strategy Officer (Prepare for Private Equity Investment)

At RevUnit, my role as Chief Growth Officer includes the following key responsibilities:

- Growth Leader for all RevUnit marketing, sales, and public relations
- Key strategist for corporate vision, M&A, and growth ventures
- Led acquisition of Teamvvork

Product Development Studio
We DOUBLED our growth year-over-year and reached a ranking of #584 out of 5,000 on Inc's 5000 Fastest Growing Privately-Held Companies in America.

Chief Growth Officer (4x Inc 5000 Winner)

Lead all RevUnit marketing & public relations.

- DOUBLED growth every year for 4 years in a row at 95% CAGR
- Developed B2B lead generation for penetrating enterprise via (ABM) Account Based Marketing
- Sold millions of dollars personally and led the execution

Chief Marketing Officer (95% Year-Over-Year Revenue Growth)

RevUnit clients grew to include Walmart, Sam's Club, Mary Kay, Virgin, United Van Lines, and Mayflower.

Marketing & Analytics Lead

Acquisition Integration & New Sales Growth.

Sr. Strategist & Product Owner

SmashMetrics

ACQUIRED By RevUnit -- High-impact ecommerce marketing and product adoption agency. Using customer intent to isolate needs and objections, our industry-leading approach to conversion rate optimization and digital marketing creates more long-term revenue with fewer expenses.

Co-Founder, CEO (Acquired by RevUnit)

DrVita

Led DrVita e-commerce from $30k a month in revenues to over $1.2M in revenues per month in just 4 months. Total site re-platform and built and executed full suite of e-commerce marketing and growth strategies.

Director of Marketing (Jumpstart Growth)

Rockfish Interactive

I led all content strategy and production for Walmart's corporate website redesign, Sam's Club grocery program website & email broadcasts, mom blogger network, mother/baby microsites, and grocery apps. I also led Banfield/Petsmart's SEO & social strategy.

Content Strategy Manager for Walmart & Sam's Club

Journey Digital Media

As Marketing Manager, I lead the company's search engine optimization and marketing projects, including website design, conversion rate optimization, and lead generation.

Marketing & Lead Generation Expert

Partner at Schaefer / Buyer Psychology for Food & Beverage Brands

I study why people buy what they buy.

As a Partner at Schaefer, I decode the psychology behind consumer decisions in the food & beverage industry. My obsession? Understanding the invisible forces that make someone choose Poppi over 20 other soda brands, or why they'll pay $12 for artisanal ranch dressing.

Started at Sam's Club at 25, running digital strategy for grocery. That's where I discovered the magic number: show someone 7 ways to use a product, and the purchase barrier collapses. We weren't selling chicken. We were selling confidence.

Now I help brands understand what their customers actually want (hint: it's rarely what you think).

My approach is simple: Watch real behavior. Question everything. Find the job your product actually does. Because your competition isn't the brand next to you on the shelf - it's whatever solves the customer's problem faster.

I write daily about:
→ Buyer psychology patterns that drive billion-dollar brands
→ Why some products become movements while others just take up shelf space
→ The hidden strategies behind brands like Oreo ($3B), Reese's ($2.7B), and Fairlife ($6.2B)
→ Real stories from the grocery aisles that reveal how people actually shop

If you're building a food or beverage brand and want to understand your customers better than they understand themselves, let's talk.

Because sometimes your billion-dollar idea isn't your main product. It's the thing customers keep asking for that you're not paying attention to.


---------

Non-businessy stuff →

• I live in St. Louis and love the outdoors, basketball, and reading all kinds of books
• I’m a serious foodie and built a food influencer account with more than 1 million followers
• My wife and I have 3 beautiful, kind children whom we love to spend time with

--------

Thanks for stopping by.

Founder & CEO |  Exit Coach

I help business owners grow and sell their businesses with no regrets.

Seth Waite 🥣

Overheard this at a CPG conference:

Founder: "Our target is women 25-44 with household income over $75K."

Marketer: "Okay, but what are they trying to accomplish?"

Founder: "They're health-conscious millennials who shop at Whole Foods."

Marketer: "That's still demographics. What problem are we solving for them?"

Founder: *blank stare*

Here's what kills me:

We spend millions targeting "personas" that tell us nothing about why people actually buy.

Demographics tell you who can afford your product. (but not if they will)

Behaviors tell you who will actually buy it.

The marketer pushed harder:

Marketer: "A 35-year-old mom in Austin and one in Detroit might have identical demographics. But one's buying your organic snack bars for her kids' soccer practice. The other's stress-eating them at 11pm while finishing work emails."

Founder: "So we need two campaigns?"

Marketer: "No. We need to understand the job your product does. Not the person doing the hiring."

This is why new products fail.

We're targeting spreadsheet segments instead of human moments.

The brutal truth: Your customer isn't a demographic profile. They're a person trying to solve a problem. And until you know what that problem is, you're just guessing with fancy data. 👀

The Psychology Behind Trader Joe's 'Everything But The' Empire

Walk into any Trader Joe's. Count how many products start with "Everything But The." Last time I checked, there were seven. And that's not an accident.

Here's what kills me: Most brands try to tell you what's IN their products. Trader Joe's built a $13 billion empire telling you what's NOT.

Everything But The Bagel seasoning launched in 2017. Today it's their #1 selling spice blend. But the real genius isn't the product. It's the psychology...

I watched a customer in my local TJ's (Clarkson location) last month. She grabbed three "Everything But The" products without reading a single label. When I asked why, she said: "I already know what I'm getting. It's everything... but the thing."

That's when it hit me.

Trader Joe's cracked the code on cognitive overload. The average grocery store has 50,000 SKUs. TJ's has 4,000. But here's the kicker: They make choosing easier by subtracting, not adding.

The math tells the story:

1️⃣ Exclusion beats inclusion: Your brain processes what's missing faster than what's present. "Everything But The Bagel" instantly tells you it tastes like a bagel. "Seven Seed Seasoning Blend" tells you... nothing.

2️⃣ Reference point genius: They're not selling seasonings. They're selling familiar experiences in new formats. Your brain already knows "bagel." Now you can have that on avocado toast.

3️⃣ Permission structure: "Everything But The" literally gives you permission to put it on everything. Most seasonings sit in your spice rack. These become your default.

4️⃣ Category creation through naming: Each "Everything But The" product creates its own mental category. You're not comparing spices. You're choosing experiences.

The brutal truth: Trader Joe's didn't invent better seasonings. They invented a better way to think about seasonings.

- While competitors add complexity, TJ's subtracts it.
- While others sell ingredients, TJ's sells possibilities.
- While everyone else fights for shelf space, TJ's owns mental space.

What are you adding that you should be subtracting? 👀

Trader Joe's Everything But the Bagel seasoning blends

Demographics tell you "who" holds the wallet. 
Motivations tell you "why" it opens.

Here's what kills food brands:

Food brands spend serious budget profiling their "target consumer." Female. 25-34. Urban. $75K income. Shops at Whole Foods. But that same profile bought both $2 store-brand yogurt and $8 artisanal kefir last week.

The demographics didn't change. The motivations did.

After analyzing millions of food purchases and diving deep into consumer psychology research, we've built something that actually predicts buying behavior. Something specifically for food & beverage.

Introducing the Why People Buy Pyramid by Schaefer.

It maps the real motivations that drive every food purchase. Four levels that explain why someone picks Oatly over Silk. Why they'll pay $5 for a protein bar but balk at $3 granola.

The pyramid reveals what demographics hide:

1️⃣ 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗰 𝗡𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 (𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜𝘁 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀): Taste, convenience, nutrition, price. These are your table stakes. If you fail here, nothing else matters. But succeeding here? That just gets you in the game.

2️⃣ 𝗘𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 (𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗜𝘁 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀): This is where brands build loyalty. Nostalgia. Comfort. Indulgence. That chocolate bar that tastes like childhood. The beverage ritual that starts your day. Emotions drive repeat purchases, not nutrition labels.

3️⃣ 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 (𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗜𝘁 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀): Food as identity. The keto snacks that support your lifestyle. The plant-based milk that aligns with your values. The performance drinks that fuel your ambitions. This creates advocates, not just customers.

4️⃣ 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 (𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗜𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀): The highest level. Fair trade. Zero waste. Supporting local farmers. This is where premium pricing lives. Where movements begin. Where brands become causes and communities.

The psychology breakthrough:

Most brands think linearly. Better taste → Higher price → More sales.

But consumers think in layers. They'll pay $6 for coffee that tastes good (Basic Needs), $8 if it makes them feel sophisticated (Emotional Value), $10 if it fits their wellness journey (Personal Growth), and $12 if it supports farmers directly (Social Impact).

Same coffee. Different story. 2X the price.

We evolved this from Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and Bain's Elements of Value, but made it actually useful for food brands. Because knowing consumers want "self-actualization" doesn't help you position a yogurt brand. But knowing they want gut health (Personal Growth) wrapped in childhood comfort (Emotional Value)? Now you're speaking their language.

The brutal truth: You can't win it all. But you must know which motivations you own.

Mass brands dominate Basic Needs.
Premium brands rely on Emotional Value.
Functional brands own Personal Growth.
Mission-driven brands command Social Impact.

Where does your brand live in the pyramid? 🔺

Kosterina sells olive oil for 22x more by changing one thing: the aisle.

$1.89/oz in Whole Foods. 
$42/oz as skincare. 
Same brand.

Here's what kills me:

Every food brand is fighting over pennies in the grocery aisle. Meanwhile, Katerina (Katina) Mountanos looked at her Greek olive oil and asked: Why are we only selling this as food?

She didn't just reformulate. She repositioned.

In Whole Foods: "Premium cooking oil"
On her website's beauty section: "Ancient Greek beauty elixir"

The product didn't change. The customer did.

Food shoppers compare you to Bertolli at $8. Beauty shoppers compare you to face oil at $85. Suddenly $42 feels reasonable.

The math is embarrassing:
- Food margins: 30-40%
- Beauty margins: 70-80%

Kosterina is building an olive oil empire by refusing to stay in their lane. While competitors fought for grocery shelf space, they're building a beauty empire with olive oil.

The brutal truth: Your biggest competitor isn't who makes a similar product. It's the mental category where customers file you away.

Food is a commodity. Beauty is an investment.

What category could change your future?

HALF A MILLION LinkedIn members engaged with my buyer psychology posts in the last six weeks. 500,000+ people. All asking the same question: "Why didn't anyone teach us this before?" Here's what kills me: I started sharing these insights because brands kept burning millions on the same mistakes. Products nobody wanted. Messages nobody heard. I figured a few CMOs might find it useful. Instead, I'm getting DMs from founders and BIG Food brand managers, strategists, and insights teams. All hungry for one thing: understanding why humans actually make choices. People want truth over tactics. Psychology over platitudes. To everyone who's been part of this conversation: 

Thank you. Keep challenging the "we know our customers" excuse. Keep putting buyer psychology at the center of everything you build. Because when half a million people care about understanding customers better,  we can finally change how business gets done. 🙏

Friday's Finest 💛
- LinkedIn is loaded with incredible people.
- Every Friday, I'm highlighting one of them.

Today I'd love to introduce you to Sidnee Schaefer.

Most people know Sidnee is my business partner at Schaefer. What they don't know is that she's been calling me out for over 10 years. And thank goodness for that.

Sidnee sees what others miss.

While I'm ranting about demographics being useless, she's already three steps ahead, mapping out exactly how a brand's positioning is killing their growth. She'll spot a packaging problem from across a grocery store. She'll hear one customer comment and know exactly why an ad campaign isn't working.

Her superpower is brutal honesty wrapped in kindness.

I've watched her tell a founder their $2M startup baby was positioned completely wrong. But she does it in a way that makes them grateful, not defensive. She'll tear apart your strategy, then rebuild it with you, better than before.

What makes Sidnee different:
- She's worked with everyone from startups to Fortune 500s
- She's seen every mistake (and made a few herself)
- She actually cares if your brand succeeds

But here's what really matters:

In an industry full of talkers, Sidnee is a doer. She's in the trenches with our clients, obsessing over their success like it's her own business. Because to her, it is.

We've built Schaefer together on a simple belief: "Great products deserve to work with great partners who speak simply and make sense." 

Sidnee lives this every single day.

She's brilliant. She's relentless. She's the partner everyone wishes they had.

She's today's Friday's Finest.
Give her a follow.
.
.
p.s. Yes, she's probably reading this and rolling her eyes. That's very on-brand.

The $1.88 apple that broke every rule of commodity pricing.

Walk into any grocery store. Head to the produce section. Watch someone pick up a Honeycrisp apple at $1.88 per pound when Galas sit right there at $1.26.

They don't even hesitate.

That's why the Honeycrisp is nicknamed by the industry, the "Moneycrisp."

Here's what kills me:

We've been taught that commodities compete on price. Lower cost wins. Apples are apples, right?

Wrong.

The Honeycrisp didn't just change apple farming. It rewired how consumers value fruit.

The psychology is fascinating:

1️⃣ 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆: For decades, apples competed on color and shelf life. Red Delicious looked perfect. Lasted forever. Tasted like sugary cardboard. (Seriously, the Red Delicious has never been delicious). Honeycrisp said forget all that – we're selling the sound. That explosive crunch triggers something primal. Your brain literally pays attention differently when food makes noise.

2️⃣ 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: Honeycrisps are agricultural nightmares. They bruise if you look at them wrong. Grow too dense. Need hand-picking. Farmers call them "divas." But here's the twist – consumers are willing to pay more for the superior product. What makes it difficult is what makes it desirable. It's as if Red Delicious apples were engineered for surviving the supply chain process, rather than for consumption. Just think about that tough skin!

3️⃣ 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻: You don't remember the price of your last Honeycrisp. You remember the experience. That first bite. The juice. The flavor. The crunch. When experience dominates memory, price becomes secondary. Gala might be cheaper, but it doesn't create moments.

The math tells the story:

Production costs for Honeycrisps? slightly higher.
Retail price premium? ~50% higher.
Consumer willingness to pay? Even higher.

They turned farming headaches into pricing power.

But here's where it gets really interesting:

The success of Honeycrisp spawned Cosmic Crisp. Production up 3,391% in five years. At premium prices. Same playbook: memorable name, singular focus on texture, scarcity narrative.

The entire apple category is restructuring around these new apple varieties.

The brutal truth: Being a commodity is a choice, not a sentence.

Honeycrisp proved you can charge luxury prices for something that literally grows on trees. You just need to stop thinking like a commodity and start thinking like a brand.

What "crunch" is hiding in your commodity category? 🍎


Source: Chartr

Every failed product launch has the same origin story: "We know our customers."

I had a revealing conversation last week. A brand told me they decided against buyer psychology work. Not because they went with someone else.

Because they decided not to do it at all.

That's when it hit me: Our competition isn't other consultants. It's the belief that you can succeed without understanding your customers.

Here's what kills me:

Every brand that skips buyer research thinks they're saving time and money. It's always a "we know it's important and will do it later." Meanwhile, they're burning both on products nobody asked for, messages nobody hears, and campaigns that convert nobody.

I watched a snack brand spend $2M launching a "healthier" version because "that's what consumers want." Six months later: discontinued. Turns out their customers didn't want healthier. They wanted permission to enjoy the original without guilt.

$2M to learn what $20K in research would've revealed.

The excuses are always the same:
- "We don't have time" (but you have time to fail?)
- "Budget's too tight" (tighter than a failed launch?)
- "We know our customers" (then why aren't they buying?)

Here's the truth:

You can do buyer psychology work on ANY timeline and budget:
- Got a week? Call 10 customers. Ask what they'd replace you with.
- Got $500? Run a survey. Find out what job you're really doing.
- Got an afternoon? Read your reviews. The answers are hiding in plain sight.

If you've got more time -- do it right.

The math is brutal:

Cost of basic buyer research: less than you think
Cost of launching without it: Your job

Because here's what really happens:

Brands that skip buyer psychology don't make bad products. They make invisible ones. Products that solve problems nobody has. Messages that answer questions nobody's asking.

What's your excuse for not knowing your customer? 👀

Friday's Finest 💛
- LinkedIn is loaded with incredible people.
- Every Friday, I'm highlighting one of them.

Today I'd love to introduce you to Katie Lee.

I'm a serious customer of her local restaurants (Katie's Pizza & Pasta) and my favorite meal is their fried artichokes, burrata with huckleberry and bread, and black spaghetti with seafood. Pizzas are incredible too. But everything at Katie's is delicious, and it starts with Katie.

Katie's built an empire.
- Restaurants (4)
- Frozen Food ($100m)

Her background, though, isn't typical.

No ivy league education, post-graduate work in finance or consulting, or food pedigree. Instead, she dropped out of high school, dealt with homelessness, and found success while living in a halfway house for 6 months while dealing with sobriety.

Katie's story is about overcoming struggle.

And her relentless pursuit of ingredients and food as culture. Living in Italy she worked at restaurants and saw what could happen when you brought in the best ingredients and didn't compromise on quality and flavor.

When the opportunity came during covid to turn her restaurant success into retail success... she didn't compromise there either. Everyone wanted her to go find a co-packer, substitute ingredients, and automate the process. "That's how you scale frozen food."

But, Katie decided to stay with hand-stretched, wood-fired, burrata and extra virgin olive oil quality standards. Now, she's selling those pizza's in Walmart, Target, and other locations.

Target gave her an order for 400,000 pizzas in 90-days. Zero compromises.

And they did it.

Katie's a leader.
She's driving Katie's Pizza & Pasta
Her perspective is fresh.
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This is crushing your success... 😭

Ignoring 'boomers' and retirees.
They're a powerful demographic... most brands ignore.

Dig in and find what they care about.
In fact, rather than building a 'gen z' brand I'd be building brands that attach to the motivations and behaviors of the current fixed income generation.

Sidnee crushes it with this analysis of what we are seeing over and over again with brands.

Founding Partner @ Schaefer | Buyer Psychology for Food and Beverage

View Sidnee Schaefer 🍫🥤’s profile

"Fixed income" is the biggest lie in premium food marketing.

We see 55+ retirees and think: limited budget, coupon clippers, price sensitive. Meanwhile, they're sitting on 40 years of accumulated wealth and spending it exactly how they want.

The food industry's obsession with millennials is making them miss the most valuable customers in the market.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆:
• Americans 55+ control 70% of disposable income in the U.S.
• Average net worth: 3x that of households under 35
• Discretionary spending on food: Higher per capita than any other age group
• Brand loyalty: Once they find what they love, they stick for decades

They're not pinching pennies. They're investing in daily pleasures.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲'𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿:

• 𝗧𝗵𝗲 "𝗳𝗶𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲" 𝗺𝘆𝘁𝗵. Yes, their monthly income is predictable. But so are their expenses. No mortgage. Kids through college. That "fixed" income is mostly discretionary. And they're spending it on whatever makes Tuesday feel special.

• 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆-𝗼𝗳-𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘂𝘀. They're not buying time-savers. They have time. They're buying joy-makers. That $8 artisanal cheese isn't an indulgence. It's an investment in making lunch worth looking forward to.

• 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗹𝘁𝘆. Millennials chase trends. Retirees build rituals. Find your way into their routine and you've got a customer for life. Literally. They're not switching brands at 75.

They don't want senior discounts. They want premium experiences.
They don't need cheaper versions. They want better stories.
They're not worried about saving money. They're focused on savoring life.

While everyone fights over price-sensitive millennials juggling student loans and mortgages, retirees are quietly outspending them on premium everything.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻:

Fixed income doesn't mean fixed spending.

It means predictable cash flow with fewer obligations. That's not a limitation. That's liberation.

And liberated customers with 40 years of savings? They're not your budget buyers.

They're your best buyers. If you're smart enough to see them.

You went to your local grocery store to pick up a few items. You left with $147 worth of stuff you didn't plan to buy. Sound familiar? You just experienced the Gruen Effect or Gruen Transfer in action.

Victor Gruen designed the first modern shopping mall, believing stores should "engage and guide" shoppers and that "good design equaled good profits." What he created was a psychological trap that makes you spend more. 

The most extreme version of this is IKEA...
But grocery stores have perfected it as well.

Here's what gets me: 

We think we're in control when we shop. We're not. Every single element is engineered to break down your defenses.

Walk into any grocery store. What's the first thing you see? Flowers. Then produce. All those vibrant colors, fresh scents, and premium displays. It's not about convenience. It's about designed disorientation.

Example: Walmart uses a "race track" aisle that goes around the entire store so you can get anywhere quickly, but the moment you step off the "race track," you're in a maze of clothes, produce, or baked goods.

The psychology is brilliant:

1) Sensory overload resets your brain: That produce section isn't organized for efficiency. It's a maze of colors, textures, and aromas designed to slow you down. When your brain switches from task mode ("get milk") to exploration mode ("ooh, those strawberries look good"), your shopping list becomes a suggestion. 

2) Strategic product placement hijacks decisions: Notice how milk is always in the back? You have to walk past 49 end caps of Oreos, Doritos, and Coca-Cola to get there. Each one positioned at the exact angle to catch your peripheral vision. By the time you reach the dairy, your cart's already half full.

3) The checkout gauntlet seals the deal: Surrounded by candy, magazines, and energy drinks while you wait. Your willpower is depleted. Your brain is tired. That Snickers bar suddenly seems reasonable. After all, you already spent $100. What's another $2?

4) Category confusion creates opportunity: Why is the peanut butter next to jelly but nowhere near bread? Because separated categories force exploration. More wandering = more impulse buys. Trader Joe's takes this further with their "treasure hunt" layout. Nothing is where you expect it.

The brutal truth: Over 50% of grocery purchases are unplanned.

That's not poor self-control. That's excellent store design.

The most successful food brands don't just make good products. They understand the Gruen Effect and position accordingly. That's why Pepsi pays millions for end-cap displays. Why Frito-Lay dominates eye-level shelving. Why Snickers live at every checkout.

They're not selling snacks. They're selling interrupted intentions.

I've just wrapped up my most revealing interview yet on the DTC podcast.

60 minutes of pure buyer psychology. Real examples. Zero fluff.

We dove deep into 'Why People Buy' the framework that has helped hundreds of food & beverage brands finally understand what drives purchase decisions.

Here's what kills me:

Most brands still think demographics = insights. They're targeting "health-conscious millennials" instead of understanding the actual moment someone reaches for their product.

YouTube: https://lnkd.in/dr4xjZVq
Spotify: https://lnkd.in/dY5NAF4u
Apple: https://lnkd.in/dmS6t6A2

In this interview, I break down:
- What's 'Why People Buy'
- Sam's Club to Walmart: Studying Real Buyer Behavior
- Motivations vs. Demographics 🔥
- Oreo: How to Own a Category 🔥🔥
- Brand Psychology, Packaging, and Subconscious Triggers
- What Product-Market Fit Actually Looks Like 🔥🔥🔥
- Tell Their Story, Not Yours
- How to Actually Get Insight (Without a $150K Research Budget) 🔥

The brutal truth: Every purchase has a job to be done. And until you understand that job, you're just guessing.

If you've been following my posts on buyer psychology, this interview connects all the dots. If you're new here, it's your crash course in how humans actually make choices.

Perfect listen for your commute, workout, or next time you're wandering the grocery aisles wondering why you bought $147 worth of stuff you didn't plan on.

Thanks DTC Newsletter and Eric Dyck for a fun time and great questions.

The psychology behind the greatest cookie comeback story never told.

Picture this: Two chocolate sandwich cookies sit side by side. One commands 90% of the market. The other barely clings to existence on Amazon. Yet here's the twist that would make any marketer's head spin... the underdog came first.

This is the story of Hydrox and Oreo, and it's a masterclass in how psychology, not product superiority, determines market dominance.

In 1908, Sunshine Biscuits launched Hydrox... America's first chocolate sandwich cookie. The name combined hydrogen and oxygen to evoke purity and cleanliness. Four years later, Nabisco brazenly copied the concept and called it Oreo.

Today, Oreo generates $3.1 billion annually. Hydrox? It's fighting for shelf space at Cracker Barrel.

What happened here isn't about taste. Blind taste tests consistently show people prefer Hydrox's more chocolatey cookie and less sweet filling. This is about the psychology of perception, and it's a lesson every brand needs to understand.

Let's start with the elephant in the room. "Hydrox" might have meant purity in 1908, but to modern ears, it sounds like something you'd find under the kitchen sink.

Meanwhile, "Oreo" rolls off the tongue. It's playful, memorable, and it sounds like food.

1️⃣  𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲: Your brand name creates an instant emotional response. Hydrox triggers associations with chemicals and cleaning products. Oreo triggers... nothing specific, which lets the product create its own associations.

2️⃣  𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲: Price signals quality. Oreo raised its prices to become the premium option. When consumers see a higher price, their brains automatically assign higher value, even when the products are nearly identical. Making Hydrox the "cheap knockoff."

3️⃣  𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲: Defensive positioning can make you look weak. Hydrox kept talking about impostors and that they were the original. When you constantly remind people you were first, they wonder why you have to keep saying it. Meanwhile, Oreo is focused on fun: "Twist, Lick, Dunk."

4️⃣  𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲: Availability bias is real. If consumers see Oreo 10x more often than Hydrox, Oreo becomes the "normal" choice. Hydrox becomes the weird alternative they've never heard of.

5️⃣  𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲: Nostalgia without innovation equals stagnation. Consumers don't care who was first – they care who's best right now. Think Double Stuf, limited editions, brand collabs, etc.

Being first means nothing if you can't own minds.
Being better means nothing if you can't communicate value.
Being original means nothing if you sound like toilet bowl cleaner.

The brutal truth: In business, the best product rarely wins. The best-positioned product does. And if your brand name makes people think of hydrogen peroxide instead of happiness, you've already lost the war.

If there's no line item in your budget for customer conversations, that's a red flag. 🚩

Here's what kills me:

We'll drop $100K on product. But won't spend $500 on actual conversations with the people who are supposed to buy these products.

On the DTC Podcast with Eric Dyck I recently said: "Good research doesn't start at $150K. It starts with asking good questions – like 'If this product disappeared, what would you do?' – then keep digging deeper from there."

That one question reveals more than any demographic study.

Start small:
• 10 customer calls
• One simple question
• Actually listen

The brutal truth: The best insights cost time, not money. And if you're not budgeting for customer conversations, you're just guessing.

Mayo vs Miracle Whip. 

Ask someone if they prefer mayo or Miracle Whip. Watch how fast it gets personal.

I grew up in a miracle whip household.

Miracle Whip's story started in 1933 at The Chicago World's Fair. While America was drowning in the Great Depression, Kraft unveiled a spread that would split families for generations. They called it Miracle Whip, and it wasn't mayonnaise.

Here's what kills me: 

Miracle Whip is technically "salad dressing."
But that technicality created a phenomenon.

Kraft developed Miracle Whip as the cheaper alternative when families couldn't afford real mayo. They added sugar, spices, and that secret tangy zip. It was supposed to be the substitute you settled for.

Instead, something unexpected happened. People didn't just tolerate it. They preferred it.

The psychology is fascinating:

1️⃣ 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆: Depression-era kids grew up with Miracle Whip as their only option. When they could finally afford mayo, they stuck with what mom made. Poverty food became comfort food.

2️⃣ 𝗦𝘄𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹: While mayo plays it safe with eggs and oil, Miracle Whip went bold. That sweetness hits different dopamine receptors. It's not better or worse. It's distinctly itself.

3️⃣ 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽: This isn't a preference. It's a declaration of identity. You're either Team Mayo or Team Miracle Whip. There's no middle ground.

4️⃣ 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝘀: Whatever your parent put on your sandwiches becomes your baseline for "right." Everything else tastes wrong. Kraft accidentally created generational brand loyalty through economic hardship.

The brutal truth: Miracle Whip succeeded by failing to be mayonnaise. 

It carved out its own category. Created its own tribe. Turned a limitation (less oil) into differentiation (more flavor).

Today, the Miracle Whip vs. Mayo battle rages in every grocery store. Families argue. Relationships end. All over a spread that legally can't be what it was trying to replace.

Sometimes the best products aren't the ones that nail the brief. They're the ones that miss it so spectacularly they create their own category.

What's your household?
Mayo or Miracle Whip?

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