Growth & Strategy
Personas
Ecommerce
Time to ROI
Medium-term (3-6 months)
Six months ago, I got a frantic call from an e-commerce client. Facebook had just changed their algorithm, and their main traffic source—responsible for 80% of their revenue—had dropped by 60% overnight. Sound familiar?
This isn't uncommon. Most e-commerce businesses are essentially renting their customer base from Facebook, Google, or Amazon. One policy change, one algorithm update, one suspended account, and their entire business model crumbles.
But here's what I learned after helping this client rebuild their distribution strategy: the most resilient e-commerce businesses don't just diversify their channels—they build antifragile distribution systems that actually get stronger when individual channels fail.
In this playbook, you'll discover:
Why traditional "multi-channel" advice is actually dangerous
The hidden attribution lies that are costing you millions
How to build compound distribution effects across channels
The exact 3-month framework I used to 10x organic traffic
Real metrics from transitioning Facebook-dependent stores to omnichannel growth
This isn't theory. This comes from hands-on work rebuilding distribution for e-commerce stores with 1000+ product catalogs. Ready to build distribution that thrives on chaos?
Industry Reality
What the E-commerce World Gets Wrong About Distribution
Walk into any e-commerce conference, and you'll hear the same advice repeated like gospel:
"Diversify your marketing channels." Consultants will tell you to test Facebook, Google, Pinterest, TikTok, influencer marketing, email, SMS, and anything else that moves. The theory sounds logical: spread your risk across multiple channels.
Here's what they typically recommend:
Test Everything Fast: Run small experiments across 8-10 channels to find what works
Double Down on Winners: Put 80% of your budget into your best-performing channels
Optimize for Attribution: Use UTM parameters and pixel tracking to identify your "best" traffic sources
Scale What Works: Keep increasing spend on channels with the highest ROAS
Cut What Doesn't: Eliminate any channel that doesn't show immediate profitability
This approach exists because it's easy to measure and report. Agencies love it because they can show clear ROI attribution. Founders love it because it feels like scientific optimization.
But here's the problem: This "scientific" approach ignores the reality of how customers actually discover and buy products. Modern customer journeys are messy, non-linear, and span multiple touchpoints across weeks or months.
When you optimize for short-term attribution, you're essentially training your business to be completely dependent on the whims of platform algorithms. You become what I call "channel hostage"—profitable only as long as your primary channel stays stable and affordable.
The moment that channel gets disrupted (and it always does), your entire growth engine collapses. This isn't just an e-commerce problem—SaaS companies face the same distribution fragility.
Consider me as your business complice.
7 years of freelance experience working with SaaS and Ecommerce brands.
This reality hit home hard when I started working with an e-commerce client who seemed to have everything figured out. They were running a profitable Shopify store selling outdoor gear, pulling in consistent revenue with a 2.5 ROAS on Facebook Ads.
On paper, things looked solid. Monthly revenue was predictable, the ads were converting, and the business was growing. But when I dug into their analytics, I discovered something alarming: 87% of their traffic came from a single source—Facebook.
The Hidden Vulnerability:
This wasn't immediately obvious because their Facebook campaigns were working. But I've seen this story too many times: businesses that look healthy until their primary channel gets disrupted. It could be iOS updates affecting pixel tracking, rising ad costs during Q4, increased competition, or simply algorithm changes favoring different content types.
The Real Challenge:
The client had over 1,000 SKUs in their catalog—hiking boots, camping gear, outdoor clothing. Their product range was actually their competitive advantage, but it was also their Facebook Ads weakness. Complex catalogs with diverse product lines don't translate well to the "quick decision" environment of social media advertising.
People browsing Facebook want instant gratification. But someone shopping for hiking boots needs time to compare features, read reviews, check sizing, and consider use cases. The platform mismatch was creating artificial constraints on their growth.
The Attribution Illusion:
When I analyzed their customer journey data, I found that most "Facebook conversions" actually involved multiple touchpoints. Customers would see an ad, visit the site, leave, search Google for reviews, check competitors, get retargeted, and finally convert days later. Facebook was getting credit for the final click, but the real work was happening across multiple channels.
This is what I call the "dark funnel"—the invisible customer journey that attribution tools can't track. Most businesses optimize for what they can measure, not what actually drives conversions.
I knew we needed to build a distribution system that would work with their catalog complexity, not against it. The solution required completely rethinking how e-commerce distribution actually works.
Here's my playbook
What I ended up doing and the results.
Instead of fighting the complexity of their customer journey, I decided to embrace it. We built what I call an "antifragile distribution system"—one that gets stronger when individual channels fail because it's designed around compound effects rather than isolated performance.
Phase 1: Foundation - Website as Distribution Infrastructure (Month 1)
Most e-commerce sites are built like digital storefronts—designed to convert visitors who already know what they want. But I restructured their site as distribution infrastructure, creating multiple entry points for discovery.
We implemented:
SEO-First Architecture: Every product category became a potential landing page, optimized for discovery searches rather than just conversion
Long-Tail Product Pages: Instead of generic "hiking boots," we created pages targeting "waterproof hiking boots under €200" and similar specific searches
Content Hub Structure: Built buying guides, comparison content, and educational resources that could rank independently
Internal Linking System: Created pathways between discovery content and product pages to capture visitors at different journey stages
Phase 2: Channel Physics - Understanding Platform Strengths (Month 2)
Instead of testing channels randomly, we mapped each channel's natural physics against their product catalog:
SEO (Primary Focus): Perfect for their complex catalog because people actively search for specific outdoor gear with high purchase intent. Search volume for "waterproof hiking boots" doesn't fluctuate with algorithm changes.
Pinterest (Secondary): Visual discovery platform ideal for outdoor lifestyle content. People pin camping setups and hiking outfits, creating natural product discovery moments.
Email (Retention Engine): Used Facebook traffic to build email lists for product education and seasonal campaigns rather than direct conversion.
Facebook (Remarketing Only): Shifted from cold acquisition to warm audience nurturing, where the platform performs much better.
Phase 3: Compound Effects - Building Channel Synergy (Month 3)
The breakthrough came when we stopped optimizing channels individually and started building compound effects:
The Content Multiplier: Every piece of SEO content became Pinterest pins, email newsletter content, and social media posts. One buying guide for "winter camping gear" generated traffic across 4 different channels.
The Attribution Embrace: Instead of fighting the dark funnel, we optimized for it. We knew Facebook would claim credit for conversions driven by SEO discovery, so we designed the customer journey to maximize this effect.
The Inventory Advantage: We turned their large catalog from a Facebook weakness into an SEO strength. While competitors focused on trending products, we ranked for hundreds of long-tail searches across their entire inventory.
The Seasonal Amplification: Built content and optimization around seasonal search patterns ("winter hiking gear" in November, "summer camping equipment" in March) to capture demand cycles naturally.
This wasn't about "testing and optimizing" individual channels. It was about building a system where each channel amplified the others, creating resilience through interdependence rather than isolation.
Channel Physics
Understanding each platform's natural strengths instead of forcing your products into mismatched environments
Content Multiplier
One piece of content becoming traffic drivers across 4+ channels simultaneously through strategic repurposing
Dark Funnel
Embracing attribution complexity rather than fighting it - optimizing for how customers actually buy
Seasonal Amplification
Building content around natural demand cycles to capture predictable traffic patterns year-round
The transformation took exactly 3 months to show meaningful results, but the long-term impact was dramatic:
Traffic Distribution Shift:
Month 1: 87% Facebook, 13% Other
Month 6: 35% SEO, 25% Facebook, 20% Pinterest, 20% Email/Direct
Organic Growth:
Organic traffic increased by 340% in 6 months, with the majority coming from long-tail product searches. More importantly, these visitors had much higher purchase intent than social media traffic.
Attribution Reality:
Facebook's reported ROAS jumped from 2.5 to 8.9, but this was largely due to claiming credit for SEO-driven discoveries. We didn't care about the attribution lie because revenue was growing across all channels.
Resilience Test:
When Facebook's Q4 ad costs increased by 40%, overall revenue only dropped by 8%—compared to their previous year's 35% revenue drop during the same period.
Unexpected Benefits:
The content strategy attracted wholesale inquiries from retailers who found them through SEO, opening an entirely new revenue stream we hadn't planned for.
The real victory wasn't the growth metrics—it was building a business that could survive and thrive regardless of what happened to any individual marketing channel.
What I've learned and the mistakes I've made.
Sharing so you don't make them.
Product-Channel Fit Trumps Channel Performance: A mediocre channel that matches your product's complexity will outperform a "high-performing" channel that forces quick decisions on complex purchases.
Attribution is a Vanity Metric: Stop trying to perfectly track the customer journey. Focus on creating multiple touchpoints that reinforce each other, regardless of which one gets "credit."
Catalog Complexity is an SEO Superpower: Large product catalogs that hurt social media performance become massive advantages for long-tail SEO dominance.
Content Should Multiply, Not Isolate: Every piece of content should work across multiple channels simultaneously. If your blog post only drives SEO traffic, you're thinking too small.
Embrace the Dark Funnel: Customer journeys are messy and non-linear. Build systems that work with this reality rather than fighting it with complex attribution models.
Seasonal Patterns Beat Trending Content: Predictable seasonal demand cycles are more valuable than viral moments. "Winter camping gear" searches happen every November—plan for it.
Distribution Takes Time, Dependencies Don't: Building real distribution takes 3-6 months minimum. Platform dependencies can be broken overnight. Plan accordingly.
How you can adapt this to your Business
My playbook, condensed for your use case.
For your SaaS / Startup
For SaaS companies implementing targeted distribution:
Focus on educational content that demonstrates expertise over time
Build SEO around comparison and "alternative" searches
Use LinkedIn for relationship building, not direct conversion
Create integration partnerships as distribution channels
For your Ecommerce store
For e-commerce stores building antifragile distribution:
Start with SEO foundation for your existing product catalog
Use visual platforms like Pinterest for lifestyle discovery
Build email lists from all traffic sources for retention
Embrace seasonal content cycles for predictable traffic