Podcast Summary: Marketing Operators – Episode 70 Title: Acquisition Offers That Drive Retention: What’s Working - and Why Testing Matters
Release Date: July 29, 2025
Hosts: Connor Rowland, Cody Plofker, Connor MacDonald

1. Introduction

In Episode 70 of Marketing Operators, hosts Connor Rowland, Cody Plofker, and Connor MacDonald delve into the effectiveness of various acquisition offers in driving customer retention. The discussion centers around innovative strategies beyond traditional discount codes, insights from the House Meta Report, and practical tests that demonstrate the impact of these strategies.

2. Acquisition Offers and Incremental Retention

a. The Challenge with Default Popups

Connor Rowland initiates the discussion by highlighting the often-overlooked complexity of optimizing popup offers in e-commerce. He states, “Testing pop ups is surprisingly hard. It is such an influential touch point of the experience and like, I don't think people are thinking all that critically about it” (00:15).

Cody Plofker echoes this sentiment, expressing curiosity about the margin dilution caused by default discount popups. He remarks, “I've wondered how much margin has been diluted in e-commerce just by people having like default discounts on their pop up” (00:09).

b. Cash Back vs. Discount Codes

The conversation shifts to Connor Rowland’s experience with implementing cash back offers instead of traditional discount codes in popups. He shares compelling data from their tests:

• Option Selection: “41% of people who opted in selected cash back and then 20% selected credit back. So 38% of people didn't select anything” (05:06).
• Margin Efficiency: By offering cash back, they achieved a “cash equivalent was basically nine and a half percent, which is below that 10% discount code and we create a lot of additional value.” (05:06).
• Enhanced Engagement: The team saw a “39% increase in email engagement rate” (07:58) and improved email and SMS capture rates by 40% and 44%, respectively (05:06).
• Retention Improvement: Notably, they observed a “42% increase in repeat orders by people who opt into cashback” (09:41).

Cody adds, “My guess is 95% of brands have not tested their pop ups and actually tested offers” (12:29), emphasizing the untapped potential in optimizing popup offers.

c. Measuring Effectiveness

The hosts discuss the complexities of accurately measuring the impact of different offers. Connor Rowland explains their testing methodology:

“We did split test the pop ups. So we had two flows set up, we had two email flows set up, we had two SMS flows set up and then we split the traffic evenly” (17:37).

Cody highlights the importance of holistic testing beyond just opt-in rates, stressing the need to evaluate conversion rates and overall funnel performance.

3. Insights from the House Meta Report

a. Overview of the Report

The discussion transitions to the House Meta Report, which analyzes Meta (formerly Facebook) campaign performance. The report focuses on Advantage Plus (ASC) versus manual campaign strategies through 100 high-impact experiments.

b. Key Findings

• Overall Effectiveness: “Meta works. It’s like a 19% lift across all of these high impact studies” (43:33).
• ASC vs. Manual Campaigns: Initially, Advantage Plus outperformed manual campaigns by “9% on an incremental ROAS basis” (43:33). However, over extended periods, manual campaigns outperformed ASC by “12%” (43:33).
• Mid-Funnel Optimization: Campaigns optimized for mid-funnel events (e.g., view content, add to cart) saw a “121% lift” (43:33) compared to lower funnel purchase-optimized campaigns. These mid-funnel campaigns also demonstrated a longer post-test window lift of “44% versus 26%” (43:33).

c. Actionable Insights

Cody interprets these findings, noting that while ASC provides initial boosts, manual campaigns may offer better long-term performance. He advises marketers to:

• Diversify Campaign Strategies: Incorporate mid-funnel optimizations to capture a broader audience and drive incremental returns.
• Focus on Creative and Offers: Since optimization events alone don’t guarantee incremental reach, enhancing creative diversity and offer attractiveness is crucial.
• Leverage Incrementality Testing: Use tools like Prescient for more accurate measurement, especially when scaling budgets for peak seasons like Q4.

4. Bundle Builder Test

a. Implementation and Strategy

Connor Rowland shares their innovative approach to using a bundle builder within the acquisition funnel:

“We inserted these breaks in some of our collection pages where we have this little banner that's like, you know, build your own bundle, save up to X percent” (68:02).

b. Test Results

The test compared two variants over approximately 5,000 conversions:

• Conversion Rate Increase: “A 2.3% lift in conversion rate” (71:01).
• Average Order Value (AOV): “A 5.25% lift in AOV” (71:01).
• Revenue Per User: “A 6.7% to 7.7% lift in revenue per user” (71:01).

These improvements translated to significant revenue gains through paid media channels, validating the effectiveness of strategic bundle offering.

c. Future Plans

Building on the success, the team plans to:

• Optimize Offer Placement: Testing the bundle builder CTA further up the funnel.
• Enhance User Experience: Streamline the bundle builder to reduce complexity and better align with diverse customer preferences.

5. Conclusion

The episode wraps up with the hosts reiterating the importance of testing and optimizing acquisition offers to drive retention and maximize revenue. They emphasize moving beyond standard discount strategies to explore innovative offers like cash back and bundle builders, supported by data-driven insights from tools and reports like the House Meta Report.

Notable Quote: Cody Plofker encapsulates the episode's essence: “Sometimes it can be a GWP I guess it could be a free shipping, you know, code if you're thinking, if you're doing it correctly. I think Cashback is another interesting one. So we haven't really tested it but it's definitely stuff we've thought about.” (26:56)

Key Takeaways

• Innovative Acquisition Offers: Moving beyond default discount codes to offer cash back and customizable bundles can lead to higher retention and increased revenue.
• Holistic Testing: Evaluate offers not just on opt-in rates but throughout the entire customer funnel, including conversion and retention metrics.
• Meta Campaign Strategies: While Advantage Plus offers initial performance boosts, manual campaigns may provide better long-term incremental returns. Mid-funnel optimizations can enhance overall campaign effectiveness.
• Strategic Bundle Building: Implementing a bundle builder within the acquisition funnel can significantly lift conversion rates, AOV, and revenue per user.

For those interested in further details, consider listening to the full episode of Marketing Operators.

Note: Times in brackets refer to the transcript timestamps for reference.