Analyzing Customer Behavior To Improve Marketing ROI

I just finished reading Flywheel's "The Big Shift" report on redefining ROI with Return on Consumer, and it crystallized something I've been thinking about for months. Here are my key takeaways and what they mean for Amazon advertisers. While ROAS has served us well for immediate conversion optimization, it falls short in identifying and nurturing long-term customer relationships. What's exciting about Amazon's canvas is the quality of identity resolution we can achieve. When customers interact with ads and make purchases, we can connect those touchpoints with much higher confidence than other platforms. This isn't just about tracking sales – it's about understanding the complete customer journey. Amazon Marketing Cloud: A Bridge to the Future The recent expansion of AMC's lookback window to five years is more than just a feature update. It represents a fundamental shift in how brands can understand and activate their customer data. This unprecedented access to purchase history, combined with privacy-safe behavioral insights, allows brands to: • Measure true customer lifetime value • Identify high-potential audience segments • Optimize point of market entry (POME) • Drive sustainable growth through data-driven decisions Beyond Last-Touch Attribution One of the most common conversations I have with advertisers centers around breaking free from last-touch attribution. The reality is that customer journeys are complex and non-linear. With AMC, brands can now see how different touchpoints – from Sponsored Products to Streaming TV – work together to drive both immediate sales and long-term customer value. Real-World Impact The report illustrates this perfectly: a consumer might enter a brand's portfolio with hand soap one year, then purchase detergent and dryer sheets the next year, followed by air fresheners and storage products in the third year. This insight, only possible through long-term customer journey analysis, completely transforms how we should think about acquisition strategy and budget allocation. Looking Ahead • The future belongs to brands that can effectively: • Verticalize their ROI approach within Amazon's canvas • Focus on customer lifetime value rather than individual transactions • Use behavioral signals to fuel sustainable growth • Balance immediate performance with long-term customer value The Question for Advertisers The shift to ROC isn't just about new metrics – it's about fundamentally rethinking how we measure success. Are you still optimizing for short-term ROAS, or are you building for sustainable customer lifetime value? Want to learn more? Read the report: https://lnkd.in/gd2DNBfT Like to listen? Check out the podcast: https://lnkd.in/gPzvS7ci How is your organization adapting to this evolution in measurement and optimization?

I used to think I was measuring customer loyalty the right way. Every quarter, I’d report out our NPS score, and every quarter, I’d get the same pushback from leadership: “If our NPS is so high, why are sales down?” “If customers love us, why is churn up?” And honestly? I didn’t have a good answer. I felt dejected as I could feel my credibility and social capital with the execs slip away. I was stuck in the CX trap of measuring advocacy, not behavior. NPS told me customers said they’d recommend us—but it told me nothing about whether they’d actually buy from us again. The lightbulb moment came when I stopped chasing how much customers liked us and started tracking how much they actually spent. That’s when I realized: Loyalty isn’t a feeling. It’s a behavior. So, I pivoted. Instead of leading with NPS, I built our CX strategy around three core metrics that actually predict revenue: 🔺 Likelihood to Purchase Again (Intent) – Are they signaling they’ll come back? 🔺 Repeat Purchase Rate (Behavioral) – Are they actually returning? 🔺 Time to Repeat Purchase (Behavioral) – How long does it take? And guess what happened? 💡 Our CX efforts finally had credibility in the boardroom. When we improved post-purchase experience, I could prove it led to faster repeat purchases. 💡 Marketing and Finance finally saw CX as a growth lever. Instead of reporting on ‘customer happiness,’ I was driving revenue conversations. 💡 We made better investments. Instead of obsessing over ‘improving NPS,’ we focused on shortening the time to second purchase—and sales shot up. The reality is: NPS won’t save you when revenue is down. If you want to be taken seriously as a CX leader, you have to connect the dots between emotion, intent, and action. It’s time to stop measuring how much customers like you and start measuring how much they buy from you. If you’ve had this realization too, let’s talk. Let’s get your CX unf*cked.

Ever wondered exactly how your customers interact with your campaigns? Or how different ad formats work together to drive conversions? With the new Conversion Path Report (currently in beta), you’re about to get that clarity. This report breaks down the customer journey step-by-step. For example: 👉 Display (Sponsored Brands) > Sponsored Products > Purchase For the first time, brands can see: ▪ What percentage of sales come from specific ad paths ▪ New-to-brand sales, showing how many first-time customers each path brings in Now imagine this: A customer’s journey starts with a Display ad, moves to Sponsored Products, and ends with a purchase. The Conversion Path Report doesn’t just track this—it helps you: ➤ Identify which campaign types are driving the most influence ➤ Spot weak links in your ad strategy ➤ Shift resources to the paths delivering the best ROI Here’s how to put it to work: 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗶𝘅 𝗜𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘀 → Analyze paths with low purchases and compare spend for those campaign types. Then: - Redirect resources to better-performing paths. - Experiment with restructuring weaker campaigns. 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 → Calculate the percentage of repeat customers within each path. → Double down on campaigns that retarget loyal customers to maximize repeat revenue. 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 (𝗟𝗧𝗩) 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 → Use repeat customer data to refine campaigns that target high-LTV customers. → Experiment with ad formats to drive both new acquisitions and long-term retention. For example: If a path has 1,000 total purchases but 700 are new-to-brand, you’ve got 300 repeat customers. Divide that by total conversions (1,000), and you’ll see 30% of customers are loyal repeat buyers. If you’re focused on lifetime value (LTV), this is gold. The report is still in beta, and yes, it’s missing some crucial metrics like ACoS, CPC breakdowns, and conversion rates. But even as it stands, it’s a game-changer for sellers looking to optimize ad strategies and uncover growth opportunities. Got questions? DM me—I’d love to hear how you’re using this!