After the success of my flagship product, "50 First Dates - Scratch Off Dating Book," I knew I wanted to continue down the path of selling curated couples products. This time, my focus would be building a brand and maximizing LTV.
Introduction
When I saw that www.CupidsArrow.com was an available domain name, I bought it within the hour. I had early success with my scratch off dating book, which I sold primarily on TikTok and Amazon, but it was difficult to keep my LTV:CAC metrics steady with a one-time purchase product. Cupid's Arrow was the next step toward building a bigger business with sustainable LTV metrics. As a self-funded passion project, Cupid's Arrow had to move fast, prioritize the right projects, and get to market quickly so I could start turning a profit.
As Of Today
As of Q1 2024, myself and one friend have build out a product collection of 1000+ unique clothing products that will be fulfilled using Print-On-Demand (POD) services. I decided that POD was the right starting path because we wouldn't need to purchase any inventory upfront, could rapidly test new concepts, and would be able to build a strong foundation for the marketplace. With a strong visual aesthetic, SEO optimized site architecture/navigation, and broad product catalog, I can start reaching out to other small businesses to try and recruit them onto the platform. I believe I am in a position now where I can have other business owners sell their unique, curated products through my marketplace for a commission, which allows me to squeeze the maximum amount of value out of my ad spend, alongside selling my own products.
>1000
7
<$20k
Research & Strategy
I started off by analyzing competitors, scrutinizing their product collections, and identifying successful social media campaigns. I found uncommongoods.com to be the gold standard for what I was aiming to be, but they were underserving the niche of 20-40 year old, social media-savvy shoppers, whom I am a part of. This gave me an initial direction, which I would iterate on over time.
Intitial Brand Identity
I prioritized a clean, modern look for the brand and marketplace, embracing a pastel color palette centered around pink and blue—classic romantic tones that don't clash with diverse product visuals. This aligns with popular CPG market trends, taking cues from visually appealing brands like Olipop.
Product Design
I led the creative direction of all our products and meticulously crafted 100+ custom patterns, icons, and concepts, which resulted in a collection of 750+ unique products. I made it a focus to develop concepts centered around viral social media trends, like cute raccoons for example, ideally increasing the effectiveness of a paid ads and organic social distribution strategy.
SEO & Site Architecture
My focus here was to enable shoppers to quickly go exactly where they wanted, while also encouraging exploration of new collections because prolonged page engagement positively influences domain authority. Likewise, I incorporated breadcrumbs and optimized page headers to enhance Google's crawling efficiency. More CRO improvements are on the way!
Initial Marketing Efforts
To drive brand awareness and get new customers to the website, I relied on TikTok organic marketing, as well as Paid Ads on Meta, focusing on creating engaging, visually appealing content to build brand awareness and community. On TikTok, I developed a content calendar featuring product showcases, behind-the-scenes looks, and user-generated content, leveraging influencer collaborations to amplify reach.
