M3

It is mid-October and for most of you in retail, you are preparing for Holiday 2024 but you are also likely knee deep in budgeting for next year. Most brands are looking to grow their top line and improve EBITDA but those two things do not always align. Throughout my career, I have been able to find ways to add “ancillary revenue” to EBITDA that helps fund growth initiatives or to support the bottom line. For sure, these programs are not for every brand but if you are open to it, there is a lot of additional money to be made by monetizing your assets: customers, packages, site traffic, emails, etc. So, you are asking what can you do? 1)   Paid Membership programs/Premium Loyalty, post purchase 2)   On-site and in email advertising 3)   Other Post purchase, online programs 4)   Offer digital magazines to your customers as a surprise and delight These programs are platform agnostic and when you boil them down, they can add $1 or more per order for your business and with some of them, the value they bring, grows over time. If you would like to discuss what you can do for your brand to drive more EBITDA and help support that 2025 budget, message me.

$240.8B in holiday sales. 💸 That’s what people will spend online this year, according to Adobe Analytics. Consumers are on their phones 📲—shopping, comparing, deciding. All that data layering, audience targeting, and media buying? It’s to get them to that moment—the purchase. But here’s the reality: on social, you’re competing with everyone. And on the open internet, it’s even noisier. All that effort is just to sift through the chaos, but here’s the truth—people over-index when shopping. I believe in owning the moment. M3 gives you 100% share of voice in brand-safe spaces where consumers become shoppers and are truly engaged. This isn’t about showing up—it’s about standing out. Consumers today ignore irrelevant ads. But when your message is aligned with their environment, it becomes part of their journey. This isn’t about fighting for attention; it’s about owning the moment to make a lasting impact. As the holiday surge begins, ask yourself: why compete in a crowded space when you can be where people are already shopping and make your brand stand out?

1️⃣ The over-40 market is driving more spending than any other age group. 2️⃣ They’re engaged and often overlooked by traditional media strategies. 3️⃣ The best place to reach them? When they’re shopping. That’s what we do at M3. With exclusive inventory, 100% share of voice, and 32% more reach to women than traditional female-focused publishers, M3 is where brands can connect with the over-40 market.

Today, we announced a big milestone in the development of our omnichannel experience! Building off the growth of Shop Premium Outlets® over the past five years, we’ve added on-sale and discounted merchandise to the outlet assortment to expand this digital marketplace and rebranded it ShopSimon ™. Both an app and online shopping destination, it’s the newest way for customers to experience Simon® and for us to support our retailers in reaching them—and we’re just getting started. Read all about it: https://bit.ly/3XvrKAp Check out the new website: ShopSimon.com #retail #ecommerce #omnichannel #builtforbrands #simon #simonpropertygroup #shopsimon #shoppremiumoutlets

"One of these things is not like the others, One of these things just doesn't belong, Can you tell which thing is not like the others By the time I finish my song?" — Sesame Street, "One of These Things (Is Not Like The Others)" These are snippets from the websites of 'premium' digital advertising companies this week: - A premium network by design - Premium supply at scale - Brand-safe supply at scale - Connect your brand to trusted, quality publishers - Award-winning - Advanced brand protection - We don't cut corners - Premium inventory, next-gen addressability, and transparency to buyers - Discover the "premium premium" internet The same companies are buying sites like the one in the video below. Calling it 'premium inventory' while selling ads on 10,000-30,000 sites is 🤷♂️ Do you know how many restaurants in the world have a Michelin star? About 2,500, and only 100 of those have three stars. Premium is about brand association, scarcity, quality content, and user experience. You can buy premium, or you can buy scale, but you can rarely have both. "One of these things is not like the others, One of these things just doesn't belong."

Our co-founder Greg Stellato recently joined Sean Simon on The MarTech Matrix Podcast to discuss the challenges specialty retailers and advertisers face. ✨ Key Takeaways: ✨ 💰 Specialty retailers can unlock new revenue streams by leveraging their brand equity and loyal customer bases to combat thin margins, returns, and acquisition costs. 👀 Advertisers gain premium placements to reach dedicated audiences across retailer websites, email, and social channels. ⚡ This model avoids the pitfalls of ad clutter and content misalignment, providing a cleaner way to engage consumers. Discover how aligning specialty retailers with relevant advertisers creates mutual brand equity benefiting all parties. 🎧 Listen to the full podcast below.

"Your [email] list becomes an asset; it's a media property that I could sell ads against," says Taylor Holiday, CEO of Common Thread Collective. "Do you think Sean will ever give real estate on his emails?" Tomer Tagrin., CEO of Yotpo, challenges. "Yeah," confirms Sean Frank, CEO of Ridge. That's exactly what we're building at M3: The Future of Brand Commerce, which stands for Make Merchants Money. Thanks to Scott Segel for texting me this podcast. The entire podcast episode is insightful, and I recommend listening. Here's the clip to the quotes above 👉 https://lnkd.in/dQdd2Gbr

Our founder and CEO, Michael Cassidy, recently joined the Taking Inventory podcast, revealing his entrepreneurial journey - from founding Undertone to acquiring and selling the largest Shopify Plus agency to Accenture and now leading M3. The key highlight? M3's vision is to unlock 98% of e-commerce traffic that doesn't convert to purchases. As Cassidy notes, "The data I keep going back to is that the average conversion rate is just 2%." At M3, we're turning this challenge into an opportunity by enabling retailers to generate new revenue through brand sponsorships and partnerships. It's an innovative approach to commerce media that creates value for retailers, brands, and shoppers alike. Hear Michael's insights on M3's vision for pioneering the future of brand commerce: https://lnkd.in/eFHS-bTj #Ecommerce #BrandPartnerships #CommerceMedia #Retailers

Thank you, EY, for inviting me to judge the 2024 Entrepreneur of the Year Florida Program. The companies participating are excellent.  #EOYUS #EOYFlorida

Welcome, Sam and Shane. We are thrilled to have you on our team.