The Mill Fudge Factory
Millions in Online Sales with Smart Marketing
The Mill Fudge Factory is a family business in New Hampshire. Taste Profit CEO Noah Munro is a co-founder. After building an e-commerce website and a few key marketing strategies described below, Noah helped the Mill Fudge Factory grow online sales by 20% each year.
The Mill Fudge Factory has now sold over $2 million worth of fudge online. They sell more fudge online than through any other sales channel (including wholesale and retail).
How it Happened
They Launched an E-commerce website
A streamlined, functional e-commerce website was the first step to more online sales. Consumer-focused messaging, featured popular products, and easy navigation drive customers directly to the online store.
They promoted subscriptions and special offers.
To ensure repeat business and automatic cash flow, Noah created a “Fudge of the Month Club.” Customers looking for a unique gift can choose a 3, 6, or 12 month membership and even choose which flavors are shipped each month. Having a baseline volume of online orders made it easier to staff the order processing operation. It also provided more even cash flow year-round.
They were featured in local and national media outlets.
Hiring a PR professional (meet Eva) helped the Mill Fudge Factory land a story on MSN.com where it was listed as one of the Top 3 fudge companies in America. They also earned coverage in The Boston Globe, The Daily Meal, NH Magazine, Cooking with Paula Deen Magazine, Canadian World Tourism, and more. Media coverage played a big role in the business’s online growth.
They implemented key email automations
Only about 1 in 4 customers who start the checkout process actually finish it. Noah implemented an automated series of emails to follow up with customers who had abandoned their carts. Among 411 recent abandoned carts (representing over $11,000 of sales), the automatic emails were able to recover 154 of them (37.5%). That’s $5300 of sales (48%) that would have otherwise been lost.
They streamlined operations, especially shipping.
As order volume increased, shipping needed to become more efficient. Noah helped The Mill Fudge Factory configure their shipping software to:
- automatically sync order information between their website and shipping platform
- print, process, and ship orders in batches without ever typing in a single address
- automatically send customers shipping notifications and tracking numbers
Lessons and Takeaways
1
Make it as easy as possible for customers to buy from you. E-commerce is one way to do this. Customers expect to be able to shop online. Get started with an e-commerce website today.
2
Look for ways to generate recurring revenue through subscriptions and bundled orders.
3
Don’t underestimate the power of media coverage! Click here to get help with PR.
4
Don’t leave money on the table! An abandoned cart email sequence is just one piece of automated marketing that can help you capture revenue without extra effort. Get help with email automations.
5
Marketing can only go so far—make sure your daily operations are tight and efficient to maximize your margins. A business consultant can help you spot high leverage opportunities.
Not sure where which e-commerce platform to choose? Check out our list of the best ecommerce platforms for farms and food brands.