1. What’s the quick origin story of your brand, and what makes your product or positioning genuinely different from other options in your niche?

Steven Mitts: StevenMitts.com was built out of real-world experience, not theory. I spent years helping brands grow from the inside — advising, consulting, and testing what actually moves revenue instead of just vanity metrics. The brand was born to give founders and operators a practical system for scaling without confusion, burnout, or wasted capital.

What makes our positioning different is clarity. We don’t sell hype. We sell frameworks, execution, and repeatable systems. Everything we create is built around trust, transparency, and long-term brand equity — not shortcuts.

2. Since launch, what have been the 1–2 real turning points for your brand-specific decisions, pivots, or experiments that noticeably changed your growth or profitability-and what did you learn from them?

Steven Mitts: The first turning point was shifting from “one-size-fits-all” consulting to highly focused brand strategy and growth architecture. That change made our impact measurable and our results more consistent.

The second turning point was building a personal brand and community in parallel with business growth. It dramatically increased trust and deal flow.

What I learned is that clarity scales faster than complexity, and community scales faster than paid traffic.

3. Which 2-3 channels drive most of your revenue right now (for example SEO, paid social, email, marketplaces, influencers), and what have you learned about making those channels work in your category?

Steven Mitts: The core revenue drivers are:

• Strategic partnerships and referrals
• Organic content through Instagram and long-form media
• Email marketing

What works in this category is authority-first marketing. People don’t buy because you’re loud; they buy because you’re trusted. Storytelling, proof, and consistency outperform tactics.

4. How are you thinking about search in 2025 – Google, AI assistants like ChatGPT, and other discovery platforms? What, if anything, have you changed in your content or site to stay visible as AI search grows?

Steven Mitts: Search has shifted from keywords to credibility. We now build content designed for entity-based discovery, not just ranking.

That means:
• Clear thought leadership
• Structured, helpful long-form content
• Real brand signals across platforms

We focus on being the best answer, not just the top result. AI assistants reward clarity, depth, and authority — that’s now built directly into our strategy.

5. What do you do to turn first‑time buyers into repeat customers and advocates? Are there specific experiences, content, or community touches that work especially well for you?

Steven Mitts: Our focus is on experience, trust, and continuity. Every customer receives structured onboarding, clear education, and real access — not just automated follow-ups. We overdeliver early so they immediately feel the value and direction.

What works best for us is a layered connection:

Educational content that helps them win quickly

Private community touchpoints where they can connect, learn, and feel supported

Personalized check-ins that aren’t sales-driven, but relationship-driven

We don’t push for loyalty — we earn it through outcomes, transparency, and consistency. When people feel understood and supported, they naturally become repeat buyers and brand advocates.

6. If you had to write a short playbook for an ecommerce founder one stage behind you, what would you double down on over the next 12 months – and what would you stop doing entirely?

Steven Mitts: I would double down on:

• Building a real brand, not just running offers
• Owning attention through content
• Retention over acquisition

I would completely stop:

• Chasing algorithm hacks
• Over-discounting products
• Building on rented platforms without an owned audience (email/SMS)