Absolute Filth Goat Consulting Amazon Case Study

Goat Consulting is proud to serve our client, Absolute Filth, in selling on Amazon. Absolute Filth manufactures hockey wax with premium quality materials to help skaters improve puck control through increased stick-on puck grip. Absolute Filth is based out of St. Michael, Minnesota (the state of hockey). What separates Absolute Filth from other hockey waxes is the fun and unique scents of wax. Some popular scents include Northern Lights (cotton candy), Blueline Rush (blueberry), Coco Mango Beach Party (piña colada), and Cake Eater (lemon cake), among many others. 

Absolute Filth was started by and is run by hockey parents. They wanted to address the bad things in existing hockey wax to make it safer for the player and the environment, as well as inject some fun into the locker room. With just the 2 of them, the business scaled to a point where it was a challenge just keeping up with manufacturing the hockey wax, so Absolute Filth reached out to Goat Consulting. Absolute Filth knew there were marketing, merchandising, advertising, and operational opportunities to take advantage of, which is why they enlisted Goat Consulting to help. Goat Consulting, utilizing the marketplace and services offered to sellers on Amazon, is helping Absolute Filth focus on what they love doing - engaging with customers and the hockey community and developing new wax while leaning on Amazon to reach a global audience where they shop and deliver products with confidence.

Through our efforts, we achieved our sales, Ad profitability, and brand awareness goals. Here the results for Q4 2023 vs Q4 2022:

• Sales

• Increased US sales by 104.91%

• Increased CA sales by 22.35%

• Amazon Ads Profitability

• Reduced US ACOS by 33.45%, while increasing spend by 267.45%

• Reduced CA ACOS by 79.35%, while increasing spend by 26.84%

• Brand Awareness

• Increased US Sessions by 115.44%

• Increased CA Sessions by 338.15%

Here is the full breakdown of Amazon performance % change between Q4 2022 vs. Q4 2023:

This case study will share the work Goat Consulting has done to help Absolute Filth achieve their sales, Amazon Ad profitability, and brand awareness goals. This will be broken down into merchandising, shipping and fulfillment, Amazon Ads, and reporting. If this case study resonates with you and your business, I encourage you to reach out to see how Goat Consulting can help you in your Amazon selling journey.

Merchandising 

The best merchandising starts with a great product and clear value propositions. Absolute Filth has clear value propositions including fun scents, premium ingredients that are safer for the environment, a uniquely molded design for easy application, and a product that applies easily in cold weather and protects the stick tape to provide extra grip to the puck.  To drive more sales on Amazon, we must not only call out what the product is and how it works, but also explain each value proposition and how that will impact the end customer. This merchandising section shows how Goat Consulting showed the Absolute Filth product to Amazon customers and improved conversion resulting in more sales.

Keyword and Market Research

Understanding the market and how to position the product is an important part of selling on Amazon. We use keyword and market research to find what customers are typing into the Amazon search bar and search query performance to understand historical search performance. 

• Product Opportunity Explorer - Using the product opportunity explorer, we were able to see the specific niche Absolute Filth was competing in. Drilling down into the competitors, we could see the Absolute Filth hockey wax was a much more fun branded product compared to others. We got a perspective of the search volume and units sold for the market as well as a glimpse of the seasonality of sales to help with inventory management and planning

• Search Query Performance - The search query performance report allowed us to see the historical search behavior of Amazon customers where relevant high-value search terms and long tail keywords were used in our product listing and Amazon Ads keyword targeting.

Using these Amazon tools along with reviewing the search results of relevant keywords allowed us to set a unique position relative to competitors.

Product Details - Title, Bullet Points, and Product Description

Once we understood how to position ourselves in the marketplace, we updated the title, bullet points, and product descriptions to call out key value propositions to customers. These text areas have a limited amount of characters allowed so selecting the right keywords to include and benefits to call out were very important. Amazon customers have many options to choose from so being both concise and thorough is key to having successful product details.

Variations

Absolute Filth has a wide variety of wax scents. Utilizing variations (or parent/child variations), we were able to group all of the different SKU scents into one product listing since the product is inherently the same aside from the scent. This creates a better shopping experience for Amazon customers as they can see all the scents on one page. So if a hockey player shares the listing with a teammate, they can choose which scent they prefer. This also helps cross-mechanize the products so customers can discover new scents they may not already be aware of. From an Amazon search results page perspective, this increases organic rank as the sales from all SKUs are combined into one product listing. 

Unified Images and Videos

An important aspect of branding is consistency. Absolute Filth has a lot of images and videos from photo shoots and lifestyle use of the product. We ensured a consistent and uniform order of images for each SKU to create brand consistency. We uploaded a variety of videos to show what the product looks like, the wax being applied to show how easy it is, the production line to call out the small batch/small business nature of the business, and some cheeky fun lifestyle videos.

Brand Story

Absolute Filth has a great brand story from formulating the wax recipe in their kitchen to building a custom manufacturing production line. The Amazon Brand Story is where we showcased the problem Absolute Filth was looking to solve and the vision of the future - raising the bar for the next generation of hockey. We included “inside baseball” terms such as deek, dodge, and celly to resonate with our target audience. Including a link to the Brand ASIN & Store Showcase module lets customers easily navigate to the Absolute Filth Amazon Store.

Premium A+ Content

When Goat Consulting first started working with Absolute Filth, they had a great A+ content page, however, we both knew it could be improved by upgrading to Premium A+ Content. We first had to gain access to Premium A+ by ensuring we had adequate A+ content submissions and the Brand Story published to all listings. Once we got access, we planned out the modules we wanted to include that called out the value propositions, utilized the video assets Absolute Filth had showcasing the product, and added a comparison chart to allow customers to compare the different scents and easily add any SKU to their cart.

A/B Testing Manage Your Experiments

Goat Consulting firmly believes in the concept of continuous improvement and testing our assumptions. Once we set up a baseline for what we felt was the best, we tested those assumptions by setting up A/B Manage Your Experiments. This tool sets up two different versions of content that are shown randomly to Amazon customers, which allows us to collect insights and continuously improve listings based on traffic and conversion results. We can continually test A+ content, bullet points, product images, product descriptions, product titles, and the A+ brand story.

Amazon Store

The Amazon Store is where we were able to showcase all of the wax scents, share more about Absolute Filth, why they have the best hockey wax, and answer any frequently asked questions. The goals for the Amazon Store for Absolute Filth are to drive more sales for the hockey waxes and also share more about the Absolute Filth brand. The store modules all link to the wax product listings or link internally to other pages within the store to create a store that is easy to navigate for customers and that drives sales.

Amazon Posts

Amazon Posts is an image (and video) feed that helps your brand top of mind awareness and build a brand following. Posts was an area that Absolute Filth was not taking advantage of before working with Goat Consulting. We created a posting schedule and selected a group of the best lifestyle images to showcase the hockey wax products at the rink and in the pro shop. The Absolute Filth post feed drives impressions, clicks, purchases, and loyalty for Absolute Filth.

Bundles

Amazon Virtual Bundles is a merchandising tool we utilized for Absolute Filth to increase cart size purchases. Bundles create a new product listing and combine grouped products with an optional discount. We reviewed past purchase history and created 3-pack bundles that offer customers a 5% discount compared to purchasing separately. From an operational standpoint, this was a huge win for Absolute Filth because bundles are just a digital creation of the product listing and did not require new packaging or different inventory stocking requirements. When customers purchase from these bundle listings, Amazon picks each SKU individually from the FBA inventory to send to the end customer and if a unit goes out of stock, the bundle listing automatically no longer has an offer. 

Amazon Business Offers

Absolute Filth shared with Goat Consulting that customers are not just hockey player end users, but also pro shops and hockey equipment outfitters. This insight inspired us to set up Amazon Business discounts for the hockey wax. Absolute Filth now benefits from bulk purchases by these pro shops and hockey equipment outfitters that utilize Amazon's business for procurement. 

Shipping and Fulfillment - Inventory Management

A challenge for many businesses, including Absolute Filth is inventory management and managing the shipping and fulfillment. Sellers try to grow sales, but scaling at a quick rate requires matching that speed and getting those orders to customers in the expected time frame. This is where Absolute Filth has utilized the Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) services to help their small team meet customer demand and grow at the rate they have. If the Absolute Filth team had to ship every order themselves, they would spend their entire working day shipping orders instead of focusing on what they are good at and want to do - connecting with their customers and developing new products. This section will go over the efforts around Goat Consulting’s assistance to Absolute Filth for sending inventory to Amazon, navigating the FBA fees, Canada and international expansion, and multi-channel fulfillment. 

Fulfillment By Amazon

The FBA service has enabled Absolute Filth to grow sales while maintaining delivery expectations for customers. Amazon customers and hockey players shopping on Amazon expect free and fast delivery, which FBA meets. Absolute Filth does not have a lot of room to store inventory so there are cost savings in warehouse storage by utilizing the fulfillment network for storage. Goat Consulting helped Absolute Filth plan and create shipping plans that help Absolute Filth stay in stock, while not generating long-term storage fees with shipments that are configured in case packs to make the inbound shipping process seamless and cost-effective.

FBA Fees

Fulfillment by Amazon is a paid service that requires fees from sellers. Those fees can be seen as complicated when trying to drill down to per SKU or unit economics. Goat Consulting helped Absolute Filth calculate and understand Amazon FBA fees so there is a clear understanding of pricing and profitability requirements for the Amazon sales channel. These unit economics became a baseline for product pricing decisions and Amazon Ads goals for customer acquisition. 

Canada and International Expansion

Absolute Filth is located in Minnesota, but there are many hockey players outside of the US, particularly in Canada. Absolute Filth wants to reach customers where they are, and this is made possible by using FBA. Previously, Absolute Filth would have had to either untangle the complexities of exporting or setting up a physical warehouse in Canada. Now, Absolute Filth can streamline this process and outsource warehousing and fulfillment to Amazon. As Absolute Filth continues to grow and wants to reach other markets, the FBA and Amazon programs will enable inventory fulfillment to reach customers internationally wherever they are in the world. At the time of this writing, 30% of Absolute Filth’s Amazon sales are from North of the Border, showing significant customer demand in Canada.

Multi-Channel Fulfillment 

Absolute Filth sells not only on Amazon but also on their website. Goat Consulting advised Absolute Filth on the benefits and costs of using the Amazon FBA Multi-Channel Fulfillment to fulfill orders from their website and other sales channels. This is another tool that helps Absolute Filth focus on their expertise while leaning on Amazon for what they do best.

Amazon Ads

Absolute Filth has a great product, we improved the merchandising of the listings and brand, and inventory was in stock using Amazon FBA. The next big push by Goat Consulting for Absolute Filth is Amazon Ads set-up and continuous optimization. Amazon Ads allows us to get the hockey wax in front of more potential customers, and increase sales profitably. The process we followed was setting goals and planning, building out the ad campaigns, and continuous improvement through optimization efforts. 

Planning Amazon Ads

Goat Consulting always starts with discussing client goals, which we did with Absolute Filth. Amazon Ads has a robust platform that enables sellers to set up Amazon Ad campaigns in a way to best reach those goals. Most sellers are aware of increasing sales and conversion, but campaigns can be set up to reach more customers, build brand awareness, increase traffic, and improve customer loyalty. We established both subjective and objective goals around increasing sales (profitability) and increasing brand awareness. Absolute Filth is still a relatively small business so there is currently a limited advertising budget to reach those goals, which forces us to focus on the campaigns to run to meet those goals.

Amazon Ads Campaign Set-Up

With our plan in place, Goat Consulting moved forward with setting up Sponsored Products, Sponsored Display, and Sponsored Brand Amazon Ad campaigns for Absolute Filth.

• Sponsored Products - Using the keywords we generated in our research for what Amazon customers search to find the hockey wax, we set up Sponsored Product campaigns that promoted the listing within the search results page. This is a natural flow for how customers shop on Amazon to reach customers from the bottom of the marketing funnel when they are in the market to purchase the product they are searching for. 

• Sponsored Display - Sponsored Display campaigns allowed us to increase brand awareness and reach customers across the Amazon store as well as apps and websites outside of Amazon. Our ads reach customers shopping for similarly advertised competitor products as well as retargeting customers searching for hockey tape (a clear complementary product)

• Sponsored Brand - Absolute Filth wants to be the hockey wax for hockey players. Sponsored Brand headline ads allow us to be front and center and dominate the search results for targeted terms, all while showcasing custom creative. 

Continuous Amazon Ads Improvement through Optimization

Setting up Amazon Ad campaigns is not the end of the story. As stated previously, Goat Consulting firmly believes in the mindset of testing and continuous optimization. To meet Absolute Filth Amazon Ads goals, regularly we manually pull Amazon Ads data and take actions that get us closer to the goals of the ad. Goat Consulting is also an Amazon Ads partner, which gives us access to Amazon Advertising Manager, where we can leverage automation tools that take actions based on rules we put in place on a campaign, keyword, and search term level.

Reporting and Analysis

With a great product, merchandising, inventory, and advertising in place; Goat Consulting pulls Amazon reports and communicates with Absolute Filth on the performance of established KPIs to draw insights to take action to meet our goals. Amazon provides a suite of reports and data, which allows us to drill down into any specific metric, but what Goat Consulting does is help focus Absolute Filth on the key metrics we want to track. We compile the data into an easy-to-digest report (here is a sample template for reference - not Absolute Filth metrics) from Business Reports, Brand Analytics, and Advertising Reports. 

Business Reports

Business reports help us understand sales, traffic, and conversion. We look at both sales over time, as well as sales by SKU. We can make decisions for inventory planning to be in stock based on the seasonality of the product. Looking at sales by SKU, we can understand which hockey wax scents are selling well, which informs future product development, or which products to feature and target in advertising.

Brand Analytics

Brand reports including search catalog performance, search query performance, repeat purchase behavior, demographics, top search terms, and market basket analysis help us understand the bigger picture of how the Absolute Filth brand is performing. We can have a better understanding of who the Amazon customers are for Absolute Filth, so we can more effectively merchandise, advertise, and generally create a better customer experience.

Amazon Ads Reporting

Amazon Ads reports help us both understand macro sales, spending, and return on investment metrics, as well as dive into more micro metrics that help us make the underlying actions in Amazon Ads optimization. To name a few, Campaign performance shows us which types of ads are performing best to serve our goals. Search Term reports help us get granular into the actual search terms customers are searching to find and buy the hockey wax. Product reporting shows which specific variations are the most effective in sales, efficiency, and conversion helping us with deciding which products to feature in Ads to drive the most clicks and sales. These ad reports allow us to continually benchmark and ensure we are on pace to meet Absolute Filth’s goals.

Word From the Client

Running a growing, family run small business is full of challenges. This is why entrepreneurs get out of bed in the morning, right? Face the next challenge with a smile. One challenge that haunted us was this whole ‘selling on Amazon’ thing. Access to tens of millions of customers was so close, but still so far out of reach. We tinkered with doing it ourselves and were rewarded with wasting a lot of time and energy. Figuring out how the whole Amazon Selling Ecosystem works in a couple hours here and there is simply not possible. Well at least not for this cowboy.  

Knowing our product would sell well on Amazon we decided to find a guide that had been there and done that. This is where Goat Consulting came in. Through a measured, structured, approach they helped us establish and learn the fundamentals of running a business on Amazon. Within no time we had the confidence and know how to effectively manage our inventory and to pull the right Amazon advertising levers.  

Not gonna lie, it was scary to look at the advertising spend Goat Consulting suggested to meet our sales goals. But we had faith in our product, knew others had found success on Amazon, and trusted Goat. So, we crossed our fingers and jumped into start swimming with the sharks. 

We launched with a full featured Amazon Advertising campaign and had calculated an initial sales number we had to hit to pay for all of this. Right now, we are looking at that number in the rear-view mirror, and it is so far behind us we can barely see it. The results have been out of this freak’n world. It is good that we are currently looking to hire additional staff to help keep up with our shipments to Amazon.  It’s a proud moment when you switch from sending boxes to sending pallets of product.  

From this success, new wholesale opportunities are unexpectedly popping up all around us. Small, independent hockey stores are finding our products on Amazon, reaching out and establishing wholesale accounts. 12% of our top line revenue is now from these shops that had no idea we existed before we partnered with Goat Consulting. 

Looking back at our launch with Goat Consulting, they helped us set up and run a business on Amazon the right way. 

I will wrap up with the business Axim, “Work on the business and not in the business.” 

Work on the business by deciding to sell on Amazon and choosing Goat Consulting to help. The Goat Consulting team are experienced professionals that will get you in business on Amazon. They do all the heavy lifting and show you how everything works and more importantly how it is interconnected. Before you know it; you will start to have a clear understanding of how Amazon works and how your company can exploit the opportunities it provides. 

When it comes to Amazon, make a note to go with Goat. 

-Casey Kirt, Co-founder and Owner of Absolute Filth

Conclusion

It is a privilege for Goat Consulting to help Absolute Filth achieve their goals for selling on Amazon. Absolute Filth has a great hockey wax product that we are excited to share with the hockey community and get into more skaters’ hands. This is made possible by the customer reach and services provided by Amazon to help Absolute Filth grow to where they are today. Goat Consulting is happy Absolute Filth identified there were still opportunities to build upon beyond the initial Amazon selling efforts they did. We both see that this is not the end of the story for Absolute Filth on Amazon with new opportunities rolling out around merchandising, fulfillment, Amazon Ads, and reporting. If this case study resonates with you and your brand or manufacturing business, I encourage you to reach out to Goat Consulting through our Contact Us form below.