In today’s episode, we’re joined by Ariana Ferwerda, co-founder and CEO of Halfdays, to unpack the strategy and philosophy behind building a true community-first DTC brand, and why that approach has worked so well for them.

Ariana shares her journey of launching a brand that struck product-market fit in its first season and grew 10x from their first to second season. We dive into the how and why behind Halfdays’ community-led approach - from the early customer insight that shaped their brand mission, to how they took a different path than the typical early-stage DTC playbook, and how that thinking informs their approach to growth.

She shares what it actually looks like to operationalize community at scale, from their ambassador model to how they decide when to lean on community, and when to tap into performance or influencer marketing instead.

We also get into how they measure the impact of community-led initiatives, what brands often get wrong when they jump into community without a clear reason, and when leading with community simply isn’t the right fit - plus much more.

If you have a question for the MOperators Hotline, click the link to be in with a chance of it being discussed on the show: https://forms.gle/1W7nKoNK5Zakm1Xv6

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

12:46 Ariana's Journey to Half Days

22:57 Product Market Fit and Growth Strategies

33:07 The Importance of Community in Brand Strategy

45:18 Activating Community: Events and Engagement

01:00:20 Measuring Community Impact and Success

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Prescient AI.⁠⁠⁠

https://www.prescientai.com/operators

Richpanel.⁠⁠⁠

https://www.richpanel.com/?utm_source=MO&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ytdesc

Aftersell.

https://www.aftersell.com/operators

Haus.

http://Haus.io/operators

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From measuring brand health beyond ROAS to breaking down viral awareness plays and running focused growth sprints, we’re getting into the topics on our minds as Marketing Operators right now.

We kick things off with baseline revenue - how we define it, how we track it, and why it’s one of Connor Rolain’s go-to metrics for gauging brand momentum, resilience, and reliance on paid media. We also get into its blind spots, how paid activity can still influence it, and why it should be paired with other brand health signals.

Then we break down Cozy Earth’s $25K “Bed Rot Challenge” campaign - why it’s such a perfect, MrBeast-style awareness stunt built for social, and how we’d tie it more closely to actual sales.

Next, Cody takes us inside a growth sprint he’s running to fix high incremental CPAs on Meta - sharing the framework he’s using, how he rallied growth, creative, and data around it, and the results so far.

Finally, we wrap with a MOPs Hotline question on aligning product and marketing, from deciding which products belong in the hero acquisition funnel to launching new ones for fresh audiences without losing your core customer.

Want to submit your own DTC or ecommerce marketing question? ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

04:23 Measuring Brand Health: The Baseline Revenue Metric

09:07 Navigating Brand Marketing and Incrementality

16:22 The Role of Upper Funnel Marketing

23:25 Innovative Campaigns: The Cozy Earth Bed Rot Challenge

40:33 Engaging with TikTok and SMS Marketing Strategies

46:53 Building Teams Around Sprints for Clarity and Action

54:51 The Importance of Recurring Meetings and Accountability

01:07:29 Collaborative Product Development and Marketing Alignment

01:19:43 Leveraging Customer Feedback for Product Development

Cody's X Post: https://x.com/codyplof/status/1954611362111410540

Episode 66: DTC Marketers - Where Are You Wasting Your Time?

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⁠⁠⁠https://motionapp.com/pricing?utm_source=marketing-operators-podcast&utm_medium=paidsponsor&utm_campaign=march-2024-ad-reads⁠⁠⁠https://motionapp.com/creative-trends

Prescient AI.⁠⁠⁠

https://www.prescientai.com/operators

Richpanel.⁠⁠⁠

https://www.richpanel.com/?utm_source=MO&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ytdesc

Aftersell.

https://www.aftersell.com/operators

Rivo.

https://www.rivo.io/operators

Subscribe to the 9 Operators Podcast here:https://www.youtube.com/@Operators9

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Today on the show we’ve got a very special guest, one of the OGs of ecommerce, Ezra Firestone.

He’s been around forever, running brands like Boom by Cindy Joseph, building software companies like Zipify, and creating training businesses like Smart Marketer, all while staying hands-on in the game as the DTC landscape keeps evolving.

We get into how he went from top wig drop-shipper to building and exiting nine-figure brands, and how that journey shaped the way he thinks about marketing today. Ezra breaks down the creative frameworks and persona funnels he’s using to scale - building tailored journeys that speak directly to specific customer mindsets and motivations - and why a one-size-fits-all approach no longer cuts it in today’s performance landscape.

He also shares why most brands are underusing Amazon and Shop App, how to approach them as full-funnel growth channels, and what it looks like to prepare your brand for AI-native discovery through structured data and platform-level optimization. Plus, we get into Meta ad theory, challenger brand tactics and how Ezra’s role has evolved from hands-on operator to long-term strategist focused on sustainable growth, supporting great teams, and staying aligned with what actually matters.

If you have a question for the MOperators Hotline, click the link to be in with a chance of it being discussed on the show: https://forms.gle/1W7nKoNK5Zakm1Xv6

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

09:07 The Drop Shipping Business Model Explained

19:26 The Shift from Drop Shipping to Brand Ownership

29:21 Content as a Core Strategy in E-Commerce

39:18 Storytelling and Engagement in Marketing

45:04 Maximizing Amazon and Shop App Opportunities

56:07 The Rise of LLMs and SEO Strategies

59:20 Optimizing E-commerce Operations for Success

01:00:13 Transitioning from Operator to Navigator

01:06:32 The Importance of Strategic Thinking in Business

01:14:08 Evaluating Business Models: E-commerce vs. Agency vs. Software

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Motion.

⁠⁠⁠https://motionapp.com/pricing?utm_source=marketing-operators-podcast&utm_medium=paidsponsor&utm_campaign=march-2024-ad-reads⁠⁠⁠https://motionapp.com/creative-trends

Prescient AI.⁠⁠⁠

https://www.prescientai.com/operators

Richpanel.⁠⁠⁠

https://www.richpanel.com/?utm_source=MO&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ytdesc

Aftersell.

https://www.aftersell.com/operators

Haus.

http://Haus.io/operators

Subscribe to the 9 Operators Podcast here:https://www.youtube.com/@Operators9

Subscribe to the Finance Operators Podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/@FinanceOperatorsFOPS

Sign up to the 9 Operators newsletter here: https://9operators.com/