In this episode of the Ecommerce Growth Map Podcast, we break down one of the most misunderstood — and most important — concepts in e-commerce: first-order profitability.

First-order profitability means your very first sale generates enough revenue to cover product costs, fulfillment, and customer acquisition. Without it, brands rely on future purchases, outside capital, or hope — and that’s why so many businesses fail before they ever scale.

We walk through why first-order profit matters more than ROAS, why some brands can survive without it (and most can’t), and how to calculate whether a product or campaign is actually viable.
We also explain the danger of negative contribution margin, how rising CAC destroys weak business models, and why investors prioritize businesses that make money on every transaction.

If you’re an e-commerce founder, operator, or marketer trying to build a scalable, sustainable business, this episode will change how you think about growth, advertising, and profitability.

In this episode of The Ecommerce Growth Map Podcast, we break down a clear, repeatable framework for forecasting media dollars and return on ad spend (ROAS) across Meta and Google.

Instead of guessing budgets or reacting emotionally to performance, this episode shows how to plan paid media using real data, daily averages, historical returns, and marketing calendars. We walk through how to allocate media dollars across platforms, decide when to scale or pull back spend, and set realistic ROAS targets based on business goals and past performance.

Using real examples from peak shopping periods like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we show how to adjust forecasts as performance changes and how to compare projections against actual results to make better decisions in real time.

If you’re a DTC founder, marketer, or operator looking for a smarter way to plan and control ad spend across Meta and Google, this episode gives you a system you can use year-round — not just during holidays.

In this episode of The Ecommerce Growth Map Podcast, we walk through the real Black Friday results from multiple DTC clients. You’ll see exactly what worked, what didn’t, and how we generated massive revenue across Meta, Google, and email during the biggest shopping weekend of the year.

We break down how one brand hit $28,993 in gross sales, how another drove $116,553 from Meta ads alone, what led to 460%–563% ROAS, and how inventory issues affected spend efficiency across accounts. You’ll also hear how our Google PMAX campaigns hit 349% and 375% ROI, why evergreen campaigns were paused, and how we pivoted into Cyber Monday messaging.

If you want real numbers, real strategy, and real lessons from BFCM, this episode gives you the full picture.