Papodoki

Applied mathematics. Behavioral economics. Extremely low tolerance for lazy thinking and fake data.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

You spent $40,000 on ads to bring people to your store.

Then you greeted them with a popup that says "SPIN THE WHEEL FOR 10% OFF!"

That's not marketing. That's an expensive way to humiliate your own brand.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Idea and vision is what you need…

Rest is solved, for good…

[Harley Finkelstein @harleyf]

We just launched integrations with @v0, @Replit and @ManusAI. Three amazing vibe coding tools. Three more ways to build the store you want.

Describe your business. These tools build it. Connect to @Shopify and you’re selling.

This is exactly what I mean when I talk about lowering the barrier to entrepreneurship.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

@bran__ma I hope so….

[Papodoki @papodoki]

The new Shopify dashboard looks amazing. The old one was ready for an update, and the Shopify design team absolutely delivered. 👏

[Papodoki @papodoki]

@ShopifySupport It seems to be working again. Thank you 😍

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Refreshing the Shopify status page every 10 seconds. Anyone else?

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Taleb: "Never ask the barber if you need a haircut."

Your agency sends you ROAS reports. But never net profit margin. Why?

Because ROAS is their scoreboard. Net profit is yours.

Saw an analytics setup this week:
— Google Analytics: installed. Funnel: undefined.
— Ad pixel: tracking. Attribution model: unquestioned.
— Monthly agency report: 14 pages. Net profit mentioned: zero times.

Paper Cup Syndrome: premium data poured into a system nobody questions.
Vanity Dashboard: the comfortable report someone else writes for you.

Your agency does not have skin in the game. They spend YOUR money and celebrate THEIR numbers.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

@Nugennath Which profs my argument... They have a great engineering team and still have issues like this... No joke. It's fucking hard man!

[Papodoki @papodoki]

If your biggest complaint about Shopify (or Klaviyo) is the monthly bill, ecommerce is probably not the business for you.

Shopify could double its prices tomorrow and still be worth every penny...

[Nugennath @Nugennath]

Someone make Shopify but cheap.

Someone make klaviyo but cheap

Someone copy all the apps but cheap

You’ll be a multimillionaire and every founder will use your apps

[Papodoki @papodoki]

@hunkybill 100%. So far I never needed the plus plan...

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Think about this 👇👇👇

[Ecom Batman @ecombatman]

80% of your sales come from 20% of your product page.

Most stores fail because they never find it Don't be one of them.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

😂 I think that's where we disagree.

When you look at Shopify, you see screens and buttons.

I see 20 years of compounded infrastructure, integrations, partners, apps, merchants, payment rails, data, and operational know-how.

Building the UI isn't the hard part.

Building everything behind it is.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

I think AI has convinced people that writing a few thousand lines of code and building a software company are the same thing.

They're not!!!

End-to-end software development is much more than generating code. AI helps with parts of the process, but shipping a product that actually works, scales, and people depend on every day is an entirely different challenge.

No need to mention infrastructure, support, compliance, reliability, security, payments, or ecosystem maintenance disappear.

Most stores I work with use <15 apps anyway, and they're solving real problems, not things Sidekick can replace.

And yes, mathematically, Shopify could charge 2x more tomorrow and still be underpriced relative to the value it creates.

If someone started today and somehow managed to build a true Shopify competitor from scratch (which I honestly think is IMPOSSIBLE), they'd probably need to charge 10x more than Shopify just to stay alive...

[Papodoki @papodoki]

For the love of God, your brand deserves better than a "SCRATCH HERE" coupon and a timer that never expires.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Premium branding.

Luxury positioning.

Meticulous craftsmanship.

...and then a giant "SCRATCH HERE" banner with a flashing countdown timer.

Because apparently the customer journey ends at a digital casino.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Wait, there's more.

The "urgent" 30-second timer magically resets every single page load.

I've never seen a deadline work so hard to avoid actually expiring.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Someone asked: "When will you share the rest?"

Criterion 6:

It must understand not just the current visit, but the customer's HISTORY. Past behavior. Buying cycle. How many times they visited before purchasing — or before leaving forever.

A system that only sees today is blind.

Your customer has a story. If you are not reading it, you are guessing at every chapter.

Six of seven. One remains.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Numbers.

Same category. Same AOV. Same traffic volume. Two brands.

Brand A: 10,000 new customers per quarter. Returning customer rate: 12%. Annual spend per customer: $67.

Brand B: 4,000 new customers per quarter. Returning customer rate: 38%. Annual spend per customer: $189.

Brand A spends 3x more on acquisition. Brand B makes 2x more profit.

The most expensive customer is the one who never comes back.

Margin-First Thinking is not about selling less. It is about keeping the customers you already earned.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

End of the month. Something I want to say.

I have been hard on this industry. Deliberately. Because most of it deserves it.

But I am seeing something change. Slowly.

More founders asking about margin before revenue.
More brands questioning their own popups before adding new ones.
More people using words like "behavior" instead of "demographics."

The minority is growing. Not fast. But growing.

To those doing the quiet, difficult, unglamorous work of actually understanding your customer — I see you.

Silent Excellence does not need applause. But it deserves recognition.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

The Big Short: everyone believed their own numbers. The system collapsed.

Followed a brand's customer journey this week, start to finish:

Instagram ad: "Handcrafted with love."
Website: stock photos and template copy.
Popup: "WAIT! 20% OFF EVERYTHING!" on first visit.
Order confirmation email: "Dear Valued Customer" — no name, no product image, no personality.
Delivery: 11 days. Brown box. No note.

Five touchpoints. Five contradictions.

Your brand is not what you say on Instagram. Your brand is what the customer remembers when the box arrives.

[Papodoki @papodoki]

Try something today.

Go to your own store. Not as the founder. As the customer.

Clear your cookies. Use a phone you do not normally use. Visit for the very first time.

What happens in the first 5 seconds?
What do you FEEL in the first 10?
How many things demand your attention before you see the product?

The gap between what you THINK your customer experiences and what they ACTUALLY experience — that gap is where you are losing money.

Have you ever been your own customer?