--- title: Amazon, Ecommerce & Inventory Strategy — 2026-03-27 type: article created: '2026-04-05' updated: '2026-04-05' source_docs: - raw/2026-03-27-doudlah-farms-marketing-amazon-ecommerce-inventory-call-133501804.md tags: - doudlah-farms - amazon - ecommerce - fba - b2b - wholesale - content-strategy - social-media - donation-page - inventory - vapg-grant - ts-foods - old-world-popcorn layer: 2 client_source: Doudlah Farms industry_context: food-beverage transferable: false --- # Amazon, Ecommerce & Inventory Strategy — 2026-03-27 Weekly marketing sync between [[wiki/clients/current/doudlah-farms/_index|Doudlah Farms]] and Asymmetric. Lucy Doudlah was absent (attending a funeral). Attendees: Mark Doudlah, Jason Doudlah (partial), Karly Oykhman, Gilbert Barrongo, Avokerie Onorimuo. --- ## Overview A focused session covering four areas: Amazon sales performance and active blockers, donation page progress, B2B wholesale site launch status, and a new educational content direction. The meeting surfaced two significant operational blockers — an FBA inventory display bug for Old World Popcorn and a stalled co-packing relationship with TS Foods — alongside strong organic sales momentum. --- ## Amazon Performance **March sales to date:** $116,880 (as of ~March 27), trending to approximately **$132k** for the full month at a ~$4–5k/day run rate. This represents a recovery from prior inventory disruptions and a return toward late-2025 trajectory. **Key driver:** Organic units are the primary growth engine. Ad spend is supporting rankings, but a growing share of conversions are arriving organically — reducing cost-per-sale. **Top sellers by brand:** | Brand | Top Products | |---|---| | Doudlah Farms | White Popcorn (#1), Yellow Popcorn (#2), Black Beans, Yellow Cornmeal | | Old World Popcorn | Yellow Popcorn (#1), White Popcorn | Note: Old World Popcorn's yellow-first ranking is the inverse of Doudlah's — the reason is unclear but worth monitoring. **Ad strategy note:** Gilbert has been advised to use VAPG grant-eligible popcorn ad spend judiciously but actively, given that Amazon sales are the primary mechanism for grant cost recapture (website sales are not reimbursable under the VAPG). --- ## Active Blockers ### 1. FBA Inventory Bug — Old World Popcorn - **Issue:** Old World Popcorn yellow and white popcorn listings show zero FBA inventory on Amazon, preventing customers from placing orders. Physical inventory exists at the warehouse. - **Owner:** Gilbert Barrongo is investigating. - **Next step:** Karly to follow up with Gilbert for resolution timeline. ### 2. TS Foods Popcorn Co-Pack — Stalled - **Issue:** The flavored popcorn co-packing project with Justin at TS Foods has stalled on ingredient decisions. Doudlah Farms requires consistent, high-quality oil and salt; TS Foods prefers to use its own variable-quality house ingredients. - **Risk:** A labeling or ingredient error on a 20,000-bag run would be unrecoverable. The bag must carry organic, ROC, and Demeter certifications — all of which require pre-approved, certified inputs. - **Strategic importance:** This product's Amazon sales are the **only channel eligible for VAPG grant cost recapture**. Delay directly impacts grant reimbursement. - **Action:** Karly to contact Mark Hope (Asymmetric) and ask him to intervene with Justin at TS Foods to unblock the project and provide a status update to Mark Doudlah. --- ## Donation Page **Status:** Live. One-time and subscription donation options are both active. **Pending fixes and additions:** | Item | Detail | Owner | |---|---|---| | Duplicate subscription section | Two subscription widgets appear on the page — remove one | Karly | | Donate button color | Change to yellow (or brown/white) to distinguish from "Shop Now" | Karly (after Mark emails bank details) | | Separate bank account | Donations currently route to main account; a dedicated account is preferred | Mark Doudlah to email banking info | | Jackets | Embroidered jackets nearly ready; need size/quantity info from Lucy to list | Lucy → Karly | | Plaques | Engraved wood plaques for donations ≥$50; cleaned image ready to add | Karly to add image | --- ## B2B Wholesale Site Launch **Status:** Soft-blocked. Customer accounts are created and ready to activate, but a recurring address entry bug is preventing order completion for multiple users. Developer was on vacation; returned March 27 and is actively investigating. **Launch plan (targeting next week):** 1. Developer fixes address bug 2. Developer activates all wholesale customer accounts (triggers password-setup emails) 3. Karly drafts a personal launch email for Lucy/Mark to send simultaneously, explaining the new platform and directing customers to set up their accounts **Action:** Karly to draft the B2B launch email. --- ## Marketing & Content Strategy ### Social Media - Content is scheduled through end of April following last week's review session. - A new Asymmetric social media employee is now handling content creation. Workflow: Karly sets themes and dates → employee drafts images and copy using the Doudlah content guide → Doudlah team reviews. - Four new recipe blog posts have been published. ### Influencer Outreach — Blocker - Direct Instagram DMs cannot be sent through Meta Business Suite. - **Need:** Direct Instagram login credentials to send DMs natively. - **Action:** Mark Doudlah to email Instagram username/password to Karly. ### New Content Direction: Nitrogen-Fixing Clover (Educational / Thought Leadership) Mark Doudlah proposed an agronomy-focused post series positioning Doudlah Farms as a thought leader in regenerative organic farming. The first topic: **Frost-seeded medium red clover into winter wheat** - Clover is frost-seeded into standing hard red winter wheat in early spring - Clover germinates and grows as an understory beneath the wheat - After wheat harvest (heads clipped), the clover continues growing through the full year and following spring - The clover is then plowed down ahead of corn planting - During this period, rhizobium bacteria on the clover roots fix atmospheric nitrogen — eliminating the need for synthetic nitrogen fertilizer **Messaging angles:** - U.S. conventional farms use **1% of the world's total energy** on synthetic nitrogen production alone - Synthetic nitrogen runoff through the Mississippi River Valley creates the Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone — an area the size of a state where shrimpers must travel 90–100 miles offshore to find viable beds - Organic practices like this reduce fossil fuel dependence and prevent water contamination — framed against current energy price concerns **Assets needed:** Mark to email photos (combine cab view with green clover understory, plus additional farm shots). Karly will draft the post. ### Video Content **GoPro farm footage:** - Jason Doudlah has been recording farm operations with an old GoPro - Mark confirmed Jason needs to share the footage — Karly will follow up directly with Jason to collect and begin editing clips **Construction time-lapse:** - Idea: Mount a motion-activated or interval camera (e.g., hunter's trail camera) west of the new building construction site, capturing a daily frame from a fixed vantage point - Goal: Compile into a time-lapse showing bare earth → finished building and grain bins - **Action:** Mark to email Lucy about sourcing the camera; Karly to consult Asymmetric's video editor for hardware recommendations (durable, inexpensive, weatherproof) --- ## Action Items | # | Action | Owner | Dependency | |---|---|---|---| | 1 | Remove duplicate subscription section on Donate page | Karly | — | | 2 | Email Karly donation bank account details | Mark Doudlah | — | | 3 | Update Donate button color; link to separate bank account | Karly | Mark emails bank details | | 4 | Email Lucy re: jacket size quantities | Karly | — | | 5 | Add jackets to Donate page | Karly | Lucy provides quantities | | 6 | Add cleaned plaque image to Donate page | Karly | — | | 7 | Email Karly Instagram login/password | Mark Doudlah | — | | 8 | Follow up with Gilbert on Old World Popcorn FBA inventory bug | Karly | — | | 9 | Contact Mark Hope re: TS Foods popcorn project; request update to Mark Doudlah | Karly | — | | 10 | Draft B2B wholesale launch email | Karly | Developer fixes address bug | | 11 | Activate wholesale accounts + send launch email | Karly + Lucy/Mark | Address bug fixed; email drafted | | 12 | Email frost-seeded clover photos to Karly | Mark Doudlah | — | | 13 | Draft nitrogen-fixing clover agronomy post | Karly | Mark emails photos | | 14 | Follow up with Jason re: GoPro footage | Karly | — | | 15 | Email Lucy re: motion-activated time-lapse camera | Mark Doudlah | — | | 16 | Get hardware recommendations from video editor for time-lapse camera | Karly | — | --- ## Related - [[wiki/clients/current/doudlah-farms/_index|Doudlah Farms Client Index]]