Ecommerce

We studied 2 lakh+ Indian threat indicators in 2025. And here’s what 2026 regulators now demand (but most companies still don’t do.) 2025 changed the game. We tracked threats across every state in India, from Maharashtra to Manipur. The scale of activity is no longer random. It’s strategic, coordinated, and sector-targeted. And now, so are the regulators. Here’s what 2026-ready companies are expected to do (but 90% still haven’t): 01. State-wise Risk Mapping is now a compliance expectation. 82% of malware volume came from just 6 Indian states. But the fastest-growing threat zones were Tier-2: Punjab, Odisha, Assam. Regulators now want geo-behavioral segmentation, and not just IP logs. 02. Proof of real-time detection, not just dashboards. In sectors like BFSI and energy, response time is now being scrutinised. Can you prove your system reacts in seconds, not hours? 2026 audits will ask: “Show me what your XDR did the last time your East zone flagged an anomaly.” 03. Sector-specific threat coverage: not optional anymore. Pharma, power grids, BFSI, healthcare, they’re all being hit differently. A generic firewall rule isn’t compliance. Mapping sector threat intel to your stack is now a regulatory demand, not a suggestion. 04. The death of checkbox compliance. 68% of compromised orgs in 2025 were “fully compliant”. But only 12% had active breach simulations in place You can have 100 tools. But, if nobody’s testing them in real-world breach drills, it won’t save you in 2026. 05. From centralised to hybrid monitoring Work-from-anywhere isn’t new. But regulators now want user behavior-based controls that adapt to geolocation, risk context, and device intelligence. 2026 audits will go beyond log files. They’ll ask: “How does your system behave when a user travels from Pune to Patna?” Regulatory audits in 2026 will feel more like red-team simulations. What are you seeing across sectors? Seqrite Quick Heal #CyberSecurity #ThreatIntelligence #XDR #RegTech #CISO #Compliance #CyberRisk #IndiaCyber #BFSISecurity #CriticalInfrastructure #SecurityLeadership

A very easy way to improve your Amazon ads efficiency by at least 10% Let’s say you’re spending ₹4–5 lakhs/month on Amazon ads. Your ACoS looks okay. Conversion rate seems fine. But your gut tells you—you’re still wasting some money on irrelevant traffic You’re not wrong At Atomberg, we had found that some of our Amazon spend was going toward search terms that had no business seeing our ads: - “cheap fan” -“rechargeable fan” - “usb fan under 1000” None of these users were in-market for a ₹3,000+ BLDC ceiling fan. But we were still showing up. And paying for those clicks. And it’s not just us. I’ve seen 6–7 brands' Amazon ad accounts across categories over the last few years—same problem, every single time The fix? N-gram analysis Takes less than an hour. You don’t need to be a performance marketing expert. But the results compound What’s N-gram analysis? It’s breaking down every search term into its word components—1-grams, 2-grams, 3-grams—and then identifying patterns that consistently drive waste… or conversion. Example: “cheap rechargeable fan for hostel room” turns into: 1-grams: cheap, rechargeable, fan, hostel, room 2-grams: rechargeable fan, hostel room 3-grams: fan for hostel, etc. When you do this across all your search terms, you start seeing the real picture. Why this matters more than just checking your search term report: Search terms ≠ keywords a) One keyword can trigger 100s of different queries. Some convert. Most don’t. You need to find the patterns. b) Waste is diluted across low-volume terms. Maybe “rechargeable fan for hostel” spent ₹300. You ignore it. But what if 12 other queries with “rechargeable” spent ₹6,000 in total with zero conversions? c) Long-tail is infinite. N-grams are finite. You can’t negate every bad search. But you can block the core terms—“cheap”, “usb”, “mini”—once and be done with it. d) It helps you scale campaigns too. You can find goldmine phrases like “white ceiling fan”, “silent BLDC fan”, “fan for living room”—with 5x+ ROAS. Those became exact match campaigns What you should do: a) Pull last 3 months of search term data b) Break them into unigrams, bigrams, trigrams c) Create a pivot with spend, orders, ROAS by N-gram d) Negate high-spend, low-conversion N-grams (e.g., “cheap”, “rechargeable”) e) Boost high-ROAS ones (e.g., “bldc”, “ceiling fan white”) f) Add exact match campaigns g) Rinse and repeat monthly Try it. Guaranteed to improve efficiency at whatever scale you are operating If you want to read an expanded version of the post, link is in the first comment

In today's digital age, leveraging celebrity brand ambassadors has become a popular strategy for businesses, including startups. As someone who's been a brand ambassador for various companies over the years and dabbled in startups myself, I've seen firsthand the ups & downs of this approach. People often ask if it's always beneficial to have a celebrity endorse your products or services. I’ll break it down to the most important things to consider. Visibility - Celebrities bring a massive following, offering increased visibility & reach to a wider audience that may have been difficult to engage otherwise. This exposure could enhance brand recognition & create positive associations in consumers' minds. Credibility -  The right kind of celebrity could inject a dose of credibility into your brand. Consumers may in turn perceive your product as reliable, particularly important for startups aiming to build a solid reputation & carve out a slice of the market. Engagement - Some celebrities are able to forge personal connections with their community. By aligning your startup with a celebrity, you may be tapping into that emotional connection & that community may be more likely to show interest in your brand. Costs - Engaging a celebrity ambassador comes at a price. Even if you opt for an equity-based deal, you still need to allocate valuable resources to amplify the association, potentially diverting funds from other key areas of requirement. Authenticity - The alignment between the celebrity & your product must seem genuine. If the partnership feels like a misfit or forced, the results can be counter productive. Today's consumers are evolved & can sense inauthenticity from a distance. Sustenance - While celebrities can generate a buzz in the short term, building interest & loyalty requires consistent effort & a solid value offering that goes beyond the celebrity association. Your product still needs to deliver exceptional value beyond the initial buzz.. Relevance - Ensure the celebrity aligns with the startup's target audience, values & offerings. The endorsement should make sense within the startup's brand identity & goals. Budget - Assess whether the startup can afford the associated costs, especially including the ongoing marketing efforts. Do not assume that bringing a celebrity on board itself is going to win you the war. It’s just a head start. Long-Term Strategy - A well-crafted partnership should naturally integrate into your overall marketing & branding strategy & solidify your position & bring sustained growth. Timing - Most importantly, remember, spending so much in early stages, or early dilution in equity can have long-term consequences, so ask yourself if you’re really ready at this stage. Ultimately, the decision to engage a celebrity brand ambassador should be based on your unique circumstances & goals. Hopefully this will help some make an informed decision. #BrandAmbassadors #CelebrityEndorsements #InfluencerMarketing

Every time a card payment is processed, 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 main types of fees are involved. Here’s a simple breakdown of the Three Core Fees: 1️⃣ Interchange Fee This is paid by your acquiring bank (or payment processor) to the cardholder’s bank (the issuer). It’s set by the card networks (like Visa and Mastercard; sometimes regulated), and is designed to cover things like fraud, credit losses, and infrastructure costs. 2️⃣ Scheme Fee Charged by the card networks themselves, this fee covers the operation of the payment system (“rails” that process the transaction). 3️⃣ Acquirer Markup This is the fee your acquirer or payment service provider (PSP) charges you, the merchant. It includes their costs, risk management, and profit margin for processing and settling the payment. The total cost a merchant pays is called the Merchant Service Charge, which is the sum of these three components. The Main Pricing Models: ► Bundled Pricing All fees are grouped into one flat rate. This is very common with small businesses. It’s easy to understand but doesn’t provide insight into what you’re actually paying for. ► Interchange+ The interchange fee and the acquirer’s fee are shown separately, but the scheme fee is typically bundled with the markup. This model offers some transparency. ► Interchange++ Each fee—the interchange, scheme, and acquirer markup—is itemized separately. This is the most transparent model and is favored by larger or multi-country merchants who want to track costs precisely. Who Chooses the Pricing Model? Most acquirers and PSPs decide what pricing model you’re offered. Unless you negotiate or have significant transaction volume, you’re likely to get bundled pricing by default. Larger or more experienced merchants who understand payments often push for Interchange++ for its clarity and fairness. Smaller merchants often aren’t aware that alternatives exist or find it difficult to compare offers. How Interchange Fees Vary Globally: Some regions (like the EU, UK, China, and Brazil) cap interchange fees to lower costs for merchants and stimulate competition. The US regulates only part of the system—such as capping debit card fees for large banks (the Durbin Amendment)—while credit card interchange remains uncapped and usually higher. Other countries, like India and Brazil, regulate interchange as part of broader financial inclusion goals. In markets with stricter regulation, merchants often benefit from lower, more predictable fees, making it easier to accept cards. Where fees are higher and less regulated, issuers can offer consumers more rewards (like cashback), but those costs are passed back to merchants—and sometimes their customers. Every model shifts the balance of costs and benefits between banks, merchants, and consumers in different ways. More info below👇, and I highly recommend reading my complete deep dive article about Interchange Fee and what factors impact the rate: https://bit.ly/44T4VJA

Revenue recognition isn't about when you get paid Most founders mess this up. They see $12,000 hit their bank account and think they just made $12,000 in revenue. Wrong. You made $1,000 in revenue...if it's an annual contract. What is Revenue Recognition? Revenue is earned income from delivering goods or services. Recognition is when it's reported on your income statement. These happen at different times. You collect $12,000 upfront for an annual subscription. But you only earned $1,000 of that in month one. The other $11,000? That's deferred revenue sitting on your balance sheet. The Journal Entries: When the sale happens: Debit Cash $12,000 Credit Deferred Revenue $12,000 Each month as you deliver service: Debit Deferred Revenue $1,000 Credit Revenue $1,000 This moves money from your balance sheet to your P&L as you actually earn it. Daily vs Monthly Methods You can recognize revenue daily or monthly. Daily method: $12,000 ÷ 365 days = $33 per day Monthly method: $12,000 ÷ 12 months = $1,000 per month Both get you to $12,000 over the year. Daily gives more precision but monthly is simpler. The Base Formula Every deferred revenue balance follows this pattern: Beginning Balance + Additions - Subtractions = Ending Balance Additions = new cash collections Subtractions = revenue recognized Track this for every contract and you'll know exactly where you stand. The Manual Nightmare Most founders start tracking this in spreadsheets. Works fine for 10 contracts Gets messy at 50. Completely breaks at 100+. Picture this...you've got 50 active contracts. Each one has different start dates, different terms, different recognition schedules. You're tracking everything in Excel. Every month you need to: Update deferred revenue balances for each contract. Calculate how much revenue to recognize. Create journal entries for each one. Make sure everything ties to your GL. I've seen many people spending 3 full days every month just on revenue recognition. And you know what happened? They'd still find errors weeks later. Daily Method Makes it Worse. Think monthly is bad? Try daily recognition with multiple contracts. $12,000 annual contract = $32.88 per day $24,000 contract = $65.75 per day $6,000 contract = $16.44 per day Now multiply that by 50+ contracts...each starting on different dates. You're calculating different daily amounts for hundreds of line items. Automation Saves Your Sanity Maxio completely eliminates this pain. Set up your revenue recognition rules once. The system automatically applies them across every contract. Daily, monthly, whatever method you choose...it just works. 30 minutes to run reports and review everything. That's it. No more manual calculations, no more formula errors, no more audit trail headaches. Everything's automatically GAAP compliant and audit-ready. === How do you currently track your revenue recognition? #MaxioPartner

SEO - dead. Paid Marketing - dead. Engineering - dead too. (kidding!) But you know what’s never dead? Churn. Churn eats at your business, stalling your growth. Here are my 10 go-to churn reduction tactics I apply at every business. 1. Drive paid feature utilization. If users aren’t using what they paid for, they won’t stick around. 2. Don’t wait till churn happens: -> Get activation right. This means nailing setup, hitting the “aha!” moment quickly, and building habit loops. -> Ensure healthy ongoing engagement from paid users (your paid WAU). Monitor usage, depth, and frequency - not just logins. 3. Make reactivating auto-renew one click. Across every surface - app, web, email, everywhere. This is such an easy win - 10% of your cancels should be resubscribing before subscription end! 4. Be aggressive with payment failure comms. Prompt them to update their payment method via both email and in-product notifications. In product is a key word here, especially if they are still active. 5. When users cancel auto-renew, show them what they’ve used and what they’ll lose. Make the cost of leaving clear. Canva does this best. 6. Score users for churn risk. Offer discounts or even comped time for “high-risk” - this can save as much as 5% of your churn. 7. Offer a pause option. Especially helpful if you serve users with occasional or seasonal needs. 8. Make your pricing and packaging flexible. Let users move down the tiers during cancellation flow without friction - don’t lock them in. 9. Move your tenured monthly customers to annual subscriptions. After first-term churn, lead with something like: “Get your next X months free by switching to annual.” A good target is to move about 20% of your remaining monthly subscribers to annual by the end of their first year. 10. Human touch for high-value accounts: If you're B2B or high ARPU B2C, personal outreach from support or success teams can go a long way. This + My most tried and true churn benchmarks in my latest newsletter: https://lnkd.in/e3_aEWzZ This week's newsletter is sponsored by Churnkey - they help you reduce your involuntary churn. Do give them a try! #growth

Can one employee REALLY drive more impact than the brand itself?  Let’s finally put this one to bed shall we… Everyone on socials saw Kathryn Turner pop up about 3 months ago on her own channels, and everybody got very excited by her overnight virality.  The world instantly fell in love with M&S’s Director of Product Development, aka the CREATOR of M&S deliciousness (all hail Kathryn) But 2 months on, was this just a viral moment, or a long term strategy to be implemented? It’s time to dive into the data*:  - Kathryn’s first introduction to social media happened on May 14th 2026.  So in 2 months her audience has grown from 0 to 100k on TikTok and 80k on Instagram across her personal channels. - But the really interesting part is when you compare it to the brand pages - ie Marks and Spencer’s owned handles. Kathryn’s TikTok content delivers around 60× more views and 200× more engagements per post than the official brand channel, despite having less than half the followers.  - On Instagram, Kathryn’s reels achieve 25× higher engagement rate than @marksandspencerfood - And critically, Kathryn’s audience are UK‑heavy, female‑skewed, and concentrated in the 18–34 segment, aligning closely with M&S Food’s priority shoppers and sharers, which amplifies the strategic value of her role. It doesn’t take an expert analyst to say, they’re onto something here… For anyone still sleeping on their employees, here are my takeaways:  This is concrete proof that employee ambassadors can outperform traditional brand channels by up to 200× per post on key platforms. Confirming what we all deep down know to be true - that algorithms and consumers favour human, expert storytellers over corporate logos.  I actually found in the data that the top performing posts on the M&S own brand channel, were always when they collaborated with creators too! So this isn’t an isolated trend. The playbook is clear: identify credible, charismatic internal experts, invest in them as always‑on creators and characters of your brand.  Objections around risk, control and employee departure are manageable with clear guardrails, multi‑ambassador benches, and content governance, and are outweighed by the performance multipliers seen in the evidence (the data doesn't lie !!) I know I’ve been banging on about it for a while now, but employee ambassadors are your most slept-on asset: you are already paying for their expertise; by turning them into creators you unlock large amounts of incremental, highly trusted attention that your competitors’ logo‑only channels will struggle to match. And it’s SO great to see Marks and Spencer social team really leading the charge here, confirming all of my beliefs, you guys are truly killing it. Keen to hear your thoughts below! 👇🏼 * All data sourced via my absolute favourite tool for creator and brand insights - Universe by Primetag - the only AI tool that actually sources from billions of data points on social rather than guessing.

There are (still!) people who believe that pricing externalities, tweaking policies, and scaling green markets will somehow lead us to #sustainability. Yes, they argue, “we’ve only just begun” to factor in the true costs of consumption. And they highlight the rise of green tech, renewable energy, and eco-products as signs that we’re moving in the right direction. However. This narrative, however hopeful, is not only insufficient, it’s harmful. Because the core logic of our system (growth through consumption) remains untouched. And green consumerism is a contradiction in terms. A new article ( 👉 https://lnkd.in/eQXVVVcT) by Janne J Salovaara and Sophia Hagolani-Albov exposes this paradox sharply. They show how the consumption-driven sustainability agenda is riddled with contradictions and ultimately undermines the very transformation we need: 🔶 Green capitalism sustains the same growth-at-all-costs logic, just in new packaging. 🔶 Tree-planting campaigns ("buy x, plant a tree") turn planetary repair into a product feature, shifting focus away from structural change. 🔶 Offsetting schemes perpetuate the illusion that we can continue business-as-usual, as long as we offset our guilt. 🔶 Moral consumerism displaces responsibility from systems to individuals and flatters us into thinking our shopping carts are tools for justice. 🔶 Most “sustainable alternatives” are only marginally less harmful and still deeply embedded in extractivist, carbon-intensive infrastructures. 🔶 The economy is treated as equal to nature and society, when in reality, it is a subset of life on Earth. 🔶 Transformation is confused with transition, when what’s needed is not “less bad” practices, but a fundamental shift in how we live, produce, and relate. 🔶 The sustainability narrative is being co-opted, becoming more about preserving the system than transforming it. In short: sustainability isn’t a new market segment. It’s a call to redesign the system, starting with what (and why) we value.

There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to GTM. Maja Voje and I studied 12 leading B2B SaaS companies. (including interviews with their teams) Here’s what we learned: 1. PLG is eating the world >80% of the companies in our study employ PLG in some fashion. Even enterprise companies like Snowflake and Salesforce are adding free trials & freemium. It’s the new normal. Why is this working for them? In 2024, the best marketing is often your product. Users rarely want to lock in a $500K+ contract without trying the product first. But you do need to layer on a strong product-led sales motion to make enterprise work. 2. Dominate one at first, then layer on many Every company we studied got one GTM motion massively right. And, in each case, they still use that GTM motion in some form today. But, they layer on other motions over time. The ideal way to layer is symbiotically: • ABM couples nicely with outbound • Inbound supports outbound • Partnerships amplify PLG For instance: Dropbox grew at first massively on referrals. Now, other channels are much more important. 3. ABM and Outbound are pillars of enterprise For 5- and 6-figure deals, it’s difficult to rely on inbound or PLG alone. The buyer is used to a different process. They want to be hand-held. This is where motions like ABM and outbound shine. That’s why you still see the Snowflake’s and Salesforce’s of the world focusing on them. They’re the bread and butter of enterprise. So… bringing it all together, here’s where to start based on your buyer. If you’re selling to consumers or prosumers: • Lean into PLG, community, and partnerships early on • Layer in paid marketing as you find product-market fit and have budget to scale If you're selling to SMBs: • Blend inbound and outbound motions to build awareness and relationships • Paid digital can accelerate pipeline generation as you dial in your ICP If you're selling to enterprises: • Focus on targeted ABM and partner ecosystems • Inbound is great for air cover, but outbound is crucial for landing large accounts If you have a complex or technical product: • Make sure you have developer docs, free tooling, and community support from day one • Don’t underrate channels like partnerships & paid digital; they can still be crucial support And above all: 1. Remember what works at one stage may not work another 2. Remember the law of diminishing returns 3. Be willing to pivot when necessary

6 abandoned cart email templates that actually recover revenue: Each one covers a proven angle. Rotate them in a 3-email flow or test 1:1. 1. Simple Reminder Template Subject: Still thinking it over? Why it works: - Sometimes people just forget. This is a clean, non-intrusive nudge. Best for: Loyal customers or premium brands Send in: Email 1 (1–4 hrs after cart abandonment) Copy: - You left something in your cart - We saved it for you - Complete your order anytime CTA: Return to Cart 2. Discount/Incentive Template Subject: Here’s 10% off to complete your order Why it works: - Drives action from price-sensitive customers. Creates urgency with a deal. Best for: New customers, competitive markets Send in: Email 3 (48–72 hrs after abandonment) Copy: - Still on the fence? - Use code SAVE10 at checkout - Offer expires in 24 hours CTA: Claim My Discount 3. Social Proof Template Subject: A customer favorite is waiting for you Why it works: - Highlights reviews and popularity to build trust and reduce hesitation. - Best for: High-consideration purchases or new shoppers - Send in: Email 2 (12–24 hrs after abandonment) Copy: - This item is a customer favorite - Rated 4.8/5 by thousands of buyers - Get yours before it’s gone CTA: See Reviews 4. Urgency/Scarcity Template Subject: Almost gone—don’t miss out Why it works: - Taps into FOMO. Limited stock or time-sensitive offers push action. Best for: Popular items, limited editions Send in: Use in any email for urgency layering Copy: - We can’t guarantee it’ll be here later - Only a few left in stock - Secure yours now CTA: Complete My Order 5. Personalized Recommendation Template Subject: We saved your cart (plus a few things you might like) Why it works: - Cross-sells and personalization can increase AOV and relevancy. Best for: Repeat customers, larger catalogs, data-rich brands Send in: Email 2 or 3, depending on data depth Copy: - Here’s what you left behind - Plus, these go great with it - Let us know if you have questions CTA: Return to Cart 6. Problem-Solution Template Subject: Questions about your cart? We’ve got answers Why it works: - Handles common objections like shipping, returns, or product fit. Best for: Complex products, new brands Send in: Email 2 or 3 to educate and reassure Copy: - Not sure about sizing, delivery, or returns? - Here’s what you need to know - We’re here to make it easy CTA: Read FAQs You'll want to compile these into a multi-touch email flow. Here's an actual flow example: Email 1: Simple reminder (1–4 hrs) Email 2: Social proof or problem-solution (12–24 hrs) Email 3: Incentive or founder-style plain text (48–72 hrs) Optional Email 4: Follow-up 5–7 days later