A Case Study on Jackpot Sports Cards

Since eVision Media was founded over 20 years ago, we’ve worked with hundreds of clients across a vast array of industries, including everything from counsellors, consultants, and coaches to lawyers, interior designers, authors, and more.

And after working with so many different kinds of clients to help define their brand positioning and build their businesses, I’ve realized that what I enjoy most is working with visionaries.

I know there are many different ways to define this term, but in my experience, visionaries are incredibly imaginative, creative, and wise individuals who have a grand vision of what they’d like their businesses to be.

But as I’ve found out over the years, despite the fact that these people have amazing visions, they often lack the time, resources, or knowledge that’s required to actually bring these ideas into reality. What’s more, they’re often not very detail-orientated, which can make it challenging to bring their visions to fruition.

At the same time, because they love to be in creation mode, they often end up with a million and one things on their to-do lists, which keep getting longer and longer with every new idea that comes to mind.

I’m proud to be able to provide them with a detailed “strategy and fulfillment” service that allows us to relieve this burden and take the reins while these clients get back to doing what they do best.

That being said, if there’s one client we’ve worked with who best exemplifies this visionary mindset, it would have to be Chad Davis of Jackpot Sports Cards.

When we started working with Chad, he wanted to participate in everything we were doing for him, but eventually, he relented, as I explained to him that the whole point of hiring us is so he can take all that work off his plate and let us do it for him.

As a result of this more hands-off approach, Chad has been able to focus on things that bring him joy and benefit his business, like going to conventions and trade shows, updating his inventory, and making sure his prices always reflect the current market.

As with most of us business owners, life often gets in the way of fulfilling our vision, and Chad is no exception to that rule, as he’s had to deal with several of life’s ups and downs since we started working with him. Luckily for Chad, we’ve been there to help keep his business going, no matter what it is he’s dealing with.

So, if you want to learn more about how we help clients like Chad to create visionary branding, or you just want to have a better understanding of brand positioning, then you’re going to want to keep reading.

How 5 Brand Positioning Strategies Brought Chad’s Vision to Fruition

When Chad first came to us, he was basically running things out of his garage, or anywhere else he could store the massive number of trading cards he’s amassed since childhood, and selling his collectibles through platforms like eBay and Facebook.

He didn’t have a website, logo, or any branding to speak of, so back in 2021, he signed up for our VIP Branding, Website and Marketing Package, which includes brand consulting with me, logo and brand design, website design and development, along with six months of SEO, SEM, content marketing, and social media marketing, and he’s been with us ever since.

The following five points explain what we’ve done for Chad over the last couple of years, and how we’ve leveraged brand positioning to turn Jackpot Sports Cards into one of the most well-known and respected brands in the trading card industry.

Website

Believe it or not, in the trading card business, there are a lot of brands out there with websites that look like something that was developed 15 years ago.

Clearly, the main focus is on the cards, and these kinds of marketing and branding considerations seem to go by the wayside.

Chad knew he didn’t want to follow suit, and right off the bat, he had a cohesive vision of how he wanted his brand to be portrayed, not least when it came to his website.

Chad has a monstrous collection of trading cards, with some items going for tens of thousands of dollars, so he wanted his website to be perceived as professional, authoritative, sophisticated, and something that appeals to people who are willing to spend this kind of money on card collecting.

So, as you can see, we made sure every single aspect of his website reflects this brand positioning, helping him to build trust and credibility with customers by keeping the design very minimal, with clean lines, and a simple, black-and-white colour scheme that exudes elegance, expertise, and authenticity.

We also worked with Chad to ensure that all of the imagery on his site is of the highest possible quality. Having high-quality imagery not only entices potential customers, but also benefits his brand positioning, as it positions Jackpot Sports Cards as being more sophisticated, high-end, and professional.

As you can see, the images of the products are crystal clear, allowing collectors and investors to see the condition of each item, and confirm that what they’re looking at is exactly what they will receive.

What’s more, we also did what we could to build trust and credibility through the copy on Chad’s website, with his About page being the best example of this.

Up above the fold, it plays up Jackpot’s USP, explaining that Chad strives to “demonstrate ethics of the utmost integrity” while providing “the best possible experience” for customers, and guaranteeing that he will “meticulously package and protect your product with unmatched precision,” which is very important, as Chad is renowned for having some of the best shipping practices in the business.

Then Chad tells the heartwarming story of how he got into card collecting at the age of nine, before explaining how he and his father ran a card shop for several years when he was in elementary school.

It’s a subtle little touch, but this kind of story really helps to build Chad’s reputation as an authority in the trading card industry, as he’s had a passion for this hobby for such a long time, and has been in this business off and on since he was a kid.

As we always do for our VIP clients, we also SEO-optimized Chad’s website, including the most appropriate keywords in his website content, while ensuring his website is mobile-friendly and responsive, so it looks great and functions properly no matter how it’s accessed.

We’ve also used SEM tactics, and continue to do so, such as running Google Ads to drive additional traffic to Chad’s website from the search engines and elsewhere.

Online Store

From our first meeting with Chad, he was adamant about having his own online store and was sick of selling his products on other people’s platforms. He wanted to be able to make all of his sales, from start to finish, on his own website.

So, we built him an online store using WooCommerce that not only looks great but allows Chad to take care of every purchase in one centralized location.

As you can see, his store features the same high-quality product images found throughout Chad’s website, and it offers an intuitive interface that allows customers to search for products, leave reviews, share products on social media, sort or categorize them based on a number of different factors, and receive emails to remind them that they’ve abandoned their carts or when their orders have shipped.

Chad’s shopping cart system allows him to process payments, offer discounts or gift cards, add an unlimited number of products to his inventory, and it also includes built-in tax and shipping calculators.

In addition, each product is given an SEO-friendly URL, allowing it to be easily indexed by search engines.

We’ve also worked with Chad to teach him how to upload new products and update his store himself, making the process as simple as possible.

Logo

Jackpot Sports Cards’ logo features the same slick, clean, and professional-looking aesthetics that can be found throughout Chad’s website and the rest of his branding.

At the same time, we wanted it to stand out as much as possible, and not fade into the background, while maintaining the same feel as all of his other branding.

As you can see, we did this by giving his logo some prominent depth and dimension, making it look like it’s towering over everything, including Chad’s competitors.

Being the proud Texan that he is, Chad also made a point of having us include some Texas-themed imagery in his logo, including the Lone Star and the shape of the state of Texas to replace the “O” in Jackpot.

This not only appeals to potential customers in Chad’s area, but also helps him to further differentiate himself from his competitors, and build trust by showcasing his patriotism.

Social Media

Aside from showcasing Jackpot’s products, we’ve used social media to help solidify Chad’s brand positioning as a trusted professional in the trading card industry.

For instance, as you can see below, we created branded imagery for all of Chad’s social media accounts, to ensure the same sophisticated look is reflected in all of his branding, across every platform.

As you can tell from the small sampling of posts below, we’ve also worked with Chad to create some pretty amazing content and kept things consistent by ensuring that we only use the same high-quality imagery you’ll find on Chad’s website and including his logo on as many posts as possible.

In addition to featuring new products, as they enter Chad’s inventory, we also post snippets from Chad’s blog, tips for collectors, testimonials from customers and industry heavyweights, glimpses of what goes on behind the scenes, and we’ve even helped him live stream from a couple of conventions.

All of this helps to cement Chad’s brand positioning as an authority in this industry who can be trusted, knows his stuff, and has a collection of some of the best products in the business.

Content Marketing

Last but certainly not least, there is the content marketing we’ve been doing for Chad, which offers yet another opportunity to highlight Jackpot Sports Cards’ brand positioning.

On his blog, affectionately known as Chad’s Card Vault, we work with Chad to build upon his brand positioning by providing valuable content that explores what Jackpot Sports Cards is all about and offers some of his expertise.

This includes things like stories from Chad and his dad’s old card shop, musings about featured trading cards, recaps from the conventions Chad attends, tips for collectors who are just starting out, and more.

But if I had to choose a blog that I believe has had the best effect on Chad’s brand positioning, I’d have to go with Protecting Precious Cargo: How to Ship Trading Cards Like a Pro.

As you can see from the image below, this article offers an incredibly detailed step-by-step guide on Chad’s shipping process, which is basically the best in the business, and details some of the horrible experiences Chad has had with other people’s shipping practices.

This meticulous shipping process is one of the main pillars of Chad’s brand positioning, so it was important for us to highlight his shipping practices in this way.

Not only does this draw attention to one of the main tenets of Chad’s unique selling proposition, but it also provides highly valuable content for anyone looking to ship trading cards and allows Chad to call out his competitors’ lacklustre shipping practices without even saying a word about them.

Besides Chad’s blog, we also publish a monthly newsletter for him, using the same branded imagery you’ll find across all of Chad’s marketing.

These newsletters provide a great way for Chad to distribute his monthly blog content, entice subscribers to visit his store and social media channels, and promote special offers and upcoming appearances at conventions and trade shows.

Do you need help defining your brand positioning? We’ve been helping business owners to build their brands for more than 20 years. Contact us today to find out more about how we can help.

About the Author, Susan Friesen

Located in the lower mainland of B.C., Susan Friesen is a visionary brand strategist, entrepreneur, and founder of British Columbia’s premiere boutique web development and digital marketing agency, eVision Media.

With over 20 years of experience in the industry, she is an expert in helping businesses establish their online presence and create a strong brand identity.

Her passion for empowering entrepreneurs and small business owners to succeed in the digital world has earned her a reputation as a leading authority in the branding and marketing industry.

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