Source: https://www.extole.com/blog/small-retailers-rise-to-the-top/

Blog

Advocacy

# Small Retailers Rise to the Top

Chris Duskin January 8, 2014

Extole CEO, Matt Roche, recently wrote on CMO.com about the [Rise of Challenger Brands](https://bit.ly/1hAfEwf) and their willingness to adopt creative marketing tactics to fuel their growth. Matt praised Challenger Brands for their ability to “use the critical mass of passionate customers to fuel rapid growth...since customers are more empowered than ever and want a personal link to brands, they often take to social channels to express preferences, giving brands reach like never before.” And, that’s exactly why a number of small retailers have landed at the top of [Internet Retailer’s (IR) 2014 Social Media 500](https://www.internetretailer.com/social-media-guide/?cid=2014SM500-AP) list.

Recently released, the IR Social Media 500 “profiles the 500 leading North American e-retailers that have cemented their standing in social marketing and commerce savvy based on the percentage of site traffic they’ve derived from Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube.” Based on the research, the top 10 e-retailers are actually Challenger Brands that have turned to innovative strategies to drive engagement and sales. These e-retailers, like BucketFeet and Ranger Up, almost exclusively operate online and drive most of their traffic from social networks. Sans deep pockets and high ad spends, these challengers are outsmarting the competition by delivering great content backed by nimble marketing teams and customer-centric strategies.

As Matt mentioned in his byline, many Challengers employ customer-centric strategies like referral marketing because they tap into customers’ innate sharing nature and can be directly tied to sales. So, it’s no wonder the IR’s Top 10 companies are those that leverage that knowledge and use it to their advantages (BucketFeet has a referral program!).

-   [

    Oct 7, 2013

    ## You Scratch My Back, I’ll Scratch Yours

    When someone does you a favor, what do you do? If you’re like most people, you do the person a favor back. This seemingly simple psychological principle is called reciprocity,…

    Consumer Psychology Referral Marketing Concepts Referral Program Ideas

    ](https://www.extole.com/blog/you-scratch-my-back-ill-scratch-yours/)
-   [

    Sep 26, 2013

    ## Watch the Replay of BodyMedia and Extole’s Webinar

    Yesterday, we were honored to have one of our top customers, BodyMedia, join us for the BodyMedia Creates a Breakout Acquisition Channel via Referral Marketing webinar. Gwen…

    Customer Acquisition Video

    ](https://www.extole.com/blog/watch-the-replay-of-bodymedia-and-extoles-webinar/)
-   [

    Sep 20, 2013

    ## Referral Marketing Customers Significantly More Valuable & Loyal: AMA Study

    Word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing has become cool again with marketers looking to improve acquisition rates. But many of those same marketers still look skeptically at using…

    Advocacy

    ](https://www.extole.com/blog/referral-marketing-customers-significantly-more-valuable-loyal-ama-study/)

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