If you want to win on Amazon, you’re not just marketing to consumers—you’re marketing to an algorithm. The brands that succeed are the ones that understand how to send the right signals, drive real engagement, and turn visibility into sustained growth." In this episode of Revenue Boost: A Marketing Podcast, host Kerry Curran is joined by Samir Bhavnani from Product Wind and Shari Brown from Central Garden & Pet to discuss an innovative strategy that’s reshaping how brands gain visibility and drive sales on Amazon. 👉 Listen in to learn how you can leverage influencers to boost your Amazon rankings and drive real revenue growth!"
“If you want to win on Amazon, you're not just marketing to consumers, you’re marketing to an algorithm. The brands that succeed are the ones that understand how to send the right signals, drive real engagement, and turn visibility into sustained growth.” That’s a quote from Samir Bhavani and a sneak peek at today’s episode.
Hey there, I’m Kerry Curran, Revenue Growth Consultant, Industry Analyst, and host of Revenue Boost: A Marketing Podcast. Every episode, I sit down with top experts to bring you actionable strategies that drive real revenue results. So if you’re serious about growth, hit subscribe and stay ahead of your competition.
In this episode, Influencers and Amazon: The Game-Changing Strategy for Top Rankings, I’m joined by Shari Brown, Senior Brand Manager at Central Garden & Pet, and Samir Bhavani, Strategic Account Director at ProductWind.
Samir, Shari, and I discuss a game-changing strategy for boosting Amazon rankings. We dive into the mechanics of how influencer-driven purchases and reviews send signals to the Amazon algorithm—and how leveraging creators and micro-influencers to influence that algorithm drives true results.
Shari shares how her team used this innovative approach to achieve a 285% overperformance in SEO results and 50 Page One wins—proving the power of a data-driven influencer strategy.
Be sure to stay tuned until the end, where Shari and Samir share how you can get started with a winning Amazon strategy today.
Let’s go.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (00:01.983)
Welcome, Samir and Shari. Please introduce yourselves and share a bit about your background and expertise.
Samir Bhavnani (00:10.274)
Thanks, Kerry, for having me. I'm Samir, based out of San Diego. I actually got my start back in 1998 at Boston College, where Kerry and I both attended. I've been in e-comm for about 15 years now, and I’ve always been passionate about emerging technologies.
Back in 2009, I joined a company doing video reviews with influencers—before Instagram, before TikTok. I later started one of the first e-commerce market share companies, which eventually became 1010data. Then I joined CommerceIQ, the first company I knew doing automations around advertising and sales. At the end of last year, I made my next big bet—joining ProductWind, one of the most unique companies I’ve seen in e-commerce in the last decade.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (01:16.149)
And for the record, Samir and I both graduated when we were 12. That’s why we were in class in ’98. Go ahead, Shari, please introduce yourself.
Shari Brown (01:25.701)
Thanks for having me. I've been in the brand world for over 10 years across startups, traditional CPG with Mars Wrigley, a DTC company under Nestlé, and now with Central Garden & Pet. They're a $3.3 billion company you’ve likely never heard of because they operate a portfolio of garden and pet brands.
I’ve been here for two years, working on the pet side, specifically in cat health and wellness.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (01:55.797)
Excellent—excited to talk to both of you. You've got great strategies and examples to share.
Before we dive in—Samir, as you said, we’ve both been watching e-comm evolve (since we were 12!), and while it’s been exciting, it’s also become more challenging. Talk about what you’ve seen and how competitive it’s become for brands to gain visibility.
Samir Bhavnani (02:30.488)
E-commerce is more competitive now—more brands, more aggressive tactics. For years, brands focused on big-name influencers like Kim Kardashian to drive awareness. That can look great, but at the end of the day, we need to sell specific products on specific platforms.
Marketers at companies like Central have a unique challenge: they not only have to market to consumers, but also to algorithms—Amazon’s, Walmart’s, Target’s. You need to send the right signals to those algorithms so your products even show up in front of consumers.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (03:40.905)
Exactly. It’s complex and requires smart thinking and the right mix of strategies.
Shari, tell us more about your brand, your product, and where you were when you realized you needed support.
Shari Brown (04:05.453)
I work on a brand called Comfort Zone in the cat calming category. And no, it’s not cat yoga—though I’d totally try that. Cats get stressed by almost anything—moving, kids, marriage, even just shifting furniture.
The tension is that people adopt cats thinking they’re low-maintenance, and then the cat pees on the wall or claws the couch. That’s where Comfort Zone comes in—we help reduce stress so cats can be their quirky, lovable selves.
It’s a great category with lots of upside, but it has low household penetration and low awareness—so we needed to figure out how to get visibility.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (05:24.245)
So you had the challenge of building category and brand awareness, driving trial, and growing share. What were your business challenges when you first connected with Samir?
Shari Brown (05:43.825)
I was trying to grow visibility. We had a paid strategy in place, but I was looking for something organic, especially on Amazon. A colleague invited me to a ProductWind capabilities presentation. I said sure—I needed all the help I could get.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (06:04.127)
Did they offer you lunch? That always helps.
Shari Brown (06:07.149)
We were remote, so I’m still waiting on that DoorDash code! But what hooked me was their approach—they talked about driving visibility for new launches. I said, “I don’t have a new launch—but could we apply this to my trial SKUs that are buried on Amazon?” And it turned into a perfect partnership.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (06:35.893)
I love that. You saw the opportunity to apply their model to existing products. Samir, talk about how you collaborated on the approach.
Samir Bhavnani (07:02.902)
Yeah—ProductWind is best known for helping brands launch new products fast. But that's not the only use case. Shari’s was perfect: the product was already in-market, but underperforming.
So we identified key goals and deployed creators—people relevant to the category, not just random influencers. You don’t want dog-only households reviewing a cat product. You want authentic engagement that sends the right signals to the Amazon algorithm.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (08:14.047)
Right—context matters.
Samir Bhavnani (08:30.434)
Exactly. Depending on the brand’s goals, we activate different groups of creators. For new products, it’s all about speed to reviews and early rank. For existing products like Comfort Zone, we needed to signal that it was trending—to move it from page two to page one. That shift alone can massively impact sales.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (10:05.353)
Totally. You’re using creators not just for awareness, but to influence the algorithm at point of purchase—and that flywheel drives even more sales. It’s a smart strategy. So how do you set up the test and track what’s working?
Samir Bhavnani (11:02.018)
Great question. First, we define campaign goals: how many reviews, how many page-one rankings, etc. Then we measure results. That’s table stakes.
But then we compare outcomes—what would’ve happened with vs. without the campaign. We use A/B tests, similar products, or control groups to prove incrementality. I’ll let Shari share more.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (12:00.501)
Shari, how did you evaluate success?
Shari Brown (12:09.253)
I’m all about test and learn. With a scrappy budget, every dollar has to work. First, I looked for momentum in week one. Then I asked, “Did ProductWind drive my page-one win, or was I already there?”
ProductWind helped bring visibility to that data so I could separate baseline wins from their impact. Huge credit to the team for that partnership.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (13:04.243)
That’s awesome. So how did clearer data make you smarter as a marketer?
Shari Brown (13:18.641)
It gave me confidence in what’s actually driving success. With our three initial campaigns, we saw:
The results were clear. Now we’re deciding where to expand the partnership across the brand and the broader Central Garden & Pet portfolio.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (14:20.671)
Incredible results—definitely proof of impact. So what’s next?
Samir Bhavnani (15:11.470)
After the first campaign, it takes some handholding. But once Shari’s team got familiar, they could manage campaigns themselves.
The beauty is it’s now an always-on platform. Let’s say Shari finds out there’s a promo starting next Wednesday—she can log in today, launch a campaign in 60–90 seconds, and boost the product rank ahead of the promo.
That makes paid media more efficient because the product is already elevated in the algorithm.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (16:34.313)
Love that integration with broader sales strategies. So for brands getting started on Amazon, what’s your top advice?
Samir Bhavnani (16:49.560)
Do your research. Every brand is different. Look at your go-to-market plan: what’s worked, what hasn’t. In 2025, everyone’s digital sales targets are higher.
So ask: What can I do differently? If a product’s been on Amazon a year and is lagging—or there’s excess inventory—you need to act fast. Explore new, innovative approaches. Maybe it’s ProductWind. Maybe it’s another solution. But test and learn, like Shari did.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (18:23.743)
Excellent advice. Thank you both for sharing such valuable insights. Before we go—how can people find you?
Samir Bhavnani (18:35.886)
You can find me on LinkedIn or at productwind.com.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (18:42.869)
Great. Shari?
Shari Brown (19:20.087)
Feel free to find me on LinkedIn—Shari Brown. Happy to connect anytime.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (19:23.463)
Perfect. And we’ll include a link to your products in the show notes for all the cat lovers out there—my best friend is definitely getting one as a gift.
Thank you both again for joining and sharing your expertise. This was a great conversation.
Samir Bhavnani (19:42.222)
This was great. Shari, good luck with resident today. Bye, guys.
Shari Brown (19:47.131)
Thanks, Kerry. Take care!
Thanks for tuning in to today’s episode. If you’re struggling with flat or slow revenue growth, you’re not alone. That’s why Revenue Boost: A Marketing Podcast brings you expert insights, actionable strategies, and real-world success stories to help you scale faster.
So if you’re serious about growth, hit follow, subscribe, and drop a five-star rating. It helps us keep the game-changing content coming. New episodes drop regularly—so don’t miss out.
“If you want to win on Amazon, you're not just marketing to consumers, you’re marketing to an algorithm. The brands that succeed are the ones that understand how to send the right signals, drive real engagement, and turn visibility into sustained growth.” That’s a quote from Samir Bhavani and a sneak peek at today’s episode.
Hey there, I’m Kerry Curran, Revenue Growth Consultant, Industry Analyst, and host of Revenue Boost: A Marketing Podcast. Every episode, I sit down with top experts to bring you actionable strategies that drive real revenue results. So if you’re serious about growth, hit subscribe and stay ahead of your competition.
In this episode, Influencers and Amazon: The Game-Changing Strategy for Top Rankings, I’m joined by Shari Brown, Senior Brand Manager at Central Garden & Pet, and Samir Bhavani, Strategic Account Director at ProductWind.
Samir, Shari, and I discuss a game-changing strategy for boosting Amazon rankings. We dive into the mechanics of how influencer-driven purchases and reviews send signals to the Amazon algorithm—and how leveraging creators and micro-influencers to influence that algorithm drives true results.
Shari shares how her team used this innovative approach to achieve a 285% overperformance in SEO results and 50 Page One wins—proving the power of a data-driven influencer strategy.
Be sure to stay tuned until the end, where Shari and Samir share how you can get started with a winning Amazon strategy today.
Let’s go.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (00:01.983)
Welcome, Samir and Shari. Please introduce yourselves and share a bit about your background and expertise.
Samir Bhavnani (00:10.274)
Thanks, Kerry, for having me. I'm Samir, based out of San Diego. I actually got my start back in 1998 at Boston College, where Kerry and I both attended. I've been in e-comm for about 15 years now, and I’ve always been passionate about emerging technologies.
Back in 2009, I joined a company doing video reviews with influencers—before Instagram, before TikTok. I later started one of the first e-commerce market share companies, which eventually became 1010data. Then I joined CommerceIQ, the first company I knew doing automations around advertising and sales. At the end of last year, I made my next big bet—joining ProductWind, one of the most unique companies I’ve seen in e-commerce in the last decade.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (01:16.149)
And for the record, Samir and I both graduated when we were 12. That’s why we were in class in ’98. Go ahead, Shari, please introduce yourself.
Shari Brown (01:25.701)
Thanks for having me. I've been in the brand world for over 10 years across startups, traditional CPG with Mars Wrigley, a DTC company under Nestlé, and now with Central Garden & Pet. They're a $3.3 billion company you’ve likely never heard of because they operate a portfolio of garden and pet brands.
I’ve been here for two years, working on the pet side, specifically in cat health and wellness.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (01:55.797)
Excellent—excited to talk to both of you. You've got great strategies and examples to share.
Before we dive in—Samir, as you said, we’ve both been watching e-comm evolve (since we were 12!), and while it’s been exciting, it’s also become more challenging. Talk about what you’ve seen and how competitive it’s become for brands to gain visibility.
Samir Bhavnani (02:30.488)
E-commerce is more competitive now—more brands, more aggressive tactics. For years, brands focused on big-name influencers like Kim Kardashian to drive awareness. That can look great, but at the end of the day, we need to sell specific products on specific platforms.
Marketers at companies like Central have a unique challenge: they not only have to market to consumers, but also to algorithms—Amazon’s, Walmart’s, Target’s. You need to send the right signals to those algorithms so your products even show up in front of consumers.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (03:40.905)
Exactly. It’s complex and requires smart thinking and the right mix of strategies.
Shari, tell us more about your brand, your product, and where you were when you realized you needed support.
Shari Brown (04:05.453)
I work on a brand called Comfort Zone in the cat calming category. And no, it’s not cat yoga—though I’d totally try that. Cats get stressed by almost anything—moving, kids, marriage, even just shifting furniture.
The tension is that people adopt cats thinking they’re low-maintenance, and then the cat pees on the wall or claws the couch. That’s where Comfort Zone comes in—we help reduce stress so cats can be their quirky, lovable selves.
It’s a great category with lots of upside, but it has low household penetration and low awareness—so we needed to figure out how to get visibility.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (05:24.245)
So you had the challenge of building category and brand awareness, driving trial, and growing share. What were your business challenges when you first connected with Samir?
Shari Brown (05:43.825)
I was trying to grow visibility. We had a paid strategy in place, but I was looking for something organic, especially on Amazon. A colleague invited me to a ProductWind capabilities presentation. I said sure—I needed all the help I could get.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (06:04.127)
Did they offer you lunch? That always helps.
Shari Brown (06:07.149)
We were remote, so I’m still waiting on that DoorDash code! But what hooked me was their approach—they talked about driving visibility for new launches. I said, “I don’t have a new launch—but could we apply this to my trial SKUs that are buried on Amazon?” And it turned into a perfect partnership.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (06:35.893)
I love that. You saw the opportunity to apply their model to existing products. Samir, talk about how you collaborated on the approach.
Samir Bhavnani (07:02.902)
Yeah—ProductWind is best known for helping brands launch new products fast. But that's not the only use case. Shari’s was perfect: the product was already in-market, but underperforming.
So we identified key goals and deployed creators—people relevant to the category, not just random influencers. You don’t want dog-only households reviewing a cat product. You want authentic engagement that sends the right signals to the Amazon algorithm.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (08:14.047)
Right—context matters.
Samir Bhavnani (08:30.434)
Exactly. Depending on the brand’s goals, we activate different groups of creators. For new products, it’s all about speed to reviews and early rank. For existing products like Comfort Zone, we needed to signal that it was trending—to move it from page two to page one. That shift alone can massively impact sales.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (10:05.353)
Totally. You’re using creators not just for awareness, but to influence the algorithm at point of purchase—and that flywheel drives even more sales. It’s a smart strategy. So how do you set up the test and track what’s working?
Samir Bhavnani (11:02.018)
Great question. First, we define campaign goals: how many reviews, how many page-one rankings, etc. Then we measure results. That’s table stakes.
But then we compare outcomes—what would’ve happened with vs. without the campaign. We use A/B tests, similar products, or control groups to prove incrementality. I’ll let Shari share more.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (12:00.501)
Shari, how did you evaluate success?
Shari Brown (12:09.253)
I’m all about test and learn. With a scrappy budget, every dollar has to work. First, I looked for momentum in week one. Then I asked, “Did ProductWind drive my page-one win, or was I already there?”
ProductWind helped bring visibility to that data so I could separate baseline wins from their impact. Huge credit to the team for that partnership.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (13:04.243)
That’s awesome. So how did clearer data make you smarter as a marketer?
Shari Brown (13:18.641)
It gave me confidence in what’s actually driving success. With our three initial campaigns, we saw:
The results were clear. Now we’re deciding where to expand the partnership across the brand and the broader Central Garden & Pet portfolio.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (14:20.671)
Incredible results—definitely proof of impact. So what’s next?
Samir Bhavnani (15:11.470)
After the first campaign, it takes some handholding. But once Shari’s team got familiar, they could manage campaigns themselves.
The beauty is it’s now an always-on platform. Let’s say Shari finds out there’s a promo starting next Wednesday—she can log in today, launch a campaign in 60–90 seconds, and boost the product rank ahead of the promo.
That makes paid media more efficient because the product is already elevated in the algorithm.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (16:34.313)
Love that integration with broader sales strategies. So for brands getting started on Amazon, what’s your top advice?
Samir Bhavnani (16:49.560)
Do your research. Every brand is different. Look at your go-to-market plan: what’s worked, what hasn’t. In 2025, everyone’s digital sales targets are higher.
So ask: What can I do differently? If a product’s been on Amazon a year and is lagging—or there’s excess inventory—you need to act fast. Explore new, innovative approaches. Maybe it’s ProductWind. Maybe it’s another solution. But test and learn, like Shari did.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (18:23.743)
Excellent advice. Thank you both for sharing such valuable insights. Before we go—how can people find you?
Samir Bhavnani (18:35.886)
You can find me on LinkedIn or at productwind.com.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (18:42.869)
Great. Shari?
Shari Brown (19:20.087)
Feel free to find me on LinkedIn—Shari Brown. Happy to connect anytime.
Kerry Curran, RBMA (19:23.463)
Perfect. And we’ll include a link to your products in the show notes for all the cat lovers out there—my best friend is definitely getting one as a gift.
Thank you both again for joining and sharing your expertise. This was a great conversation.
Samir Bhavnani (19:42.222)
This was great. Shari, good luck with resident today. Bye, guys.
Shari Brown (19:47.131)
Thanks, Kerry. Take care!
Thanks for tuning in to today’s episode. If you’re struggling with flat or slow revenue growth, you’re not alone. That’s why Revenue Boost: A Marketing Podcast brings you expert insights, actionable strategies, and real-world success stories to help you scale faster.
So if you’re serious about growth, hit follow, subscribe, and drop a five-star rating. It helps us keep the game-changing content coming. New episodes drop regularly—so don’t miss out.