Sould I give up on this muse. Please help

[SebastianG]

Hi,

This is my third muse now and I am wondering if it is time to give up on this one. The first 2 didn't make it past the testing stage but this one did. Basically it is selling cd and a ebook.

Tell me what you guys think:

- during testing (7 days) 1% - 2% of customers bought (filled out my credit card form)
- this gave me a ROI of about 250% and was more than enough to cover all costs and meet my lifestyle requirements.
- I then made the product and was very excited about getting it live.
- After makng the product and updating the website I went live.
- I have roughly the same % that click on my ads
- I have roughly the same % that click my 'try it today' button to see the pricing page

But no one has bought!

I have had ads running for 7 days without one sale. Based on a 1 - 2% conversion rate I should sell 1 to 3 products a day depending on the day.

I can't afford to keep the ads going without any sales.

Should I keep plugging away with this muse or scrap it and move on?

[officer_dibble]

Hard to say without knowing the product.

Is it in anyway seasonal? A Halloween themed muse will only do well for a few weeks each year.

Sometimes the seasonal effects are less obvious - people tend to move house in Spring and Autumn (Fall) and moving house tends to be the only time people change their energy suppliers. So if your muse was related to energy supply - you'd expect peaks in Spring and Summer.

There is even monthly seasonality. If your product is discretionary - you might get less sales around the end of the month (when people are skint).

And Thanksgiving could be hitting your sales if you depend on US buyers. If they are online at all - they may not be in a buying mood (until Black Friday at least).

Finally it may be worth looking at other ways to drive traffic - eg PR or SEO.

[networkmemetics]

I typically see my stats getting a 10% click through to the order now page, and then about 12% of those purchasing. So this is about 1.2% of site visits....on somewhat shitty sales pages. I know I can increase my conversions up to about 2%....I'll be working on that over the next few days.

Think about it....It costs nothing to click on the "Purchase Now" button, but once you click, you might have to get up, grab your wallet, fill in all the credit card information, etc etc.

These are all barriers to sales that need to be overcome with a strong sales letter. Many people are going to come to the product page several times before deciding to pull out their card and make the purchase.

[SebastianG]

Thanks for your replies.

My product is a language based product so no real seasonal tides I would think.

Since going live I have gone through two stages of ad campaigns. The first one was 5 days and my payment process was this:

-product info
-pricing page (buy now button)
-Create username and password
-Pay

I had over 1% go though and create usernames but none paid.

I stopped my campaign and changed the payment to this:

-product info
-pricing page (buy now button)
-PayPal payment

and then the username and email comes after. Now no one has paid after 2 days of ads.

The thing is that 1 - 2% conversion rate for me is more than enough to cover the ads but 0% conversion really adds up, even after a week. (I am a student)

I was wondering if any of you had the same thing. Since in the testing you are not allowed to legally take credit card numbers so even if they fill out the form they could be putting in random numbers.

Also I have received emails from what would be 1 - 2% of the visitors of the site asking questions about the product:
- Can I pay you direct to you bank?
- Can I pay you via Weston Union? (what the!!!)

If these 1% were buying I would be making money.

Maybe I should have been dodgy and taken their credit card numbers during testing just to see if they were really trying to buy.

[Stallion]

Sebastian, post a link so we can see.

There's only two possible explanations. The marketing isn't persuasive enough OR you have the payment code screwed up.

I don't know you're testing process. Post your link. 9 times out of 10 it is the marketing. Copywriting (the ability to write persuasively with words) is something tough to get under your belt. You can get objective impressions from people on this site. It's hard to critique your own persuasiveness. You need someone else to look at it.

[maxpr]

Have you considered that the market for learning Swedish is probably quite small...?

I think that Spanish, French, German, Chinese, English etc. are probably where people without a "name" or large company in the business are making money with language lessons.

I am learning German now (independently) with Rosetta Stone (which people can get used copies quite cheaply now, I might add) and books.

Chances are slim to none that I would pay any amount of money to someone running an independent website (I mean no offense by that, just personal opinion).

Are there are tests that students or workers need to pass to work for a Swedish company or go to school in Sweden? Like TOEFL exams for English? Focus on teaching to that test or teach its standards.

You should focus on teaching people with an EXTRINSIC NEED for Swedish (like work or education) rather than intrinsic need like wanting to improve one self.

[Stallion]

Thanks for posting the link. I don't know how big the market is, but I think it is irrelevant. You should make sales at it. The number you'll get, I don't know.

The first thing that stood out for me is that you really push the guarantee from the start and probably shouldn't. You want to start straight with benefits and if your strongest benefit is a guarantee than that really doesn't say much about what you're selling.

No one buys for a guarantee. People buy because they want the kick ass product. The guarantee helps to remove the uneasy feeling of getting ripped or something. It takes away that little voice in their back of their head saying they shouldn't buy.

You have "try it now" button right up at the top. No one is buying a $65 product with what is essentially 12 words about the product. I know you have information on the next page, but I doubt anyone that will click that button will buy. And if they click it, they're probably not coming back. They'll just leave.

What is your unique selling point(USP)? It's not that you have to sell a different product than anyone else, but you have to angle differently. Rosetta Stone is probably the biggest language company in the world. I guess the best way to sum up their unique selling point is "learn naturally". Rosetta Stone is a pretty big business and they're more interesting in building a brand, but they still have that USP hidden on their website.

The idea of learning naturally is that you don't have to memorize shit. You don't have to repeat phrases over and over again until they sink into your head. You don't have to use flash cards. That is how they angle their product to the market. And who wouldn't want that? I'm not trying to learn new languages, but that appeals to me.

Right now, it appears that your USP is just "speak Swedish easily". It's not really tangible. And it doesn't draw me in and it certainly doesn't excite me.


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I read through your letter and there is one huge thing that stuck out: no benefits. There are no benefits listed for me (the potential buyer). All I see is stuff about your program, your students, your results, what you're selling, etc. What's in it for me?

I don't care about what you're selling (the product). I care about what I'm going to get (the benefit). And there is a difference between feature and benefit. Audio Lesson is a feature. Learning to speak Swedish while driving is a benefit.

You have a headline at the start stating "How is it possible to offer such a guarantee?", yet it doesn't say anything about it. It doesn't matter though because your guarantee shouldn't be talked about so soon.

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It's hard to give advice when you really need to come up with a USP. And really it should be centered around a buying emotion that potential customers will have.

Why do people want to learn a new language? Do they need it for business related things? Are they going to be traveling to Sweden in a week and they're looking for something to help them get by? Are they taking a course and want to get ahead of the class? Are they looking to learn Swedish as a business opportunity to sell their services to businesses and people?

Who is your buyer and why do they want to buy? You come up with an answer to that, you'll find many different unique selling points. And then you sell to them by giving them what they want.

Like, let's say I'm someone that wants to learn Swedish so I can start my own little business translating documents between English and Swedish. How would you get me "horny" for your product? Would you tell me that you have a Swedish language course or would you tell me how I will be able to translate simple documents into Swedish for $200/hr from local businesses?

Also your headline at the top of the page needs to kick ass. It's the most important part of the entire page. It sets the tone and it's what is going to make me read."using my simple method you can start speaking Swedish quickly and easily!" isn't really getting me horny for your product.

Your headline has to say your BIGGEST BENEFIT and it should be tangible (rather than conceptual).

Let's take a look at some headlines for other language products.

Rocket Spanish:

Who Else Wants to
Learn to Speak Spanish
Confidently and Naturally In Less Than 8 Weeks??

... AND take all the frustration, difficulty and headache out of YOUR practice time with this EXPLOSIVE interactive 'learn Spanish' package!

This is actually a headline with more than one benefit, but let's just focus on the first one. Essentially, speak Spanish in less than 8 weeks. I don't necessarily think the headline is that great, but it probably appeals to people that want to learn. It's tangible and too the point.

You should also read through their sales letter (http://www.rocketlanguages.com/spanish/premium/index.php) and see what they're doing. Take a look at what angle they're pushing and what benefits they're trying to hit.

----

I actually couldn't find any other programs like that, so I went to Amazon. Take a look at this book cover here (http://www.amazon.com/Swedish-Compact-Understand-Pimsleur-Schusters/dp/0743550560/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259521555&sr=8-1)

Under the title and picture it has "Scientifically Proven Method - Interactive Lessons - Only 30 Minutes a Day"

You could come up with some great headlines from that simple information.

"How To Speak Swedish With Only 30 Minute Daily Lessons"

"Discover The Scientifically Proven Method
Of Learning to Speak Swedish Fluently
In Only 30 Minutes A Day!"



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I've given you a lot of information, so if you had any place to start it would be with your unique selling point. FIND THAT. Do research and look at what your competitors are doing. Find that emotional buying trigger.

Once you do that, try to come up with as many kick ass benefits that you can think of for your product. That's BENEFITS, not FEATURES.

Oh and this may have came off harsh. That's not my intention. I'm just giving you a dose of reality and it will help you if you take it in.

[liam75005]

I agree the structure of your sales pages isn't great. Guarantee shouldn't come first. You should use the AIDA sequence : Attention, Interest, Desire, Action.

Attention : ask questions to the readers to grab their attentions
Interest : develop benefits and what they get
Desire : Accumulate more benefits in the form of bullet point lists (you already have those elements, just put them a bit earlier in your pitch)
Action : TRy it today button + guarantee (only at the end, even thu you can have several buttons)

Find your USP and use it in your sales message.

A suggestion as well about the price : if you want to check it the price is a problem or not, try to put the price on the "Try it today" page along with a visual of the product. If people drop out at this stage, you know you're pricing too high. Check competitors products and if you price higher, you have to justify it with the differenciators of your product.

[SebastianG]

Hi,

Thanks heaps for all your feedback. I should have asked questions earlier. I will experiment and see how I go.

I have been thinking about making different version of the website and doing A/B testing from the start of my next AD campaign. Have you guys tried this? Normally people talk about A/B testing after the product is selling to increase sales. Because I am strapped for cash I want to get the most out of my ad $$.

Would any of you guys advise for or against doing A/B testing at the same time?

Also on conversion rate I have read and heard that if your website does a good job you should get at least 1% conversion rate. Is this true?

Thanks again

[officer_dibble]

A/B testing is usually done to improve the performance of a site which is already making some sales. If your existing site is generating no sales then the only way is up from here. Personally I'm not sure I'd bother testing your old site against a new improved version - just go with the new improved version.

Some multivariate testing tools like Google Website Optimiser have a option for automatically disabling a poorly converting variant though.

I also spotted a minor typo - FAQs (it shouldn't have a ')

[SebastianG]

Thanks a lot!

[SebastianG]

Thanks for all your help again guys.

I have brainstormed what I am going to do and thought I would show you and you could let me know if I am on the right track.

Product Name: Speaking In Swedish
USP: Speak Swedish with Confidence in just 8 weeks with our scientifically proven method!

Below is the basic layout out the homepage that I am going to create. They are just headings and I will expand of each of them.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do you want to experience the enjoyment of speaking and understanding Swedish?

What to impress your friends with a lovely Swedish accent?

Do you want to learn more Swedish in 8 weeks than most people do in 8 months?

Have to struggled to learn the language after trying to wrestle your way though days/weeks or months of boring grammar lessons?

Are you sick of feeling like an outsider when your friends start speaking Swedish?


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Experience the enjoyment of Speaking and understanding Swedish from day one!

Practise you Swedish anywhere with our comprehensive system
- car, home, computer, mp3

Cement your growing knowledge of Swedish so the words and phrases are there when you need it.

Get the extra help you need with a teacher on call

Amaze yourself with your exponential learning curve

Impress your friends with your lovely Swedish accent

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Feel a part of Swedish society
- books, newspapers, movies, email

Get the edge on the competition

Reach your Swedish goals sooner rather than later.

How quickly will I see results?

Not sure if the program is for you?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Try it Today button – Picture of the product and guarantee

[Stallion]

Do you know any of the buying emotions? You have a USP, but I'm not really sure if that is something that sucks people in. It's hard for me figure it out because I have absolutely no desire to learn Swedish. That could be why the whole "Speak Swedish with Confidence in just 8 weeks with our scientifically proven method!" doesn't really resonate with me.

It's better though since it is tangible. When I read it, I know that I should be speaking Swedish good in 8 weeks.

I just think you should dig deeper into who your customer really is and WHY they buy. In your sales letter you mentioned that you learned because you had a Swedish wife.

But that's not really why. You may have done it so you can connect with her on a more intimate level. Or it could be something. I really don't know.

Eben Pagan (awesome/famous marketer) talked about creating avatars in a program he created called "Get Altitude". And essentially an avatar is a customer . Who is your customer? What is his/her name? What are his/her goals? what are his/her insecurities?

I didn't read anything past your unique selling point, just because that is all I wanted to address.

The people that are going to arrive at your site will want to learn Swedish, but why? Are they traveling there and want to get by with the local population? Is it business related? Are they just trying to impress other people?

I think you would get more out of things if you just figure out why a person is interested in Swedish to begin with. Once you understand WHY (that deep down emotion, not logic) than you can easily appeal to it.

What it feels like (to me) is that you're trying to appeal to a logical part of the brain. People tend to buy for emotional reasons and later rationalize it with logic. Like take a dating product. "Get 10 dates this week Guaranteed". It sounds nice and it's tangible. I guarantee that a nerd isn't interested in "dates". the idea of companionship. The idea of getting laid. The idea of having someone of the opposite sex feel attraction for them. Those (to me) are things that make a bigger impact. When you know these things you can empathize with your potential customer and gain their trust. And since you understand them you can uniquely push the things they want emotionally. Something like "Have women chase you" is something that would appeal to someone that just wants to be liked.

Do you get what I'm saying? I know that this can all seem convoluted because the points are subtle.

What you should do is dig through Amazon reviews for books on learning Swedish. A lot of the reviews will just be useless praise, but you'll see some good stuff. Look at the reviews that are just 1 star. You'll usually get an emotional response to why the program sucks and they'll probably tell you exactly what they want.

Take a look at this...

In Flight Swedish - Learn Before You Land (http://www.amazon.com/Flight-Swedish-Learn-Before-Land/dp/0609810960/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259727569&sr=8-8)

We know exactly what this product is about.

Who: A person traveling to Sweden
USP: Learn while you're on the flight to Sweden. This is for the type of person that is probably looking for Christmas presents on Christmas eve. Last minute, learn fast.

What is the emotional reason for the customer to buy? They obviously want to get by while they're in the country. Meaning, they don't want to look stupid. They don't want to have a frustrating time doing ordinary things because of language barriers, etc. Honestly I don't know.

Here is one particular 1 star review that stood out...

Last year I was able to quickly learn a handful of polite and useful phrases in French with Teach Yourself One-Day French. For my trip to Sweden, I looked for the same series in Swedish -- but no luck.

In-Flight Swedish was all I could find and it really falls short. My biggest complaint is that you only hear/say each phrase once, so there's no way for you to reinforce it by saying, hearing or using it again (as you would with Pimsleur). They also try to cram in too many phrases, most of which you'll never use, let alone remember.

All I hear is "I want to learn Swedish fast. I don't need to know everything, I just want enough to get by on my own. And i want it to stick."

[Stallion]

I guess to sum up that entire post...

Stop trying to sell your product and start trying to fill an emotional need of a customer.

[DaveinHackensack]

One thought about Swedish: my guess is that most Swedes speak English. That's generally the case with small European countries, because they know that no one outside of Sweden is going to be speaking Swedish. So if I were going to Sweden on vacation or business, I wouldn't worry about becoming fluent in the language, I would just want to learn enough words to earn some goodwill, by showing I had made the effort. E.g., learning how to greet someone in Swedish and then ask, "is it OK if I speak in English?". I did that during some business meetings in Brazil* once and I found out two things: 1) people appreciated the effort to speak their language; 2) they were happy to speak to me in English, as they didn't get a chance to speak it as often.

*Most Brazilians don't speak English, but the folks I was meeting were in the securities industry, and all needed to speak English to take a major licensing exam.

[officer_dibble]

These last few posts have sparked a memory - which might help.

I used to work with a Swedish lady who had an British boyfriend (who later became her husband). And they often thought about moving to Sweden but couldn't because he didn't speak Swedish and apparently you have next to no chance of getting a vaguely decent job if you don't speak the language.

Perhaps you could fulfil a need of Swedish ex-pats & their non-Swedish partners to easily learn the language to make it easier to find work and move there...