March 4, 2025 • 24 mins
Send us a text! (Your number stays private)
Wondering why your digital products aren’t selling? If you've spent hours creating the perfect product, only to hear crickets when you launch, it can feel frustrating and confusing. In this episode, I’m breaking down the five biggest reasons why your digital products aren’t selling—and, more importantly, how to fix them so you can start seeing real results.
We’ll talk about the most common mistakes that keep digital products from selling, from messaging missteps to not using social proof effectively. I’ll share simple, actionable strategies that can help you attract the right buyers and finally get your offers in front of the people who need them. Whether you're new to selling digital products or looking to improve your sales, you won’t want to miss this.
If you’re ready to stop spinning your wheels and start making consistent sales, this episode is for you. After listening, spend a few minutes looking over your best selling products with fresh eyes and use what you’ve learned to make improvements. Small changes can lead to big results!
01:13 - Specific tips to ensure your product presentation is clear enough
04:43 - How to build trust quickly with potential buyers
09:04 - Not sharing enough about the value of your product could be why your digital products aren’t selling!
11:40 - Tips for using the right words to describe and sell your digital products
15:14 - Different types of social proof to look for, and how to use it effectively
Links & Resources:
- Episode 133, Stop Guessing What to Say - Create a Core Message to Connect with Your Audience
- Episode 127, 5 Ways to Optimize Your Website Shop for Better Sales
- Follow me on Instagram @kristendoyle.co
- Check out my Everything Page: a one-stop shop for savvy selling!
- The Savvy Seller Collective
- Join my private Facebook community: Savvy Teacher Sellers
- More resources for growing your TPT business
- Rate & review The Savvy Teacher Seller on Apple Podcasts
Show Notes: https://kristendoyle.co/episode137
Tired of constantly hustling to sell your digital products? Check out my free 19-minute training where I show you how to turn all those products you already have into a profitable, automated business.
Get more freedom and less stress ➡️ watch now at kristendoyle.co/training
Check out my Everything Page at https://kristendoyle.co/everything
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Kristen Doyle (00:00):
Hey, y'all! Ever created what you thought was an
amazing digital product, but thesales just aren't reflecting how
great it is? If you're noddingyour head right now, you are
definitely not alone. In today'sepisode, we are diving into the
five most common reasons thatyour digital product might not
be converting and moreimportantly, how to fix them.
(00:23):
Whether you're selling yourproducts on your own website or
a marketplace platform, or both,these tips will help you turn
more of those browsers intobuyers.
Are you a digital product orcourse creator, selling on
platforms like teachers payteachers, Etsy or your own
website? Ready to grow yourbusiness, but not into the kind
(00:46):
of constant hustle that leadsstraight to burnout? Then you're
in the right place.
Welcome to The Savvy Seller. I'mKristen Doyle, and I'm here to
give you no fluff, tools andstrategies that move the needle
for your business withoutburning you out in the process.
Things like SEO, no stressmarketing, email list building,
(01:07):
automation, and so much more.
Let's get started y'all.
So the first issue that youmight be running into is that
your product presentation isn'tclear enough. See, first
impressions are everything. Whensomebody lands on your product
page, they really need to knowwhat they are getting within
(01:27):
seconds, because our attentionspans are so slow, we'll click
that back button in a heartbeat.
So make sure that your productis presented above the fold,
that means before people startto scroll in a way that really
highlights what is beingoffered. Now, if you're on a
(01:48):
marketplace platform, you mightnot have much control over the
layout of that product listingpage, so make sure you're taking
advantage of whatever is visiblebefore people need to scroll.
Typically, that's going to bethe title and at least one
product image. So take advantageof those and make sure you're
being really clear with whatpeople are going to get in this
(02:11):
product, so that they'll want tostick around and learn more. One
of the biggest mistakes that Isee is people assuming that
buyers already understand whythey need this product or what's
included.
Remember, if they are seeingthis product for the first time,
they might have been searchingfor exactly this, or they might
not really be sure what theyneed. So when you start
(02:31):
presenting your product, breakit down. Start with that big
picture. What is this and who isit for? Make sure you are
covering what problem it solvesfor them. And yes, every product
should solve a problem, even ifit's a really small problem, and
then walk them through exactlywhat is included.
Unknown (02:51):
You don't want people to have any surprises or to
assume something was includedthat's not because that's just
going to result in refundrequests. So make sure to walk
them through exactly what'sincluded in your product so
there are no surprises orquestions for them. If you can
use real photos or reallydetailed screenshots in your
product images or your productpreviews.
(03:12):
I know a lot of times peopleworry that they might give away
too much by doing this, but thetruth is, you really can't ever
give away too much unless you'reletting them print the entire
product for free. You want tomake sure it is really obvious
what people are getting, so thatthey feel confident making a
purchase.
Now, the longer your productdescriptions get, you need to
(03:35):
make it really easy to skim byincluding clear sections and
headers. You can do this withbolded text if you're on a
platform that doesn't allow trueheadings in your product
descriptions, and you can usethings like bulleted lists and
shorter sentences to make iteasier for people to skim as
well.
Kristen Doyle (03:53):
Little tip for you, the more expensive your
product is, the more detailyou're going to need to include,
and the longer your descriptionprobably needs to be. So keep
that in mind when you'recreating descriptions for those
bigger, more expensive products.
So here are your fixes for thatproblem. First look at your
product page through the eyes ofa brand new buyer who has never
(04:16):
seen this product before anddoesn't know what it is. Ask
yourself if I knew nothing atall about this product, would I
understand exactly what I'mgetting?
Unknown (04:26):
When you first land on the page? Ask yourself, would I
understand enough to want toscroll down and learn more? Make
sure as you're writing, you'reusing clear headers and bullet
points to keep your textskimmable, and be sure that
you're including lots of imagesthat show your actual product as
well.
Kristen Doyle (04:43):
All right, problem number two is you might
not be doing enough to buildtrust with potential buyers.
Here's the thing about digitalproducts that's a little
different. Buyers can't pickthem up and look at them like
they would in a store. So if Igo to the store to buy a
blanket, I can pick it up, I canfeel the fabric. I can tell how
heavy it is, how soft it is, howwarm it's going to be. I can see
(05:08):
the actual colors. But buyerscan't do this with our digital
products.
They are essentially purchasingsomething that they can't see,
and so that means that we haveto work extra hard to build
trust with them and make surethat they are confident to make
a purchase. So you want to makesure that you're showing your
expertise in some subtle ways inthe product description. Why
(05:31):
should they be listening to youif you've got relevant
background experience or someresults that you can share from
real customers that can go along way.
Unknown (05:41):
When you're picking out testimonials to share, make sure
you're using things that arereally authentic and descriptive
of your product, not just thosegeneric "This is great. I love
it so much" kind of feedback,but things that are really
clear. When it comes totestimonials, a lot of times, we
can assume that people willclick on a Reviews tab if they
(06:02):
want to see the testimonials,but that is a big mistake.
Make sure you are taking some ofyour best testimonials and
highlighting them all over theplace. You can put them into the
images you create. You can addthem to your product
description. You can add them inyour product previews, put them
as many places as possible,because lots of people won't
(06:24):
take the time to go throughthose product reviews even if
they do click on them. They mayjust look at the most recent
few, and you probably have somereally great reviews that they
would never see. So pull thosereally good ones and highlight
them so that people payattention.
Depending on your product,another thing that can be really
helpful for building trust iscreating a video, maybe a quick
(06:46):
tutorial on how to use parts ofyour product, or maybe even a
detailed walkthrough of theproduct. Will everybody watch
the video? No, absolutely not.
They won't. I can tell you rightnow I probably wouldn't watch
the video, because I am one ofthose people who just doesn't.
But for people who really wantto be sure that this is a good
purchase, they will watch videosand they will look through them.
(07:08):
It's a great way to show theproduct, because people know
that if you have created avideo, you are actually showing
this product. They hear yourvoice and all of those things.
It's a lot harder to fake thevideo than it is to fake some
mock ups or something like that.
And especially in this world ofAI where almost everything can
(07:28):
be faked, you want to make surethat you're using as much real
content as possible, real photosof your product, real videos
with your voice, not ones thatyou made with animations and
things, so that you are reallyjust showing off the product,
but also reassuring people thatyou're a real person who has
created a real product, and thatthey really are going to get the
(07:50):
thing that they think they are.
Kristen Doyle (07:51):
All right. Some tips for you on how to build
Unknown (07:51):
But if you're selling on your own website, be really
trust. First of all, displaythose testimonials prominently
throughout your product listing,you can also be really clear on
clear about how they're going toget the product, how long they
how they are going to get theproducts. This is a lot more
important on your own websitethan it is in a marketplace
have access where to go todownload things or to log into
where maybe they're alreadyfamiliar, they already know how
(08:12):
to access products.
your platform, make sure all ofthose things are super clear.
And if you are selling somethinglike a course or a really big
product bundle or something likethat, I would encourage you to
(08:35):
include a section about you.
You really want to build some nolike and trust factor by putting
your face on the page, if youcan, by talking about your
experience and why you're a goodperson to deliver this content
for them or to teach them thisthing in this course. So
(08:55):
consider including an about thecreator, about the author, type
of section in your productlisting, especially for bigger
products.
Problem number three is thatyou're not sharing enough about
the value of your product. See,people buy solutions to their
problems, but they only buy themif they think they're really
(09:17):
valuable. So don't just tellpeople what they are getting.
Tell them why it matters, why itis important, and how it's going
to help them.
Kristen Doyle (09:27):
See, most of the time, potential buyers are
asking themselves, why should Ibuy this instead of just
creating it myself, or insteadof just Googling or watching
YouTube videos, or whatever thealternative to your product or
your course is. They are askingthemselves, why should I buy
this one instead of this freealternative? So the way to
(09:50):
combat that objection is toreally focus on the benefit and
the value that your product oryour course offers people.
Unknown (10:00):
So focus on the transformation. What problem are
you solving for them? How istheir life, their job, their
business, whatever it is, how isthat going to be better after
they use your product? Andbelieve it or not, this even
works for little tiny products.
Little products might solvelittle problems, but they do
solve a problem, and they docreate a transformation for
(10:22):
people. So lean into that andthink about how you can show
people that transformation, thatchange that's going to happen
for them when they use yourproduct or buy your course.
Kristen Doyle (10:34):
Think about the time and the energy they're
going to save, and clearlyarticulate that on your sales
pages as well, and be specificabout what kind of results that
they can expect. For biggerproducts, especially if you're
selling something like a bigbundle or a course, consider
adding a value stack. This iswhere you list out everything
(10:54):
that they are getting with adollar amount value attached to
each one, and then show themthat how by purchasing it all
together, through this offer,they are saving whatever amount
of money that they are saving.
Unknown (11:07):
Keep in mind, again, the higher the price point, the
more you need to justify thevalue of your product. So this
is more and more important, thebigger your products get. Make
sure that you are clearlystating the problem that your
product solves, you're showingoff the transformation or the
end result that they're going toget. You're highlighting the
(11:28):
time or the energy orfrustration that they save by
getting this from you instead ofdoing it themselves. And you're
also highlighting how yours isbetter than any free
alternatives that might be outthere.
Mistake number four is using thewrong words to describe and sell
your product. Let's talk aboutthose actual words that you're
putting in a product descriptionor on a sales page. One of the
(11:51):
biggest mistakes I see is peoplelisting out the features of
their product and stoppingthere. Features are important.
They tell people what'sincluded. But when it really
comes down to it, it's thebenefits that sell the product,
not the features.
Most of the time, people don'twant a certain number of pages
(12:14):
or however many video lessonsyou might have. People aren't
really looking for specificnumbers of features, what
they're looking for is thebenefit they get out of those
features. So see if you cantranslate every feature of your
product or your offer into abenefit.
When I do this, I like to listthe feature first and then use a
(12:37):
little transitional phrase toget me to the benefit, something
like so that, to help you, tocreate whatever... Turn those
features into benefits, by usinga little transitional phrase, so
that you really are highlightingnot just what they get, but why
it's important. Before you everstart writing your product
description. Think about yourideal customers, pain points.
(13:01):
What are the things that reallyfrustrate them that your product
or your offer is going to solve?
If it's a bigger problem, thinkabout things like, what keeps
them up at night? What are thosethoughts that roll around in
their heads at 3am because theyjust can't sleep because it's
bothering them so much, and whenyou start writing, make sure
you're using the language thatyour customers would use, those
(13:21):
thoughts that they have, the waythat they talk, not any industry
jargon or fancy words.
I know we all want to sound likean expert, but use the words
that your people use. That wayit's easy for them to
understand, and they don't feellike you are just talking above
them and trying to sound fancierand smarter than you are. When
(13:42):
you are creating your productdescription, if this is a
digital product that they'regoing to download and use, make
sure you're including specificexamples of how they're going to
use this product. Maybe includelots of options. If your product
can be used in a variety ofdifferent ways, you want to
highlight that, because that's abenefit.
Kristen Doyle (14:00):
So make sure you're including those specific
examples. Another thing to do ismake it crystal clear who your
product is for, and this is thepart people don't like to do,
who it's not for. I know it canfeel a little stressful to
specifically call out this isn'tfor you, if, but a lot of times
(14:20):
our refund requests and ourunhappy buyers who leave bad
reviews were just a bad fit forthis product. It wasn't what
they needed. It didn't fit theirproblem, and as a result,
they're not happy, and none ofus want unhappy customers and
refund requests. So just make itcrystal clear who this product
is for and who it's not for.
That is a really great way tokeep the wrong people from
(14:44):
making a purchase.
And last but not least, makesure that you address any common
questions or concerns thatpeople might have, maybe in an
FAQ section, if your platformallows that, or you can even
just type out an FAQ section inthe main product description as
well. This is a really good wayto make sure that people fully
(15:06):
understand what they're gettingand that they don't have any
lingering questions wherethey're thinking, Well, I would
buy this if I knew that.
Unknown (15:14):
And problem number five is you are not using social
proof effectively enough. Now Iknow we already talked just a
little bit about how importantit is to put testimonials in
your product listings, butsocial proof is like word of
mouth marketing on steroids.
When people who have bought yourproduct make good comments about
(15:34):
it and leave you good reviewsand testimonials, these can go
so much further in terms ofgetting other people to trust
you and to make a purchase thanyou just saying how great your
product is.
So if you aren't including lotsof social proof on your sales
(15:55):
pages and in your productdescriptions, you should be.
Now there are a handful ofdifferent types of social proof
you might want to look for, andyou may not have all of these
for every type of product thatyou sell, but look for detailed
testimonials that share specificresults. If you ever have anyone
leave you a testimonial withnumbers in it, grab that
(16:17):
screenshot, save it somewhereand use it to sell that product.
You really can't beat atestimonial where someone says
this increased my sales by 50%or this increased my students
test scores by 10%.
Anything that gives specificnumbers and shows actual data
(16:39):
backed results is going to go sofar in terms of building trust
in your product or your coursefor whatever you are offering.
Look for people who share beforeand after type testimonials, the
ones that start with, I wasreally struggling with this
before I bought your product ortook your course, and now I'm
doing this. So look for thosebefore and afters.
Kristen Doyle (17:01):
And if you have higher ticket items, things like
a course or maybe a year longcurriculum or something like
that, think about gettingtogether some actual case
studies. See if you can get on acall or email back and forth
with someone who has used yourproduct or has taken and really
implemented your course, and getsome before and after
(17:22):
information, get some of thatdata from them, and create some
case studies for those higherticket offers.
Now when it comes to your socialproof, I know a lot of times we
want to retype the social proofbecause we can make it look like
our websites, and that's allfine and good. I am a fan of
things looking cohesive andbranded, but if you can share
(17:44):
screenshots of real customerfeedback or social media
comments or messages, anytimeyou can share a screenshot
instead of retyping something,you are going to immediately
increase the amount of trustpeople have that this is a real
review.
Unknown (18:01):
Another thing you can do to increase that trust in
your reviews is to include apicture of the person who left
the review. Now, yes, we allknow that you could potentially
go get some stock photos ofmodels somewhere and throw them
on your page, but just havingthat photo really does help to
build some trust if you can't doa screenshot of the actual
(18:22):
feedback.
The key with social proof is tomake it specific and relevant.
Don't just say people love this.
Show exactly how it helps them.
And if you're creating a longersales page for a bigger product,
put relevant pieces of socialproof with the sections of your
sales page that they go with.
Kristen Doyle (18:41):
So if you are talking about how your course
comes with an amazing community,and you have some social proof
about how much someone loves thecommunity, put that near that
same section, so that thesethings are all together. If you
have common objections topurchasing your product or your
course, look for testimonialsthat address those objections
(19:03):
head on.
People, maybe who had that sameconcern, and then they got in
and they found a solution forit, or something like that,
where people address thosecommon objections head on. Now
one of the best ways that youcan do that is to create a
system to gather feedback. Iknow most marketplaces have a
review platform, but they areasking the questions there.
(19:26):
So you don't have a whole lot ofcontrol over what kind of
information you get. But ifyou're selling on your own
website, or you're sellingsomething bigger, like a course
or something like that, thencreate a system to get feedback.
Maybe you create a simplefeedback form that you email out
to people after they've made apurchase, and use that to
consistently generate feedbackand create the questions that
(19:50):
will help you get testimonialswith those specific data points,
with those objections addressed.
Ak them point blank, whatobjections did you have before
you bought? Bought this, and howdo you feel about those things
now, after you've bought andused or implemented what you
purchased? So one more time,those specific tips for your
(20:11):
social proof, create a system tocollect feedback on a regular
basis. Use screenshots of realcustomer messages anytime that
you can pick out thosetestimonials that include
specific results and displaythat social proof prominently
and in lots of different placesthroughout the page.
(20:32):
All right, y'all let's do aquick recap of these five fixes
for the most common reasons thatyour product might not be
converting. First, make sure thepresentation is crystal clear.
There should be absolutely noguessing games about what's
included, and ideally, peopleshould not have any questions
left about your offer afterthey've read your sales page or
(20:54):
your product listing.
Second, make sure to build thattrust factor, keeping in mind
that they can't pick up and holda digital product, so you really
need to show them everythingthat they are getting using
pictures or videos, whatever isgoing to make sense for your
product.
Third, make sure you are clearlysharing the value proposition,
(21:15):
showing people what the truevalue is for your product. This
is especially important the moreexpensive your product is.
Number four, get those productdescriptions working harder for
you by focusing on the benefits,not just the features. Use those
so that statements to help youtransition from the feature to
(21:39):
the benefit.
And then finally, put yoursocial proof to work. Let those
happy customers that you havehelp sell for you and help
create trust in your product.
Here's your action step fortoday. Pick just one of these
areas and spend maybe 15 minuteslooking over your best selling
(21:59):
products. Look at them withfresh eyes and make some notes
about what you could improve.
Then get out there and get thosechanges made.
If you're loving the show, don'tforget to follow on your
favorite podcast app and leave areview. It really helps other
digital product creators, justlike you, find the show, and I
(22:19):
really appreciate it. Talk toyou soon.
Hey, y'all! Ever created what you thought was an
amazing digital product, but thesales just aren't reflecting how
great it is? If you're noddingyour head right now, you are
definitely not alone. In today'sepisode, we are diving into the
five most common reasons thatyour digital product might not
be converting and moreimportantly, how to fix them.
(00:23):
Whether you're selling yourproducts on your own website or
a marketplace platform, or both,these tips will help you turn
more of those browsers intobuyers.
Are you a digital product orcourse creator, selling on
platforms like teachers payteachers, Etsy or your own
website? Ready to grow yourbusiness, but not into the kind
(00:46):
of constant hustle that leadsstraight to burnout? Then you're
in the right place.
Welcome to The Savvy Seller. I'mKristen Doyle, and I'm here to
give you no fluff, tools andstrategies that move the needle
for your business withoutburning you out in the process.
Things like SEO, no stressmarketing, email list building,
(01:07):
automation, and so much more.
Let's get started y'all.
So the first issue that youmight be running into is that
your product presentation isn'tclear enough. See, first
impressions are everything. Whensomebody lands on your product
page, they really need to knowwhat they are getting within
(01:27):
seconds, because our attentionspans are so slow, we'll click
that back button in a heartbeat.
So make sure that your productis presented above the fold,
that means before people startto scroll in a way that really
highlights what is beingoffered. Now, if you're on a
(01:48):
marketplace platform, you mightnot have much control over the
layout of that product listingpage, so make sure you're taking
advantage of whatever is visiblebefore people need to scroll.
Typically, that's going to bethe title and at least one
product image. So take advantageof those and make sure you're
being really clear with whatpeople are going to get in this
(02:11):
product, so that they'll want tostick around and learn more. One
of the biggest mistakes that Isee is people assuming that
buyers already understand whythey need this product or what's
included.
Remember, if they are seeingthis product for the first time,
they might have been searchingfor exactly this, or they might
not really be sure what theyneed. So when you start
(02:31):
presenting your product, breakit down. Start with that big
picture. What is this and who isit for? Make sure you are
covering what problem it solvesfor them. And yes, every product
should solve a problem, even ifit's a really small problem, and
then walk them through exactlywhat is included.
Unknown (02:51):
You don't want people to have any surprises or to
assume something was includedthat's not because that's just
going to result in refundrequests. So make sure to walk
them through exactly what'sincluded in your product so
there are no surprises orquestions for them. If you can
use real photos or reallydetailed screenshots in your
product images or your productpreviews.
(03:12):
I know a lot of times peopleworry that they might give away
too much by doing this, but thetruth is, you really can't ever
give away too much unless you'reletting them print the entire
product for free. You want tomake sure it is really obvious
what people are getting, so thatthey feel confident making a
purchase.
Now, the longer your productdescriptions get, you need to
(03:35):
make it really easy to skim byincluding clear sections and
headers. You can do this withbolded text if you're on a
platform that doesn't allow trueheadings in your product
descriptions, and you can usethings like bulleted lists and
shorter sentences to make iteasier for people to skim as
well.
Kristen Doyle (03:53):
Little tip for you, the more expensive your
product is, the more detailyou're going to need to include,
and the longer your descriptionprobably needs to be. So keep
that in mind when you'recreating descriptions for those
bigger, more expensive products.
So here are your fixes for thatproblem. First look at your
product page through the eyes ofa brand new buyer who has never
(04:16):
seen this product before anddoesn't know what it is. Ask
yourself if I knew nothing atall about this product, would I
understand exactly what I'mgetting?
Unknown (04:26):
When you first land on the page? Ask yourself, would I
understand enough to want toscroll down and learn more? Make
sure as you're writing, you'reusing clear headers and bullet
points to keep your textskimmable, and be sure that
you're including lots of imagesthat show your actual product as
well.
Kristen Doyle (04:43):
All right, problem number two is you might
not be doing enough to buildtrust with potential buyers.
Here's the thing about digitalproducts that's a little
different. Buyers can't pickthem up and look at them like
they would in a store. So if Igo to the store to buy a
blanket, I can pick it up, I canfeel the fabric. I can tell how
heavy it is, how soft it is, howwarm it's going to be. I can see
(05:08):
the actual colors. But buyerscan't do this with our digital
products.
They are essentially purchasingsomething that they can't see,
and so that means that we haveto work extra hard to build
trust with them and make surethat they are confident to make
a purchase. So you want to makesure that you're showing your
expertise in some subtle ways inthe product description. Why
(05:31):
should they be listening to youif you've got relevant
background experience or someresults that you can share from
real customers that can go along way.
Unknown (05:41):
When you're picking out testimonials to share, make sure
you're using things that arereally authentic and descriptive
of your product, not just thosegeneric "This is great. I love
it so much" kind of feedback,but things that are really
clear. When it comes totestimonials, a lot of times, we
can assume that people willclick on a Reviews tab if they
(06:02):
want to see the testimonials,but that is a big mistake.
Make sure you are taking some ofyour best testimonials and
highlighting them all over theplace. You can put them into the
images you create. You can addthem to your product
description. You can add them inyour product previews, put them
as many places as possible,because lots of people won't
(06:24):
take the time to go throughthose product reviews even if
they do click on them. They mayjust look at the most recent
few, and you probably have somereally great reviews that they
would never see. So pull thosereally good ones and highlight
them so that people payattention.
Depending on your product,another thing that can be really
helpful for building trust iscreating a video, maybe a quick
(06:46):
tutorial on how to use parts ofyour product, or maybe even a
detailed walkthrough of theproduct. Will everybody watch
the video? No, absolutely not.
They won't. I can tell you rightnow I probably wouldn't watch
the video, because I am one ofthose people who just doesn't.
But for people who really wantto be sure that this is a good
purchase, they will watch videosand they will look through them.
(07:08):
It's a great way to show theproduct, because people know
that if you have created avideo, you are actually showing
this product. They hear yourvoice and all of those things.
It's a lot harder to fake thevideo than it is to fake some
mock ups or something like that.
And especially in this world ofAI where almost everything can
(07:28):
be faked, you want to make surethat you're using as much real
content as possible, real photosof your product, real videos
with your voice, not ones thatyou made with animations and
things, so that you are reallyjust showing off the product,
but also reassuring people thatyou're a real person who has
created a real product, and thatthey really are going to get the
(07:50):
thing that they think they are.
Kristen Doyle (07:51):
All right. Some tips for you on how to build
Unknown (07:51):
But if you're selling on your own website, be really
trust. First of all, displaythose testimonials prominently
throughout your product listing,you can also be really clear on
clear about how they're going toget the product, how long they
how they are going to get theproducts. This is a lot more
important on your own websitethan it is in a marketplace
have access where to go todownload things or to log into
where maybe they're alreadyfamiliar, they already know how
(08:12):
to access products.
your platform, make sure all ofthose things are super clear.
And if you are selling somethinglike a course or a really big
product bundle or something likethat, I would encourage you to
(08:35):
include a section about you.
You really want to build some nolike and trust factor by putting
your face on the page, if youcan, by talking about your
experience and why you're a goodperson to deliver this content
for them or to teach them thisthing in this course. So
(08:55):
consider including an about thecreator, about the author, type
of section in your productlisting, especially for bigger
products.
Problem number three is thatyou're not sharing enough about
the value of your product. See,people buy solutions to their
problems, but they only buy themif they think they're really
(09:17):
valuable. So don't just tellpeople what they are getting.
Tell them why it matters, why itis important, and how it's going
to help them.
Kristen Doyle (09:27):
See, most of the time, potential buyers are
asking themselves, why should Ibuy this instead of just
creating it myself, or insteadof just Googling or watching
YouTube videos, or whatever thealternative to your product or
your course is. They are askingthemselves, why should I buy
this one instead of this freealternative? So the way to
(09:50):
combat that objection is toreally focus on the benefit and
the value that your product oryour course offers people.
Unknown (10:00):
So focus on the transformation. What problem are
you solving for them? How istheir life, their job, their
business, whatever it is, how isthat going to be better after
they use your product? Andbelieve it or not, this even
works for little tiny products.
Little products might solvelittle problems, but they do
solve a problem, and they docreate a transformation for
(10:22):
people. So lean into that andthink about how you can show
people that transformation, thatchange that's going to happen
for them when they use yourproduct or buy your course.
Kristen Doyle (10:34):
Think about the time and the energy they're
going to save, and clearlyarticulate that on your sales
pages as well, and be specificabout what kind of results that
they can expect. For biggerproducts, especially if you're
selling something like a bigbundle or a course, consider
adding a value stack. This iswhere you list out everything
(10:54):
that they are getting with adollar amount value attached to
each one, and then show themthat how by purchasing it all
together, through this offer,they are saving whatever amount
of money that they are saving.
Unknown (11:07):
Keep in mind, again, the higher the price point, the
more you need to justify thevalue of your product. So this
is more and more important, thebigger your products get. Make
sure that you are clearlystating the problem that your
product solves, you're showingoff the transformation or the
end result that they're going toget. You're highlighting the
(11:28):
time or the energy orfrustration that they save by
getting this from you instead ofdoing it themselves. And you're
also highlighting how yours isbetter than any free
alternatives that might be outthere.
Mistake number four is using thewrong words to describe and sell
your product. Let's talk aboutthose actual words that you're
putting in a product descriptionor on a sales page. One of the
(11:51):
biggest mistakes I see is peoplelisting out the features of
their product and stoppingthere. Features are important.
They tell people what'sincluded. But when it really
comes down to it, it's thebenefits that sell the product,
not the features.
Most of the time, people don'twant a certain number of pages
(12:14):
or however many video lessonsyou might have. People aren't
really looking for specificnumbers of features, what
they're looking for is thebenefit they get out of those
features. So see if you cantranslate every feature of your
product or your offer into abenefit.
When I do this, I like to listthe feature first and then use a
(12:37):
little transitional phrase toget me to the benefit, something
like so that, to help you, tocreate whatever... Turn those
features into benefits, by usinga little transitional phrase, so
that you really are highlightingnot just what they get, but why
it's important. Before you everstart writing your product
description. Think about yourideal customers, pain points.
(13:01):
What are the things that reallyfrustrate them that your product
or your offer is going to solve?
If it's a bigger problem, thinkabout things like, what keeps
them up at night? What are thosethoughts that roll around in
their heads at 3am because theyjust can't sleep because it's
bothering them so much, and whenyou start writing, make sure
you're using the language thatyour customers would use, those
(13:21):
thoughts that they have, the waythat they talk, not any industry
jargon or fancy words.
I know we all want to sound likean expert, but use the words
that your people use. That wayit's easy for them to
understand, and they don't feellike you are just talking above
them and trying to sound fancierand smarter than you are. When
(13:42):
you are creating your productdescription, if this is a
digital product that they'regoing to download and use, make
sure you're including specificexamples of how they're going to
use this product. Maybe includelots of options. If your product
can be used in a variety ofdifferent ways, you want to
highlight that, because that's abenefit.
Kristen Doyle (14:00):
So make sure you're including those specific
examples. Another thing to do ismake it crystal clear who your
product is for, and this is thepart people don't like to do,
who it's not for. I know it canfeel a little stressful to
specifically call out this isn'tfor you, if, but a lot of times
(14:20):
our refund requests and ourunhappy buyers who leave bad
reviews were just a bad fit forthis product. It wasn't what
they needed. It didn't fit theirproblem, and as a result,
they're not happy, and none ofus want unhappy customers and
refund requests. So just make itcrystal clear who this product
is for and who it's not for.
That is a really great way tokeep the wrong people from
(14:44):
making a purchase.
And last but not least, makesure that you address any common
questions or concerns thatpeople might have, maybe in an
FAQ section, if your platformallows that, or you can even
just type out an FAQ section inthe main product description as
well. This is a really good wayto make sure that people fully
(15:06):
understand what they're gettingand that they don't have any
lingering questions wherethey're thinking, Well, I would
buy this if I knew that.
Unknown (15:14):
And problem number five is you are not using social
proof effectively enough. Now Iknow we already talked just a
little bit about how importantit is to put testimonials in
your product listings, butsocial proof is like word of
mouth marketing on steroids.
When people who have bought yourproduct make good comments about
(15:34):
it and leave you good reviewsand testimonials, these can go
so much further in terms ofgetting other people to trust
you and to make a purchase thanyou just saying how great your
product is.
So if you aren't including lotsof social proof on your sales
(15:55):
pages and in your productdescriptions, you should be.
Now there are a handful ofdifferent types of social proof
you might want to look for, andyou may not have all of these
for every type of product thatyou sell, but look for detailed
testimonials that share specificresults. If you ever have anyone
leave you a testimonial withnumbers in it, grab that
(16:17):
screenshot, save it somewhereand use it to sell that product.
You really can't beat atestimonial where someone says
this increased my sales by 50%or this increased my students
test scores by 10%.
Anything that gives specificnumbers and shows actual data
(16:39):
backed results is going to go sofar in terms of building trust
in your product or your coursefor whatever you are offering.
Look for people who share beforeand after type testimonials, the
ones that start with, I wasreally struggling with this
before I bought your product ortook your course, and now I'm
doing this. So look for thosebefore and afters.
Kristen Doyle (17:01):
And if you have higher ticket items, things like
a course or maybe a year longcurriculum or something like
that, think about gettingtogether some actual case
studies. See if you can get on acall or email back and forth
with someone who has used yourproduct or has taken and really
implemented your course, and getsome before and after
(17:22):
information, get some of thatdata from them, and create some
case studies for those higherticket offers.
Now when it comes to your socialproof, I know a lot of times we
want to retype the social proofbecause we can make it look like
our websites, and that's allfine and good. I am a fan of
things looking cohesive andbranded, but if you can share
(17:44):
screenshots of real customerfeedback or social media
comments or messages, anytimeyou can share a screenshot
instead of retyping something,you are going to immediately
increase the amount of trustpeople have that this is a real
review.
Unknown (18:01):
Another thing you can do to increase that trust in
your reviews is to include apicture of the person who left
the review. Now, yes, we allknow that you could potentially
go get some stock photos ofmodels somewhere and throw them
on your page, but just havingthat photo really does help to
build some trust if you can't doa screenshot of the actual
(18:22):
feedback.
The key with social proof is tomake it specific and relevant.
Don't just say people love this.
Show exactly how it helps them.
And if you're creating a longersales page for a bigger product,
put relevant pieces of socialproof with the sections of your
sales page that they go with.
Kristen Doyle (18:41):
So if you are talking about how your course
comes with an amazing community,and you have some social proof
about how much someone loves thecommunity, put that near that
same section, so that thesethings are all together. If you
have common objections topurchasing your product or your
course, look for testimonialsthat address those objections
(19:03):
head on.
People, maybe who had that sameconcern, and then they got in
and they found a solution forit, or something like that,
where people address thosecommon objections head on. Now
one of the best ways that youcan do that is to create a
system to gather feedback. Iknow most marketplaces have a
review platform, but they areasking the questions there.
(19:26):
So you don't have a whole lot ofcontrol over what kind of
information you get. But ifyou're selling on your own
website, or you're sellingsomething bigger, like a course
or something like that, thencreate a system to get feedback.
Maybe you create a simplefeedback form that you email out
to people after they've made apurchase, and use that to
consistently generate feedbackand create the questions that
(19:50):
will help you get testimonialswith those specific data points,
with those objections addressed.
Ak them point blank, whatobjections did you have before
you bought? Bought this, and howdo you feel about those things
now, after you've bought andused or implemented what you
purchased? So one more time,those specific tips for your
(20:11):
social proof, create a system tocollect feedback on a regular
basis. Use screenshots of realcustomer messages anytime that
you can pick out thosetestimonials that include
specific results and displaythat social proof prominently
and in lots of different placesthroughout the page.
(20:32):
All right, y'all let's do aquick recap of these five fixes
for the most common reasons thatyour product might not be
converting. First, make sure thepresentation is crystal clear.
There should be absolutely noguessing games about what's
included, and ideally, peopleshould not have any questions
left about your offer afterthey've read your sales page or
(20:54):
your product listing.
Second, make sure to build thattrust factor, keeping in mind
that they can't pick up and holda digital product, so you really
need to show them everythingthat they are getting using
pictures or videos, whatever isgoing to make sense for your
product.
Third, make sure you are clearlysharing the value proposition,
(21:15):
showing people what the truevalue is for your product. This
is especially important the moreexpensive your product is.
Number four, get those productdescriptions working harder for
you by focusing on the benefits,not just the features. Use those
so that statements to help youtransition from the feature to
(21:39):
the benefit.
And then finally, put yoursocial proof to work. Let those
happy customers that you havehelp sell for you and help
create trust in your product.
Here's your action step fortoday. Pick just one of these
areas and spend maybe 15 minuteslooking over your best selling
(21:59):
products. Look at them withfresh eyes and make some notes
about what you could improve.
Then get out there and get thosechanges made.
If you're loving the show, don'tforget to follow on your
favorite podcast app and leave areview. It really helps other
digital product creators, justlike you, find the show, and I
(22:19):
really appreciate it. Talk toyou soon.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.