this post was submitted on 23 Nov 2023
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Hi, I’m hoping to get feedback on why I’m not getting any sales for my new product. I got a really good response when I took it to events, but now that I’m trying to sell, it - nothing. 😥 Click through rates are 6-7% for FB ads and 1-2% for Instagram and TikTok. I’m using Shopify. Any suggestions? Is it just the product, or is there a way to salvage this?Website is www.kittyscapes.com. Thank you!

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[–] Healthy-Quarter5388@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

You have a gigantic popup upon visiting your site - if I stumbled upon your site seeing this, I would immediately close the tab.

The design of the website in general is... unprofessional. Probably turns a lot of people off too.

No information about your brand/company, or terms, or even shipping info.

[–] TourApprehensive2155@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Too many different colours on the site, and you've got colours that don't contrast well like dark blue on black/gray. I observed many error messages in the image carousels too.

[–] warbuspie@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago
  1. Product on back order……no thanks
  2. You’re selling just the clip… that’s not clear in the website and pretty rude. I thought I was getting the tree as well.
  3. Putting my $2000 laptop in a $35 clip. Um no. What happens when my cat knocks the tablet?
  4. Why would my cat watch a tablet.

Overall Stupid product

[–] MCStarlight@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Get it in the hands of a cat influencer and have them use it and show up their followers. You will probably have to pay them.

Example: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CyjwSbOL9MM/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

[–] ynotanna@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Thank you! I definitely want to do this at some point - they’re just really expensive.

[–] Sonar114@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

The problem isn’t your marketing, it’s just that you’re selling a solution to a problem that people might not think they have. Which is always hard.

If cat owners regularly put a screen up for their cats then this would be a great way to do it but I’m not sure many do.

I think it’s a tough sell but if you do want to continue you need to convince people of the benefits of a cat watching a screen first.

[–] BusinessStrategist@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Simple.

Do you have a family member or close friend who has any interest in the product that you are selling.

Ask them not about your product but rather whether your website makes sense to them.

[–] Wonderful_Side_3722@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

I think the reason why your not converting well comes from not being clear what you're selling me. After scrolling your whole website, I have no clue what problem you're going to solve really... Also the design and structure of the website is a bit confusing.

[–] NiubShock@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Did you make a good market analysis, competitor analysis and some interviews?

If you did it and you got some good response then the problem is either the communication or the marketing.

The website looks quite bad tbh but is not even the worst I have ever seen, for the marketing what did you do?

[–] ynotanna@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

There’s no other product that does the same thing, so no direct competitors to study. But I looked at things like the numbers of subscribers (hundreds of thousands) for YouTube channels that make videos for cats - they get millions of views. So the market is there, as far as I can tell. Then I went to cat expos and talked to people. So far for marketing I’ve used FB, IG, and TikTok. But I just stopped running them for the moment, though, because I feel like they’re wasted money until I address whatever the underlying issue is.

[–] NiubShock@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

So, first of all, the number of views doesn't imply the market size but rather the overall interest. You might not have a direct competitor because you have more features but there are already a bunch of other cat tree shops, do you know their market size? Have you analyzed them? Facebook, IG and ticktock are good, but you need to have a profile of the buyer and then target them.

I'm telling you this because I'm also developing a new product and even tho you might not have a direct competitor you will always have a competitor.

An interesting example is the example of the bookshelf. You might think that the competitors are only the bookshelf manufacturer but also the kindle and the library are competitors.

You should always think on a greater picture.

[–] AnonJian@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

I got a really good response when I took it to events, but now that I’m trying to sell, it - nothing.

People do try to be nice. It is the most effective, quickest way of getting an annoyance out of one's face. Bless their heart.

My product validation is completely different then real results. Advice?

Need a bit of help; Created an amazing product, posted some images on social media, all the feedback has been extremely positive... but ZERO sales. How do I change this?

The root of our downfall lies in the way we validated our idea. To grow quickly, we made our MVP free. ... But when launch day rolled around, our “totally sold” leads were nowhere to be found. Everything changed when we asked for their credit card.

How To Crash Your Startup

How many people have never heard the phrase of putting one's money where their mouth is? Okay, a hint: That's Not For Weight Loss!

The tendency to self-sabotage is so prevalent, so ingrained, it is baked into every startup. That is why -- despite books specifically meant to prevent the failure -- people simply twisted the meaning so they could screw themselves over.

Books didn't help -- failure rates remain rock solid. Forums don't help -- wantrepreneurial myths get upvoted to top position. Advice doesn't work -- it competes against accidental success.

[–] Dramatic-Level5900@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago (2 children)

You need to hire a graphic designer to show the advantage of your product.

[–] ynotanna@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Thanks! I think you’re right.

[–] Dramatic-Level5900@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Just an advice,I think your product needs models with 3D polished to attract audiences( Check Alibaba website to see 3D model of products). In this case , I am a freelance graphic designer and I think I can help you. Here is my portfolio and if you interest my work, you can contact me. https://www.behance.net/zaylynnhtut

[–] expelledpanda@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Hmm u got this

[–] BTCbob@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

The problem is: cats love watching videos of birds on a tablet, but it’s difficult to set up. Treetabby is a tablet holder designed for cats.

That should be the only text. Then there should be lots of pictures and videos of cats having fun with your product and buy now buttons everywhere. There should be NO images of cats sitting on a recliner, no images of the system powered off, etc. then in the checkout cart you can say “cat not included” If you really want to put your vision or whatever you can do that on separate clickable tabs but make the landing page all about the problem you are solving.

Make it super obvious. Good luck.

[–] isthatayeti@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Yeah my first thought about this is OP has designed a product to solve a problem that doesn’t feel like a real problem. Trying to create a need for a product that is niche and doesn’t add clear value is going to be incredibly hard.

Look at your fundamental idea here and figure out

  1. Who is it for? As a non cat owner I can’t imagine that this product adds any value to anyone . Not saying it doesn’t just saying I wouldn’t even mention the product to someone with a cat.
  2. How many people will really use this? Sometimes you are the only product on the market because you found something great like a unicorn. Most of the time you are creating a product for a problem that nobody needs to solve. Like nasa creating the pen that writes in space , when you have a pencil that already works.
  3. How is it better than what’s currently available? I mean most people running videos for their pets just put them on when they aren’t at home . I haven’t seen many people running videos on the tv etc if they are around. Again I just don’t see what problem you’re solving
  4. What will this do for me ? What I see right now is I have to buy a tablet holder and a tablet for my cat to watch, why do I need to invest a couple hundred dollars so my cat can have screen time? You need to sell this as a real value proposition
[–] ynotanna@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Thanks for the info in-depth response!

[–] cracker2338@alien.top 1 points 11 months ago

Without spending a ton of time looking at the site, a few little things pop out at me:

  • The fact that the navigation menu lists "catalog" but when you click on it, you only have one item (it's not really a "catalog" then).
  • You have filter and sort functions on a page with only one item for sale.
  • There is the option to "add to cart" but at the bottom it says you are taking pre-orders, so which one is it? If it's only available for pre-order, I feel like the button should say "pre-order now" and have the expected delivery time listed directly underneath the button.
  • The black background in the photos is just bad, but then again, the photos in general are pretty bad as well. And is there only one screw holding the thing in place?
  • I feel like you need to clarify how this could work on any cat tree (if it even can) - for what you are trying to charge, that seems like an obvious thing that people would want to know.

There's certainly more issues that that, but I don't want to be to harsh in one go.