Terrible Sales Conversion (Reward if you can help! :) )

Hey BHW,
So, I've created a kickass game-guide for a very popular current game and I'm now pushing very targeted traffic to it (specifically, people who want to find a guide for that game). All sounding fantastic so far right?

Only problem is my conversion rates are absolutely abysmal. The guide is on sale for $17, I've pushed around 300 UV so far today and had...zero sales. Now many people are going to immediately say 'shit sales page' but, I use an almost identical theme to a very well selling ClickBank product (I am happy to PM pictures of my sales page to anyone interested) but modified to suit my product so it seems unlike that my page is just 'terrible'.

I am tracking my analytics with Piwik to give real-time information, but this lack of sales is driving me insane.

Has anyone had similar experience in marketing game guides before?
Would it be better to push them to a double opt-in squeeze page using Aweber and give them a free taster (eg, a chapter from the guide), then mail them a few days later with the sales push?
Am I just missing something?

If anyone can give me decent tips which increase my sales conversion then I'll be more than happy to PayPal you a nice reward!

Regards,
JFoulds

Hi!
I'm not that successful yet, but if you want you can pm me your pics and I give you my opinion.
Did you check if there is a market for this game guide and people who are willing to spend 17$ for it?
Are you capturing leads?

I think if you put the pictures up here and let people see the process of turning a non converting page into a converting one, many people will contribute and you will also help more than just yourself

I will PM you the pics in an hour or so, thanks for taking a look!
There's definitely a market for the game guide, and I don't see why I'd be getting traffic for people searching for the guide if they didn't actually want one.

I'm currently not capturing leads, just direct to my sales page, because I was thinking if I can't sell them my guide then what am I going to market them anyway?

jake454 said:

I think if you put the pictures up here and let people see the process of turning a non converting page into a converting one, many people will contribute and you will also help more than just yourself

Click to expand...

That's an absolutely fantastic idea, however, I'd quite like to get at least some private input first before I post my sales pictures in the public domain

PM'd everyone who has posted here, as soon as I get feedback I will post before -> after pictures of sales page along with stats!

Hey there!

I might help you find the problem you're having with your zero conversion rate.
However, I will have to see pictures of your sales page. Also, more info on how
you bring traffic to your product would be useful too.

I am willing to do it for free, just shoot me a PM with following info:

• Screenshots of your sales page
• Where are you getting traffic from?

I hope I helped!

Providing them a sample could be very helpful. If you show people what they can expect from their purchase, they'll be more likely to purchase.

$17 is like, what, 30% of the cost of a new game? Your visitors are probably just looking for a free walkthrough or something.

Is the game a MMORPG or a single-player game?

you can try content locking too, maybe it converts better, where the traffic is coming from?
I have a website from december 2011 that makes me 700$ with just a simple bot to download, I never touched the website again, I think that people will complete an offer in place of buy it

Dave?;4961137 said:

Hey there!

I might help you find the problem you're having with your zero conversion rate.
However, I will have to see pictures of your sales page. Also, more info on how
you bring traffic to your product would be useful too.

I am willing to do it for free, just shoot me a PM with following info:

• Screenshots of your sales page
• Where are you getting traffic from?

I hope I helped!

Click to expand...

Hey Dave,
Don't take this personally, but I'm not going to give anyone a copy of my sales page and the traffic techniques I'm using to get the traffic as well, that's just asking for someone to rip off my idea! I'll happily provide you the sales page, and you can trust me when I say the hits are targeted!

VinBed said:

Providing them a sample could be very helpful. If you show people what they can expect from their purchase, they'll be more likely to purchase.

$17 is like, what, 30% of the cost of a new game? Your visitors are probably just looking for a free walkthrough or something.

Is the game a MMORPG or a single-player game?

Click to expand...

Hmmm, that's true, I may consider offering them some of the guide for free first.
The game is not an RPG, but is a very popular online game.

maxok said:

you can try content locking too, maybe it converts better, where the traffic is coming from?
I have a website from december 2011 that makes me 700$ with just a simple bot to download, I never touched the website again, I think that people will complete an offer in place of buy it

Click to expand...

I've tried content locking before, made some very good $$$ with C.P.A.L.e.a.d, but after a few months my EPC with them just went down the drain (I mean, seriously, $0.05 for USA traffic).

Here is a breakdown of my traffic so far today, do you think content locking would be a good idea?
[TABLE="class: dataTable"]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd"]United States
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 175 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven"] United Kingdom
[/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"] 48 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"] Netherlands
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 32 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven columneven"] Australia
[/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"] 29 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"] Germany
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 13 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven columneven"] Norway
[/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"] 12 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"] Belgium
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 10 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven columneven"] Finland
[/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"] 10 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"] Canada
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 7
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven columneven"] Denmark
[/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"] 7
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"] Singapore
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 7 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven columneven"] Sweden
[/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"] 7 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"] France
[/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"] 5 [/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]

[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: columneven"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[/TR]
[TR]
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[/TR]
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[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: columnodd"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: columneven"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"][/TD]
[TD="class: columnodd"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: label labeleven columneven"][/TD]
[TD="class: columneven"][/TD]
[/TR]
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[TD="class: label labelodd columnodd"][/TD]
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[/TR]
[/TABLE]

Think about your visitors, what keywords and shit are they using to find you? If majority is just searching for the game in general sales conversions are going to be low. Yeah, you can THINK people want your eBook but mostly 99% dont give a shit about paying for some dumb thing in the eBook whether it be a SC2 build order or be some new WoW game guide.

You need to think like that, what benefits do they get if they buy the guide from you, and not go learn on their own or find out for free? Clearly there is something wrong with the psychology and execution of your sales copy and presentation, as it would be converting very well if it was correct. Some time to think on it is needed, think like the gamer who is coming to your guide, they dont want to buy anything. It is then your job to either give them some incentive to share your guide with someone who does, or give them a list of benefits only you offer when they buy this guide. Also, you might want to create some press releases and then link to the articles to build up SOME authority so sales become easier. If not that, get a semi popular youtuber to endorse it and you will get conversions.

therage said:

Think about your visitors, what keywords and shit are they using to find you? If majority is just searching for the game in general sales conversions are going to be low. Yeah, you can THINK people want your eBook but mostly 99% dont give a shit about paying for some dumb thing in the eBook whether it be a SC2 build order or be some new WoW game guide.

Click to expand...

This is what I don't understand, the visits are extremely targeted - people actively looking for a 'guide' for the game I'm advertising my product for.

therage said:

You need to think like that, what benefits do they get if they buy the guide from you, and not go learn on their own or find out for free? Clearly there is something wrong with the psychology and execution of your sales copy and presentation, as it would be converting very well if it was correct. Some time to think on it is needed, think like the gamer who is coming to your guide, they dont want to buy anything. It is then your job to either give them some incentive to share your guide with someone who does, or give them a list of benefits only you offer when they buy this guide.

Click to expand...

I've pretty much done that, which is why I don't understand why the conversion rate is so terrible.
I'm sitting on 500 UV now, 0 conversions still.

therage, would you mind if I PM'd you an image of the site so you can see if you think the sales page looks terrible?
Cheers!

I joined this forum only to reply to this post, but then got sidetracked and sucked into some other threads. I wish I'd done it a long time ago!

This might be good timing. I specialize in Conversion Rate Optimization (which is why I don't hang much on SEO forums). I recently resigned from a fancy corporate job, where I was doing CRO with great success, to start consulting in this area. My first assignment has achieved a 513% CR improvement in a short space of time and I can see it climbing weekly.

Starting out on my own, I'm obviously keen to build up a portfolio and get some testimonials, so I'm willing to consult for free on a few projects - if there's a fit - in exchange for testimonials and case study material. PM me if you're interested.

To give this post some meat, but also to warn anyone that it's definitely not an overnight process, here are some thoughts:

1. Tell anyone who claims to be able to fix your problems after "looking at your page" to get lost. It simply doesn't work like that unless the site is pretty bad - then almost anything helps. What works for one doesn't work for the other. For example, in some cases a short page is best, in other cases an extremely long page with lots of copy will convert better.

Getting someone's subjective opinion is NOT the same as Conversion Rate Optimization. It's asking someone's opinion. It might very well be a good place to start, depending on the scenario, but it is unlikely to reward you with great results.

2. Conversion Rate Optimization starts with asking loads of questions and analyzing loads of data. Google Analytics will give you only part of the picture by showing you WHAT is happening on your site. You need to deploy some other tools that can tell you WHY it is happening. Read Avinash Kaushik's blog and books for some ideas, but typical solutions include 4Q, Crazy Egg, Clicktale, Qualaroo, Kampyle, OLark etc. Another great book is Landing Page Optimization by Tim Ash, although as the title indicates it relates to only part of the process as I define it.

3. You must get into the mind of your visitor, understand their intent in the context of your offering and sales funnel. You have figured out your sales funnel, right? Know - don't guess - what their objections are. Then build in counter-objections. Without that background knowledge you'll hit a ceiling pretty fast.

4. The point is to establish where visitors are leaking out (Analytics) and why they are leaking out (other tools). Now you can start plugging those leaks. Spewing "best practices" out of context won't get far in the long run if that's all you have. Everyone else is also using those same "best practices". I worked on a website that was based entirely on Steve Krug's "Dont make me Think", which is a great collection of best practices that I love, but the site didn't convert. We fixed it by applying the methodology outlined here.

5. Form a hypothesis based on a proper analysis, then A/B test everything. Constantly.

6. Repeat.

... but that's not all...

7. Conversion isn't just about what happens on your website. It's about the entire process, from before your visitor first arrives on your site until the point where they've bought the product, interacted with it and come back to you, if you're lucky enough for that to happen.

8. CRO can't fix a bad product. If the product needs work, fix it before optimizing the sales channel.

9. If you're spending money on getting traffic to your site, and you're not spending money on converting that traffic, you just haven't thought that logic through long enough.

PM me if you're interested in taking me up on the offer to help in exchange for testimonial / case study material.

How did this turn out for you? did you end up getting your conversion rate up, and if so how?

You may for sure have visitors that *want* your product, but are you sure you're getting visitors that want to *buy* your product? Just because someone is searching for a guide does not even slightly mean that they're wanting to buy a guide. If you're using PPC for traffic then you might add keywords which indicate the person is definitely looking to buy.

Are you selling this through clickbank?