Soft-launched, got a few sign-ups so far, but most are inactive. How to reactivate them to jumpstart the feedback process?
So my product is a selling platform, much like Gumroad.
I host online stores and landing pages for creators to sell their digital products, like ebooks, templates, and artwork. Like a Shopify but for digital goods.
I've soft-launched a couple of weeks ago, got 100+ peeps on board, but actual activation is lower.
Granted, there's a whole gauntlet of actions for my user to take, it's not "instant gratification" (quite the opposite actually):
- They have to customize their home page with images (avatar and cover photo).
- They have to customize their landing page with images and descriptions/copy.
- They have to upload the files for their products.
- They have to connect their Stripe account.
- They have to promote their landing pages to their audience.
- Their audience have to purchase their products, then I get a tiny sliver of that revenue.
Suffice to say, not many have jumped through the hoops.
I have now 2 strategies to move forward:
A. Keep building new features
I've had a few "I can't switch until you build XYZ feature" feedback, but I have no idea if they're just saying it, or they really mean it.
(It's easy for a user to say "build <complex feature XYZ>," it takes them 3 seconds to say it, but it will take me 3 months to build it.)
That said, I've seen some trends/signals as to what the market wants.
Some have asked for a couponing system to sell software licenses.
Others have asked for a newsletter feature to be built into the platform.
Analytics. Team view. PayPal integration.
The feedback signals are all really scattered and weak, which doesn't give me enough confidence/conviction to go forth and build, which actually leads me to the next idea...
B. Run an AppSumo lifetime deal
It might sound premature, but there's no better way to ensure product usage than to charge upfront for it (even if I practically give the product away at this point, since I'm actually desperate for feedback).
People who pay for a product tend to value it a lot more than people who don't.
The revenue will provide me with some oxygen, but more importantly it will give me a deluge of feedback from actual paying users, from which I can then draw trends and finally formulate a product roadmap that doesn't so closely resemble guesswork.
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What do you think my next step should be?