You’ve put the finishing touches on your killer product and are ready to take that great leap of faith - hitting the “publish” button and releasing your baby into the world. High five!
But, real quick, lets just make sure your product is looking its best for its date with success.
We’ve put together a handy checklist for you to optimize your product page. Each of these 8 points is geared towards converting your visitors into customers by removing uncertainty and building trust in your product.
To illustrate this checklist, we’ve enlisted the help of the prodigious Justin Jackson, a product manager and host of the Product People podcast. Here’s the product page for Justin’s Amplification course in all its majesty. The numbers are your Checklist of Product Glory.
Now let’s break it down.
1. Product Cover
Products with covers convert twice as well as products without. So whether its an image, a video, or a sound byte, don’t neglect this important element! Yes, it should be beautiful and eye-catching, but it should also give your visitor a good feel for the product with just a glance.
For a film, the obvious cover choice is a trailer, but the film poster, or an interview with the cast/director also works well.
For an album, you can include the album artwork, or instead link to a single on Soundcloud, footage from the recording studio, an interview with the band, or a music video.
Looking at this image, you can tell right away that the product is a bundle of items, including a course and a handbook. Some things could be improved, but overall it helps you get a good sense for the product, which is great. For other examples of phenomenal product covers, see here and here.
2. Title
Like the cover photo, a title should be compelling, but also clear and specific. This title explains that the product is a) a course, and b) downloadable (as opposed to live-streamed or an in-person event).
3. Social Proof
Social proof is one of the most powerful elements you can include in a sales page. Awards, press quotes, ratings, interviews, testimonials, number of copies sold - these all work to validate your work and inspire confidence in your audience.
In this case, the product has been featured in Inc. Magazine, a well-known brand. Plus, a real person was able to get 2 articles on the front page of Hacker News because of this course. This is the exact result that Justin’s target market is looking for.
4. Headline or Tagline
For tools and educational content, like Justin’s course, your headline should focus on your customers’ pain (in this case, not getting enough traction on a site or blog). Justin demonstrates that he understands that pain before he even gets into what his product has to offer. Because, at the end of the day, its all about your customers, not about your product.
For novels, music, films, games, etc., aim for a tagline that gives your audience an emotional feel for the story. Think “A lot can happen in the middle of nowhere” from Fargo, or “Don’t go into the water” from Jaws. Did you just get chills?
5. Description
Again, the type of product is going to determine the format of your description. Novels, music, films, comics, and games should have specific and enticing descriptions of the product concept/plot. Use the language of your target audience and focus on what excites them. A table of contents, track list, or cast list might also be appropriate.
For instructional content and tools, illustrate the customer’s dream (what happens when their pain points go away), and demonstrate how your product gets them there.
Here, the dream is to have a bigger audience, and Amplification will help you do that by showing you how to tap into the right networks.
Descriptions can also overcome objections. You might wonder what qualification Justin has to be teaching you about getting traction. Ah, he’s made several posts go viral himself, and he’s going to expose his real data to prove it. Objection overcome.
6. Content Specs
Don’t underestimate the importance of explaining precisely what your buyers will receive when they purchase your product. You don’t want your customers to expect to be mailed a CD when in fact the product is a digital album.
With Amplification, Justin outlines exactly what files are contained in the product, and even gives the number of pages of the ebooks.
Pro tip: Want to include the length of a video or even a track list here? You can add as many custom attributes as you like. Check out this video to see how.
7. Profile Picture
Let your audience know that you’re a real person. Give them something to connect with.
Justin is a real guy, with a real face (and a fake moustache). His profile picture shows personality, and that he doesn’t take himself too seriously. He’s built up your trust a little bit more.
8. About You
Like your profile picture, you bio helps build a personal connection. But its also where you can reinforce your credibility. Justin’s bio tells you that he’s not just a mustachioed character - he’s got a podcast, he works at a startup, and he builds products. You can follow him on Twitter to get to know him better. All this helps to build your confidence that he actually knows what he’s talking about and that he’ll deliver a high-quality product.
Bonus
Background image: Justin’s cool image of a soundboard helps reinforce his theme, and makes the product look stunning and professional. Check out this video for more on how to customize the look and feel of your product on Gumroad.
Satisfaction guarantee: Justin goes the extra mile to build trust by including a money-back guarantee if his customers aren’t completely happy. We hope he doesn’t have to honor this too often, but if he does, Gumroad makes issuing refunds painless, plus there’s no fee attached.
Great work! These simple tweaks to your product page have primed you for much higher conversion rates. Now all that’s left is to hit that “publish” button…
Don’t have a good headshot to include in your profile? Come by our first Creators Studio event on February 13th in San Francisco. In addition to a fireside chat with Nathan Barry and lots of food and drinks, we’ll have a professional photographer taking free portraits. The event is free, but space is limited, so grab your seat early! Register here.