HELP! New Product Launch Falls Flat On Its Face!

15 years ago

The time it took you to "vent" could probably have been better spent on writing another message for your autoresponder, a solo advert or an article to promote your product.

If you offer a no question guarantee.. expect good and bad people to take it up.

James

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activetrader

15 years ago

I actually don't. ClickBank does. I say nothing about the refund. I said I will provide support if needed, threw in a bunch of bonuses and private subscription after the purchase. The buyers can ask me anything they are not clear on. When first received this request I wrote back saying she has full two months to try it and then can get a refund. I asked her about her specific situation offering one on one support. She has received my e-mail but never replied. I also mentioned this is the first time I get negative feedback and was rather baffled.

Then when she did not respond I just said hell with it and submitted a refund request to ClickBank

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simbad

Banned 15 years ago

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activetrader

15 years ago

Originally Posted by simbad

Has anyone done any studies to know how much impact guarantees impact number of sales?

Do prodcuts sell better with guarantee? Are refunds taken into account?

From my experience affiliate products very similar to each other, one with guarantee and one with no guarantee sell about the same volume; the one with guarantees gets 17% refund, the one with no guarantees gets 1% refund. But this is just my personal observations

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Jim M

15 years ago

Hi ....

Guarantees started to be offered years ago by offline marketers like Britannica etc as it lowers the buyers resistance - but it does open the door to freebie seekers.

I tend not to offer guarantees at all, my attitude is that if I went into a shop and bought a book, then didn't like it I wouldn't consider taking it back and asking for the money back.

I probably lose a few sales, but if someone doesn't appreciate the value you are offering then it's probably not for them anyhow. Distance selling laws cover any purchases made online, so if someone feels really aggrieved they can ask Paypal to deal with it.

I don't use clickbank at all now, you have no control over refunds - nor do you have any control over where your product ends up being listed. Two months after I cancelled my clickbank account there are still links from all sorts of spammy 'clickbank supermarkets' which I don't like.

You have to weigh up the pros and cons of using clickbank and decide if its worth the efffort.....

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activetrader

15 years ago

Originally Posted by Jim M

Hi ....

Guarantees started to be offered years ago by offline marketers like Britannica etc as it lowers the buyers resistance - but it does open the door to freebie seekers.

I tend not to offer guarantees at all, my attitude is that if I went into a shop and bought a book, then didn't like it I wouldn't consider taking it back and asking for the money back.

I probably lose a few sales, but if someone doesn't appreciate the value you are offering then it's probably not for them anyhow. Distance selling laws cover any purchases made online, so if someone feels really aggrieved they can ask Paypal to deal with it.

I don't use clickbank at all now, you have no control over refunds - nor do you have any control over where your product ends up being listed. Two months after I cancelled my clickbank account there are still links from all sorts of spammy 'clickbank supermarkets' which I don't like.

You have to weigh up the pros and cons of using clickbank and decide if its worth the efffort.....

I agree there shouldn't be refunds allowed especially if the client gets to read and keep the product. Bookstores actually have a return policy but I've never heard of anyone taking a book back to the store! It's too easy to say, I didn't like it, and keep the whole thing. These are digital thieves but what can you do about it. It's easier to just not deal with them at all. I will block her IP address from all of my sites in the future. That's best I can do.

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Alan Petersen

15 years ago

Originally Posted by activetrader

I actually don't. ClickBank does.

But if you're selling on ClickBank as far the customer is concerned you are. You agreed to ClickBank's terms. I just got my first refund request last night. I refunded right away. Not worth the energy to try and talk them out of it. That would tick me off if I asked for a refund and they try to talk me out of it. So, don't worry your product is fine. Refunds are normal. Yes, some might be thieves who intended to rip you off from the start but sometimes they just didn't care for the product and they want their money back. It doesn't mean it's a bad product. Now if your're getting a lot of refund request then I would worry about the product.

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keyaziz 15 years ago

Refunds are never nice.

I was so happy when we launched my boyfriend's product - we had NO refunds for like 6 months..and then one day we got some guy make up a feeble excuse as to why he wanted a refund and even said where should I send the product back (whatever! it is a downloadable ebook and mp3 files!!!).

It was REALLY upsetting - one because well we had had no refunds ever and two because it wasn't even a REAL refund.

We haven't had any refunds since..but I still feel a little bad about it.

Unfortunately you just have to get over it and forget about it - don't let it knock your confidence.

YOU KNOW you have a great product. You have put a lot of effort in. So just keep remember that.

The internet makes relationships a lot less intimate - so those refunders really don't know or at least cannot see how it really affects you and as a result they can continue to do it ignoring that and getting their freebies.

Chin up!
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activetrader

15 years ago

Originally Posted by Alan Petersen

Yes, some might be thieves who intended to rip you off from the start but sometimes they just didn't care for the product and they want their money back. It doesn't mean it's a bad product. Now if your're getting a lot of refund request then I would worry about the product.

I can totally relate to that. Just recently I had two refunds from the same person for two outstanding products I am promoting, by two different publishers. She bought them the same day using two different credit cards and returned them both the same day which was like two days later! Now when one person is using two different credit cards buying two products simultaneously, you know to wait for a refund request.

Could that really be she didn't like either one of two products by two different publishers? I don't think so!

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daddyg

15 years ago

I understand your frustration but I think it's an unavoidable part of selling digital products on the web...some people will abuse the guarantee no matter how good the product.

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Suzanne Morrison

15 years ago

Certain people just seem to be serial clickbank refunders.

You are always going to get people like that, but usually there is nothing you can do about it. I always feel a bit frustrated when someone asks for a refund (especially since pretty much all the ones I have had have been people writing to clickbank saying "I have forgotten what I bought, please refund me" and clickbank say "ok then", no questions asked).

I actually noticed one guy in my affiliate clickbank acc rather than my publisher one, who bought around 5 different products from my site, all from different publishers and got a refund for them all. It's a shame they don't ban customers like this.

Cheers,
Suzanne

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activetrader

15 years ago

Originally Posted by Suzanne Morrison

Certain people just seem to be serial clickbank refunders.

You are always going to get people like that, but usually there is nothing you can do about it. I always feel a bit frustrated when someone asks for a refund (especially since pretty much all the ones I have had have been people writing to clickbank saying "I have forgotten what I bought, please refund me" and clickbank say "ok then", no questions asked).

I actually noticed one guy in my affiliate clickbank acc rather than my publisher one, who bought around 5 different products from my site, all from different publishers and got a refund for them all. It's a shame they don't ban customers like this.

Cheers,
Suzanne

I have had repeat refunders as well in my affiliate sales. One came in looking for a specific term. Buys a product, returns it, comes back searching for the same exact term, buys another product; I am counting days to see a refund reflected from the second purchase. The last three days have actually been horrible for me as far as refunds on my affiliate sales, and that adds up to my frustration.

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Michelle Adams 15 years ago

Sorry to see you're having a bad run with refunds. I had a couple this week too and I was pretty peeved when I saw they bought it one minute and then sent me an email the next requesting a refund; given it would take quite a few hours to get through the book it was obvious they were taking advantage of the refund policy. I sent the refund requests to Clickbank immediately but then sat there crafting stupid emotional knee-jerk reaction emails to the customers too. I ended up deleting all the crap I'd written realising that it was a waste of my valuable time. Like James suggested, it's better to let it go and get on with doing something that will be positive for sales or traffic etc but I do know how hard that can be.

Your product will be a hit if it's quality...there are always people who will buck the system but all in all there are more of us good guys than the bad. Good luck.
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GeorgR.

15 years ago

its part of IM, really, get over it. If i would freak every time i get a refund i would be in the insane asylum right now.

Some people refund regardless - no reason to believe that your product is a failure!

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PatriciaJ

15 years ago

It sounds like you were just unlucky getting a freebie seeker for your first sale. Hopefully now you will get so many valid sales that this incident will end up a distant memory.

Wishing you much success with your new venture.

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activetrader

15 years ago

Originally Posted by PatriciaJ

It sounds like you were just unlucky getting a freebie seeker for your first sale. Hopefully now you will get so many valid sales that this incident will end up a distant memory.

Wishing you much success with your new venture.

Thank you so much!

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Ken Leatherman

15 years ago

Hi ActiveTrader,

First please allow me to compliment you on your post. Very well thought out and presented in a clear and precise manner. I felt your frustration as I read and felt your "I don't get it, what's not to like about my product?" That is especially hurtful since it was your 1st sale of the new launch and put a major dent in your enthusiasm for your product launch.

Now let's see if we can find something positive out of the situation

. Your keywords were successful, as you know this person found your product out of the thousands on ClickBank. This means you did a good job on keyword research.

You also created a product that has buyers, so obviously you did a good job on creating a product that will fulfill a desire/need.

Now put your confidence back in place, put this lady aside and move on.

You have shown yourself to be respectful to your customer with your return e-mail to her and again kudos to you for being a lady that has class and moxie.

By the way just one quick question before I shut off this long winded dissertation. Since you have an original product on ClickBank , why don't you have a link to it in your signature file? By doing so you would get very valuable exposure to your product and may well make a sale or two and pick up some Warrior affiliates.

Feel better and pat yourself on the back for doing a good job.

Ken Leatherman
The Old Geezer

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Dana_W

15 years ago

Honestly this is not a failure and it has nothing to do with you or your product's quality. All of us who sell products encounter people who are jerks and ripoffs from time to time.

Kim Standerline was telling a story on here about how someone demanded a refund...so she disabled their ability to use the product any more...and they emailed her and complained that the product wasn't working any more! And filed a paypal complaint against her!

Is there a way for you to block a seller from buying from you again? 1 Shopping Cart, for example, has a way to block a person's ISP so they can't buy from you any more.

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westernseo

15 years ago

Well, after reading through this, I will probably not be publishing my new product (1st BTW) on Clickbank.

I will probably just setup my own affiliate system with a PHP script or something like that....

Don't people get banned from purchasing from clickbank if they keep asking for refunds??

I think that you should just not focus on the few refunds and move on....

If the problem persists, then it may be possible that the guarantee on your page is effecting the refund rate...?

Good Luck!

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winebuddy

15 years ago

I like the ones who buy, download, use the member forum, ask me quesitons, and then ask when they are getting their book in the mail...

I tell them they already have it and downloaded it and here's another copy as an attachment and then they ask for a refund because it's not a hardcopy.

BS. BUT - it's a part of the game.

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bobsedge

15 years ago

You can't live and die with each sale. I'm a believer in statistics. Numbers will hold up over the long haul. You got unlucky on your face sale. There will always be tire kickers out there.

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Monetize

15 years ago

You can't let one refund discourage you whether it was your
first transaction or your 1,000th. Keep moving forward.

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ecoverartist

15 years ago

Don't let them get you down! I had a moron try to buy ecover design for 25 cents - not realizing it was a SERVICE. I'm surprised he didn't ask for his quarter back

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Stephen Crooks 15 years ago

It is frustrating but it really isn't worth the aggravation. Factor it into your plans that you will always get a certain percentage of people that will do this and move on.
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activetrader

15 years ago

Thank you all so much for the words of encouragement.

UPDATE:

I just got an e-mail from her thanking me for the refund and my books. She said, she was going to read them............... Nice.........

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AnarchyAds

Banned 15 years ago

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activetrader

15 years ago

Originally Posted by AnarchyAds

Please do share the IP and state your niche so others can defend.

Please do forward the email she send to CB
and ensure they block her from subsequent purchases.

I blocked her IP right away. IP address IP: 65.110.133.222

How do I go about forwarding her e-mail to CB?

Also, what is interesting is that on the last page of the book she bought I have a contact e-mail address and my name, but she contacted me via a defferent e-mail address, the one on the thank you page and addressed her e-mail "To whom it may concern" which tells me she had not read the book when she requested a refund.

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Steven Carl Kelly 15 years ago

Originally Posted by activetrader

I blocked her IP right away. IP address IP: 65.110.133.222

Just as long as you understand that you may also block other potential buyers by blocking that address. That IP address belongs to Mindspring, not the end user. That means that IP can be assigned to another user at any time.
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- I Love PLR 15 years ago
  
  It looks like in your case this person just wanted to have a free ebook. Don't worry so much for that.
  
  Otherwise, someone can ask a refund because your ebook is not as great as you think it is. Did other people (not close people) read it? Did they really like it, find lots of value in it?
  
  Other reasons to ask for a refund could be that the buyer has read many ebooks on the topic and didn't find any new information in yours. Or just was expecting the ebook to be for a higher level, advanced marketer when yours is more targeted to beginners.
  
  The difference between the bookstore and an ebook is that you can check the table of contents before you buy a book. You can even read some pages in the bookstore. You don't have any idea of what you will get when you buy an ebook, except the dreams the author is trying to sell you in his salespage (most of the time)!
  I think lots of people simply worry that they will receive rubbish when they order an ebook.
  
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Trader54

15 years ago

Well to me you took the high road by sending a couple of more bonuses. It seems its all a part of doing business with clickbank.

The customer has a no questions asked guarantee when dealing with digital products. Its like you buy a book from a book store and and go to them for a refund without returning the book.

I had one customer that purchased and refunded then asked for support about a week later. I gave them the support and answered their problem. A few days later I noticed they repurchased the product. LOL.

Certainly no point in wasting energy on refunded sales, best just to move on.

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Mike Hill

15 years ago

This is what people do who purchase products, refund right away and then put your product up on Torrent sites.

This is why a lot of marketers have been trying the 6 weeks coaching program model. Content is released over the 6 weeks and also includes weekly group coaching via teleseminars.

This is a good model to follow because you can charge more for it and you can also add to the value by having a special guest every week that specializes in that weeks material.

Mike Hill

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Jay Deiboldt

15 years ago

I really think you are reading into this too much. Why waste time IP blocking and what not? Some people are just scumbags it's part of the business.

And as far as not offering a guarantee, that's kinda silly. If you stand behind your product, theres no reason not to offer one.

Taking the risk off of the prospect will absolutely get you more sales. Read The Gary Halbert Letter

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Dayne Dylan

Banned 15 years ago

Move on.

Look how much time you have wasted just posting about it here?

It comes with the territory...just sayin'.

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jeff1960

15 years ago

I rememer freaking out to my son Keith Wellman when i did my first product launch Lay off Your Boss and I got my first refund. I was like I knew they were going to hate it LOL! Well after it generated over $104,000 with only a 6% refund I got over it.

Heck if someone askes for a refund even 6 months later down the road like some of them do. I usually just say thanks and here you go.

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jpuppy

15 years ago

Refunds happen...move on

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