So you’ve got a great digital product, you’ve set up shop, got your social media pages up and running, and now…it’s time to make some moneeeey, honeeeey!

But those first few sales are usually anything but easy. You’ve got to find and build an audience, get your product in front of them, and somehow “convince” them to buy it. And with so many products on the market, how are you supposed to rake in enough to make a decent amount of money off of your digital product shop?

While it can be tough, it’s not impossible to hit the ground running and get some sales after you launch your shop. If you want to make sustainable sales in 2023…..avoid these five things at ALL costs!

Mistake #1: Thinking people NEED your product

Unless you’re selling toilet paper, clients don’t actually need your product. So don’t forget that they have the choice to (one) spend their money in general and (two) spend their money on your product over someone else’s. 

Have confidence there is a need for your product, but don’t get so cocky that you think people need it. There’s a difference.

How can you do this? Frame the marketing for your product as if it were an offer. Show them why they can enjoy it, why it can enhance their lives, and always let them feel like they have a choice! People are more likely to purchase from businesses they connect with, but you’ll have a hard time doing that if your brand is giving off a-hole-overly-confident vibes/

You catch more flies with honey, or whatever it is they say. 

Mistake #2: Being too generic with your messaging

As my YouTube strategist/editor Trena Little always says, “If you target everyone, you target no one.”

While there is such a thing as over-niching (really, how many New York City dog walkers prefer summer over winter and wear a size 8 shoe and need high-Q leashes?), the more specific you can get with your message, the better. 

It’s a lot harder to sift through your audience to see who’s really interested in your products if there are 500,000 there but only a handful of people truly interested in what you’re selling. 

Making your message specific helps clear the airwaves (of the Insta-waves you could say) and gets your products in front of the right people faster and more efficiently. 

Mistake #3: Doubting yourself

You know what giant companies like Apple have that others don’t (besides a shit-ton of funding and probably some privilege too)? Confidence.

They weren’t always a big brand. They had to start somewhere. But our boy Steve Jobs was confident enough in his products and himself that they got in front of potential investors and pitched, then sold, to them. 

You may not be pitching to investors, but getting in front of an audience by showing up online and in their feeds is pretty darn close. Showing up with confidence and conviction helps build trust with your customers because they know if the owner can be confident it works, they can be too.

Mistake #4: Not showing up

Just because you have a website and an Instagram account doesn’t mean you’re showing up.

Google takes activity and consistency seriously — websites with frequent blogs, postings, or activity are more likely to have a higher search index. And on Instagram and TikTok and YouTube, the algorithm doesn’t like to promote accounts that are inactive. These platforms are all about getting people to stay on the platform longer (and from their perspective, a lack of activity isn’t going to do that). 

Go post about your shop, and post often. And have goals for your activity too (NOT followers [link to 0 followers blog] because, sorry, at the end of the day they don’t really mean that much). These could be goals like increasing traffic from TikTok directly to your shop or increasing the amount of time visitors spend on your shop page.

Setting these kinds of goals helps set the tone for the success of your digital product shop!

Mistake #5: Making it hard to check out

This one is a little less sentimental, but I still think it’s worth mentioning because it’s a small mistake that could cost you big time. 

And it may sound obvious, but poor user experience on your website could be hurting your sales. It’s a more common mistake than you might think. Something as small as a quick backend fix could turn the tap of sales back on.  

Make sure your checkout process is easy to locate and easy to walk through. And if you’re wondering if people will be able to spot where it starts…always err on the side of caution and make it more obvious. 

6 MORE mistakes to avoid…

Honestly, after coaching dozens of clients and running my own digital product shop for 7+ years, I feel like I could write a book about what NOT to do when selling digital products.

But lucky for you, you don’t have to have to change out of those leggings and make your way to Barnes & Noble to get them — you don’t even have to buy anything off of Amazon…because my blog has some juiiiiicy deets on the dos and don’ts of selling your digital products online, for free. 

And you can get schooled with six more of them, right here, right now! 

 Why Your Digital Products Aren’t Selling (& What to Do About it)