I put in well written and designed ads on AdWords and Facebook. And received a lot of clicks and impressions. But no conversions. I put the exact prices of items in the ads so there would be no sticker shock to a customer. Unfortunately I've had no conversions yet. Not sure what else to do. I have to take my Halloween themed items down soon and start designing for Christmas. Suggestions anyone? Take a look at my stuff. I'd appreciate your feedback. The CuteMonster brand is fun and hip and pertains to Dads with little kids.

Thanks.

You're competing with lots of other links out there. Most people will find your prices too high (compared to a store that buys their stuff in bulk) and most will be just window shopping, thats why they haven't turned into sales.

I tried google adwords for a while and whilst addictive, it was a waste of money, people bought more when i interacted with them on forums etc.

I suspect you're right Adam. The idea of a broad reaching advertising campaign was appealing. But I am very disappointed at the results. I'll have to make use of your forum suggestions. Makes sense. Good luck with your sales this holiday season!

My suggestion is to do this first and follow-through on it until you try anything else...

Read:

Keying & Tracking for Effective Advertising

Too many people place ads they don't know are effective. Then, they take results they don't know if were in line with what could have been considered good or bad. Then, they mentally make a determination and often move on to doing it differently with no real idea WHY.

Find out if you know how to advertise, first.

Even if parts of my post above don't totally apply the point is to test and follow-through to make sure you are running any ad effectively. This includes the words you use, the place you advertise, the results you seek, the numbers you collect, and the final assessment in the end.

Basically, don't guess.

Thank you for the suggestions blipfish. I read your blog posting. I've bookmarked it for further review.

It's funny. I actually have experience in online advertising. I was a graphic designer as well as an account manager for an agency. And yet, never a shopkeeper. That is the interesting aspect of this equation. Much to learn. Only one month in so I'm not wavering just yet. Just need to press forward in an educated pragmatic fashion.

I agree. The perspectives we have as "the one" for everything is pretty broad. We often are the same person that designs, builds, promotes, evaluates, adjusts, and so on. We don't always have a partner or a team to handle dedicated tasks and even if we do the lines are still, often blurred.

We definitely operate in an environment of wearing many hats during the same day and it's often not just about wearing the different hats but also figuring out best how they all operate together.

I'm also an artist with a background in marketing but my experience is a bit more old school (print media, direct response, etc). Sometimes I have to purposely schedule meetings with myself to remind me what I should be doing even though I probably should have known.