7 ms·

Hey everyone. Jason Goldberg, CEO of Fab.com here. Happy to discuss and answer any questions.

rorrr 15y ago
Went to your site. It's absolutely NOT clear what you're selling and why I should care. You need a much better landing page.
- betashop 15y ago
  hmmm ... we've had incredibly high conversion rates on our landing page. Always looking to improve it though.
  - betashop 15y ago
    I should also note that we constantly test and rotate about 10 different landing pages, optimizing towards the ones that convert best.
    - rorrr 15y ago
      It really depends on how you measure conversions. If you measure actual sales, that's the way to go. If you just measure signups, I can come up with a page that will convert 100X better in a second. "Get $1000 when you sign up".
    - bglbrg 15y ago
      That's interesting. However, in the design community fab.com seems to be spreading by word of mouth, so in my own case, I signed up eagerly on a recommendation and I don't recall spending any time reading what the landing page said. Is there any way to account for that sort of signup?
- petercooper 15y ago
  Alternatively, that might be the reason it converts well. It's the old game of casually hiding what exactly it is you're doing and encouraging nosy people to check it out or ask for an invite (Forrst did/does this quite well). If they showed exactly what you get once you sign up, people may be less likely to sign up if it's not what they expected. They're less likely to unsubscribe once "in" though ;-) I say "may" because this definitely doesn't work for all types of site or list but it could be the ticket here.
  - nateberkopec 15y ago
    Yeah, I'd be curious about what an unclear landing page does later on in the funnel - do users from these landing pages convert to purchase less overall?
- jonknee 15y ago
  What's not clear about this? http://fab.com/about-fab/ http://fab.com/about-fab/ I'm not a member, but from what I can tell you gain access to below retail cost of high design products. Sort of a Woot for the design savvy set.
  - rorrr 15y ago
    I'm talking about fab.com, the main page. Most people will not click on "about" link, they will just leave.
    - jonknee 15y ago
      The main page is just as clear to me. I clicked on About to confirm I didn't have an incorrect impression. "Fab.com features daily design inspirations and sales at up to 70% off retail." That pretty much sums it up. It also got me to give them my email address.
      - rorrr 15y ago
        That's my point. They are not selling "design inspirations". They are selling designer products, and it would be nice if they specified the types of products they are selling. "Design" is so generic, it can mean many things - a desktop wallpaper, a skin for Firefox, a knitting pattern.
        jonknee 15y ago
        I guess it has different appeal for different people. I immediately understood it and signed up. Sort of a Cool Hunting with a purchase button. Right up my alley.
        rednaught 15y ago
        So it appears that I(and many others on HN) are just not aware of this type of design culture as evidenced by my not understanding what "Cool Hunting" meant. I had to google that too!
- pdx 15y ago
  I agree. They are apparently doing very well on word of mouth alone. I didn't even see the about link, I was just staring at this big signup form and some pictures of needle point. I must say, since I was expecting things like plastic injection, aluminum milling, and circuit board construction, the needle point definitely was effective at resetting my expectations! Still, I was confused by the tag line, as I still had it in my mind that it was a place for designers (albeit, now they're needle point designers in my head) to hang out, not for people to go and buy things. EDIT: Now I see that it's not needle point, just regular paper art. The signup banner projects dots over much of the background, making me think it was needle point.
  - barclay 15y ago
    > I must say, since I was expecting things like plastic injection, aluminum milling, and circuit board construction Must be the HN demographic. I thought the same thing, too.
- rlmw 15y ago
  Really can't help but think that their sales and conversion data is stronger evidence than your hunch.
- rednaught 15y ago
  Sorry to sound like a chime here but I too was unable to determine what it is you were offering. Having not heard of Fab.com, I assumed association with the laundry detergent sold in the US. After seeing the landing page, then I assumed design as in web pages or Wordpress Themes. I apparently am wrong on both accounts. I say this as a business owner who actually has includes the word "Design" in the name of my legal entity. I did not bother to look for an About page. I gave you the free minute I had at the time. You do have a nice looking layout though.
- jfarmer 15y ago
  No, you're just not their target launch customer. It was clear to me from the get-go that they're the flash sale version of DWR.

rorrr 15y ago

Went to your site. It's absolutely NOT clear what you're selling and why I should care. You need a much better landing page.

betashop 15y ago
hmmm ... we've had incredibly high conversion rates on our landing page. Always looking to improve it though.
- betashop 15y ago
  I should also note that we constantly test and rotate about 10 different landing pages, optimizing towards the ones that convert best.
  - rorrr 15y ago
    It really depends on how you measure conversions. If you measure actual sales, that's the way to go. If you just measure signups, I can come up with a page that will convert 100X better in a second. "Get $1000 when you sign up".
  - bglbrg 15y ago
    That's interesting. However, in the design community fab.com seems to be spreading by word of mouth, so in my own case, I signed up eagerly on a recommendation and I don't recall spending any time reading what the landing page said. Is there any way to account for that sort of signup?
petercooper 15y ago
Alternatively, that might be the reason it converts well. It's the old game of casually hiding what exactly it is you're doing and encouraging nosy people to check it out or ask for an invite (Forrst did/does this quite well). If they showed exactly what you get once you sign up, people may be less likely to sign up if it's not what they expected. They're less likely to unsubscribe once "in" though ;-) I say "may" because this definitely doesn't work for all types of site or list but it could be the ticket here.
- nateberkopec 15y ago
  Yeah, I'd be curious about what an unclear landing page does later on in the funnel - do users from these landing pages convert to purchase less overall?
jonknee 15y ago
What's not clear about this? http://fab.com/about-fab/ http://fab.com/about-fab/ I'm not a member, but from what I can tell you gain access to below retail cost of high design products. Sort of a Woot for the design savvy set.
- rorrr 15y ago
  I'm talking about fab.com, the main page. Most people will not click on "about" link, they will just leave.
  - jonknee 15y ago
    The main page is just as clear to me. I clicked on About to confirm I didn't have an incorrect impression. "Fab.com features daily design inspirations and sales at up to 70% off retail." That pretty much sums it up. It also got me to give them my email address.
    - rorrr 15y ago
      That's my point. They are not selling "design inspirations". They are selling designer products, and it would be nice if they specified the types of products they are selling. "Design" is so generic, it can mean many things - a desktop wallpaper, a skin for Firefox, a knitting pattern.
      - jonknee 15y ago
        I guess it has different appeal for different people. I immediately understood it and signed up. Sort of a Cool Hunting with a purchase button. Right up my alley.
        rednaught 15y ago
        So it appears that I(and many others on HN) are just not aware of this type of design culture as evidenced by my not understanding what "Cool Hunting" meant. I had to google that too!
pdx 15y ago
I agree. They are apparently doing very well on word of mouth alone. I didn't even see the about link, I was just staring at this big signup form and some pictures of needle point. I must say, since I was expecting things like plastic injection, aluminum milling, and circuit board construction, the needle point definitely was effective at resetting my expectations! Still, I was confused by the tag line, as I still had it in my mind that it was a place for designers (albeit, now they're needle point designers in my head) to hang out, not for people to go and buy things. EDIT: Now I see that it's not needle point, just regular paper art. The signup banner projects dots over much of the background, making me think it was needle point.
- barclay 15y ago
  > I must say, since I was expecting things like plastic injection, aluminum milling, and circuit board construction Must be the HN demographic. I thought the same thing, too.
rlmw 15y ago
Really can't help but think that their sales and conversion data is stronger evidence than your hunch.
rednaught 15y ago
Sorry to sound like a chime here but I too was unable to determine what it is you were offering. Having not heard of Fab.com, I assumed association with the laundry detergent sold in the US. After seeing the landing page, then I assumed design as in web pages or Wordpress Themes. I apparently am wrong on both accounts. I say this as a business owner who actually has includes the word "Design" in the name of my legal entity. I did not bother to look for an About page. I gave you the free minute I had at the time. You do have a nice looking layout though.
jfarmer 15y ago
No, you're just not their target launch customer. It was clear to me from the get-go that they're the flash sale version of DWR.