4mo ago

Discussion Thread: Tuesday, 4 March 2025

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I found an opportunity to start an online store and I'd like to ask the DT brainstrust on some feedback. I'll mark it all as spoilers because people may not want to read my full ramblings or some of the subject matter:
- Quick thoughts:
  The store name/URL is wonderful - definite winner, there. It's memorable and easy to type.
  There's something really off about the models. If those are real women, they've been airbrushed into the uncanny valley. If they're AI-generated, that would make sense. I have no idea how you could go about fixing them, but yeah - that'd be my first priority in your shoes. Photoshoots and models are super expensive, I realise.
  I don't know about the rave scene or what what the GenZ crowd in general are into. I can say that I doubt any of this stuff would appeal to my wife though. Possibly the red one? By targeting a crowd, are you turning off a large potential client base?
  The website itself looks basic - like a template off square or wordpress or something. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but I'd emphasise that you are real some more - ABN, Contact details etc.
  The three things I care about as a customer are: Quality, Price and how long it takes for my stuff to arrive. I'm variable on #2, depending on #3. I'll pay more to have my stuff sooner. If it's going to take two weeks to come from China, be super clear about this.
  As to quality, be really upfront about that. If the quality of the product is dubious, don't try and spin it as excellent quality.
  There's probably a lot more to cover. At a glance, the range of products looks really limiting. I'm at work and can't really be closely scrutinising a lingerie store, so I only spent about 2 minutes on the site. A wider range will probably increase the trustworthiness of the site.
  
  Thanks for the feedback. I wanted to start with a limited range but I could add more accessories to pad out the listings more.
  The photos aren't great. I'd really like to get photos of real women on there. Ones where they're wearing things as part of an actual outfit, there's a background, they've got tattoos and coloured hair and whatnot. I could reach out to people and see if they'd take photos in exchange for free product.
  I want to target a specific crowd to start with so it's easier for me to target ads. No one knows about the store so I don't need to worry about excluding anyone. If I target a segment I can put new products on the website that may encourage return customers as well.
  I'll add more company details so the website feels more legit. I can do some website updates but I'm not a front end designer and that will take a while. At the moment I don't mind if it comes across as one person doing their best, and I can spruce it up and add nicer details later.
  The product is already here in Australia but I haven't actually seen any of it yet to attest to quality. I might order some of it to check it out for myself, then I have some on hand for potential local models. I might be able to take some real photos myself of flat lays on a bed or something.
  This has given me a bit more to go off so this has been really helpful, thank you.
- Maybe make all the descriptions 3 lines long (maybe a blank line after short descriptions) so that the 'add to cart' buttons line up nicely. Otherwise it looks great.
  
  I'll see if I can add some spaces or a line break to shorter product titles. Then I can look into some more consistent formatting so they're always the same height. This is partially an exercise in learning web design for myself more as well
- I’m no expert but I’d be wary of anything that at some point could leave you holding the bag.
  Say if someone does an order with you but you’re relying on someone else and the goods are late or don’t arrive. Worse the dropshipper could take the money and phoenix.
  Also be careful as Mastercard and PayPal have cracked down on anything of an adult nature so if they flag something you might not get paid. No idea how strict it is and it might be ok to pay for underwear but the association with the other goods might call attention.
  Also the website is clever but I wouldn’t parse that, I’d just see random letters that might look a bit sketchy and probably not click.
  Sorry! I’m just a bit wary and raised some risks you might want to consider, the side hustle isn’t a bad idea.
  Edit: Oh yeah and the AI or photoshop point is a fair one. I’ve only hovered for a preview but if the models look unnatural that might be a turnoff. Because AI doesn’t cost much it’s being used a lot for scams, and while the business is above board that sort of appearance might make ads look sketchy.
  If it was me advertising stuff I’d just go on Model Mayhem and hire an amateur model with a TFP arrangement (time for prints) which means they do the shoot for free in exchange for the right to use the pictures. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_for_print
  However if these pictures are being supplied by someone else, which it’s likely they are, then I’d be a little bit cautious because with a lot of image doctoring you might not be getting an accurate idea of the product or its quality (which you could be blamed for if they are shady). The pictures might have even been stolen from elsewhere.
  Edit 2: Also if you go ahead maybe show it to someone who is in the demographic you’re aiming at, check if it’s something that they and their friends might buy before making any commitments or putting any money down. Subcultures can be finicky and fashions can change. What looks right to someone outside might not be accepted by them. That’s not to say they couldn’t be creative and find stuff that works, just that if it doesn’t hit particular notes sales might be lower.
  
  These are all good points. The wholesaler seems pretty established, I've seen their products listed on large, real company websites. The issue I could have is someone orders something from me and it's actually out of stock on the supplier side as someone else has bought the last one. I'll figure that out if it happens.
  I'm expecting people to see ads before they see the URL, so they'll see the logo with LXIX in it then see the URL. I hope that makes it seem less spammy. I get what you mean though, most junk URLs are just a random string of letters.
  Thanks for the tip on Model Mayhem as well. That's exactly what I need right now. I need assets of real people wearing the clothes, especially videos. I can edit those into ads that will grab a lot more attention if done right.
  I'll try find some 20 year old girls to show the website to as well. The main thing I want to check is if they'd wear the items, and trust the website from seeing it in an Instagram or Tiktok ad to convert to a sale.
  
  Nice. If you can get fancy you could also include at least one bigger girl so customers can see what it might look like on them and see immediately that it’s got their size.
  So many things only have straight sizes
  
  Some of the products have a larger woman modelling them, but she has the same tan and hair as the other woman. She just looks like a larger version of the other model.
  If I reach out to people to model the items myself I'll just want anyone that can wear them in their own style. Body shape doesn't really matter, as long as they can show how versatile this stuff can be.
- It's all one size?
  
  Size range is S-M-L-XL-LX-IX
  
  I could add to cart without selecting a size, that's why I asked.
  
  At the moment I've picked things that are one size. I'm having trouble getting the sizing options to display properly so I'm just working around it for the moment

172 comments