I'm running into this problem on my startup website (http://muxme.com). I've found that the more evidence I provide that the site is real, the more people start to question it. I.e. I post pictures of the receipt of purchase, open source the raffle code script, have a live drawing, post the winner's usernames (which reveal quite a bit about them if you google them, I encourage them to change their usernames), post USPS tracking numbers, post my phone number and address, and everyone still thinks the site is a scam. Out of every company / website I've worked on, I've never had people so skeptical of giving a name, email address and phone number. I've made websites where I charged money and had better growth!
This is some real feedback I've received:
"It sounds like a scam to me. If you want to try to scam people by getting them to click on your fake website, you should have enough common sense not to use the website as your username. Better luck next time!!!!"
"Scamming people on Christmas Eve using someone's else's platform. Tacky."
But yeah... this site isn't working. I'm thinking of scrapping it and writing an app/browser extension that automatically enters you into sweepstakes. Let's say Person A enters 10 sweepstakes on different websites. Person B enters 5 sweepstakes on different websites. When person C downloads the app, he will automatically be entered into the sweepstakes that Person A and Person B entered (via my magic backend system that I have yet to create). The more people that download the app and enter sweepstakes, the more sweepstakes everyone with the app will automatically be entered into. Now people will start winning prizes for literally doing nothing but downloading the app.
Interesting concept. The website makes a really scammy first impression to me too.
Firstly, because it uses the "count down to win something" mechanic that's primarily used by exploitative sites. People have to keep bidding in order to win, and loss aversion pushes them to pay more than they can intellectually justify for the product. If most sites that use the mechanic are evil, then the expectation is your site is no exception.
Secondly, the website looks really generic and based off a template. Like something that has been whipped up in a weekend to steal people's info. It would be trivial for somebody to create a scam version that's visually indistinguishable from your website. Having more content and a more polished appearance will help.
Thirdly, it's not clear what's in it for the operator of the site. If the products are given away then what's the catch? I understand you're giving away promotional items, but that's not enough to fix this first impression. You have to explain to people why the site exists. Is it a nonprofit? Are you getting paid? By who?
Finally, your explanation page makes no sense. Your target audience will never care about multiplexers. You've got to have at least a simple FAQ that answers questions like "Is this a scam?" "How does this site make money?" "Why is it free to enter?", and so on. A huge heading on the front page "Play for free to win promotional material. No catch." would probably help alleviate your visitor's concerns. But you'll have to do a lot more to make it seem less fishy.
The site does use a template. I actually tried making it look generic because I went with the approach of "this website is owned by 1 person and you can trust him". That didn't work. I am going to redo the front-end and make it look like a company owns the site. I'm thinking something similar to how http://gusto.com looks.
I'm hoping to one day have companies pay to have their prizes featured on the site. It'd be like Google / Reddit advertising except the advertising is a prize, not an ad. I tried the non profit approach but everyone doubted me, so I changed it. But right now, everything is out of pocket for me.
Yeah I realize the "mux" was a mistake. I thought it was clever, but these people don't have the time to read what a multiplexer is. Literally every time I tell someone to go to my site "MuxMe" they say "Is that a porn site?". I can change the name in 2 seconds, I'm just thinking of what to change it to. I like the idea of a FAQ, I need to add that.
Currently users land on the prize page, and either register or they don't. They don't click the "how it works" or any other pages, so I'm focusing on optimizing the prize landing page right now. I think I might add a video avatar (like this http://www.pt-hr.co.uk/) that explains how the site works on the prize pages. I can see the Hacker News guys are interested in the "How it Works" page, but the typical user doesn't click that. I definitely need to update it with something that's easy to understand, it's on the list of a million things to do.
Even your comment makes it look scammy, without even knowing exactly what your site does. Your account is fairly new, and every comment you have ever made includes a link to your site. You are talking about raffles and winnings, and using bots to enter sweepstakes. The negative feedback you shared here looks like reasonable feedback, and nothing you say contradicts it.
That's fair feedback. I appreciate it. The website is what I do for fun, so there's no professionalism. I literally make no money from the site. If you think the site is a scam (or if you just want to say Hi), you're free to call me at the phone number listed in the footer.
I have no idea why you are talking about selling email addresses, making money, or linking to a github account that contains no email and, fyi, is not even mine.
I'm thinking of scrapping it And (from another comment of yours)
I think this site and the amount of hate/doubt I've received is driving me insane. Sorry.
If you do not have an extremely compelling reason to stick it out, then I suggest you scrap it promptly. Go spend your time on something that doesn't get you hate and make you insane. You should only put up with that if you honestly have absolutely no other choice, no means to walk away.
Once you have been backed into a mental corner of the sort you are in, it is incredibly hard to find a path out. If you are unable to be objective, not take it personally, not get defensive and so on, there is almost no hope that you can figure out how to effectively reposition this site. It will probably go much better to just ditch it and start over and view it as a learning experience.
I considered signing up for your site. I could certainly use more free resources. I also considered posting it to my homeless website. But that runs into the question of conflict of interest. If I want to win, I am better off not sharing it. That only increases the competition. So, perhaps the model of the site is fundamentally broken.
- Layout/design - My initial reaction when the page loaded was "Oh, it's a penny auction site", which are known for being borderline scams. Obviously it isn't, but that gut reaction is difficult for you to overcome (I'm thinking of sites like swoggi.co.uk when I say penny auctions)
Only problem is charging money is illegal. I was thinking of "implying" that you may have to pay one day, and having the register button say "Sign up for your free trial", which will be an infinitely long free trial. But then again, the site is all about trust, and you've already tricked them from the start with this method.
Yeah I tried the approach of a quirky, 1 owner website, and it didn't work. I'm still trying to clean up all the jokes, memes, etc.
Hmmmm, yeah I can see how a first impression is that the site is a penny auction site. I definitely need to rethink the front end design and UX flow. Maybe don't even show the prizes until they've registered.
Yeah the giant table of "win this! win that!" seems enormously scammy. Maybe because scam ads just display something so similar. And, key thing with yours and theirs, no context and leaves me wondering "what's the catch?".
Even if you just added a short paragraph explaining the concept (since otherwise when I get to your site I look around to see what it does, and see nothing but scam ads all over = scam site; if you actually say what the site's for the prizes have context) and how it works (otherwise I'm like, "sure, effectively free cash, yeah right" = scam site), and then have the prize list, it would make a big difference in first impressions. Maybe have any list of prizes on the front page not be a countdown of upcoming prizes, but a list of selected featured prizes ("including these brands!").
On the other hand, the long list of terms and conditions on the Toys R Us gift card actually makes it feel more legit somehow. ("Ahh, there's the catch"?) Maybe have the front page end with that list, or the intersection of all terms, or a similar terms and conditions for muxme itself, rather than "many pages of EVEN MORE PRIZES".
I'm learning this with my website (http://muxme.com), which is only a month old. I've pivoted about a hundred times, which makes me question what truth is, because literally every bit of copy, UX flow, and strategy has changed. Yesterday the site was personal, friendly, and quirky. Today the site attempts to create the illusion that we're multiple people operating a business. The one truth that is true and universal is that people can enter and win with no purchase necessary, which is what the website revolves around.
I'm running into the growth problem with my website: http://muxme.com. Lots of people say the love the website, but it seems like no one is telling their friends. I was thinking of maybe adding user created sweepstakes, because I think the only way people would spontaneously tell their friend is if they win something from the site. More winners = more people telling their friends, but I can only go so far on my budget. What do you guys think?
I don't think anyone I know would be interested in this website. So even if one person likes, it doesn't mean any of their friends will. As a web savvy person, I assume services like this are not worth trying because
1) it's just as likely to be a scam as not and
2) even if it's worth it right now, it will soon not because because of people gaming/spamming the system. The odds of winning an item for free are not displayed, and therefore are assumed to be astronomically high. It's assumed it's not a good return on my time to register and enter.
That said, it's a cool site, and I like your intentions. I do not think there's going to be a feasible way to prevent gaming and spamming unfortunately.
1) I post a receipt of the item, have a video drawing of the sweepstake, and post the tracking number of the package after it's sent out. Short of revealing the winners name, I don't know what other proof I can provide (although googling the user's usernames reveals quite a bit about them, I encourage them to change their usernames). I understand what you mean, on first glance I can see how people think the site is a scam.
2) I show how many people enter, so the odds are 1/(total number of entries). I was thinking of requiring a valid/unique phone number on registration and require the users to input the code I text them. Think of Craigslist / Chatroulette / etc.
I don't envision any people from Hacker News using the site on a daily basis. In fact, I posted it here as a "Show HN" and a whooping <10 people visited. There are people where an extra $25 means getting to take your daughter out to dinner when she announces she's engaged or an extra $100 means you get to pay your bills on time for the month (real winner stories so far). What really pushes me to work on the site every day is that even if the site fails to grow, at the end of the day, I've helped people without asking for anything in return.
Yeah, the prizes are paid for out of pocket by me. It's not the most expensive project in the world, let's say I average $50/day ($1,500/month) in gift card costs and $10/month on a server. I live in a 42 square foot room and share an apartment with 5 people, so I'd say that the expenses are taken care of from my choice of a frugal lifestyle (we're talking Manhattan, New York rent here). Those are my only expenses to run and maintain the site. The risk of $1,500/month for a couple of months to possibly achieve my dream is a no-brainer.
My goal is growth. Craigslist is a great example of a site that I want to be like. Offer an awesome service for free. I'd like to have companies fund the giveaways or maybe even have companies pay to have their giveaways featured as a top result. I don't really know yet. I'm sure there's some win-win situation that I haven't thought of where the users get awesome free stuff and there's a way for me to work on the website full time.
Thanks for the responses. Have you considered reaching out to businesses to offer free stuff? Sort of like Groupon that doesn't cost them anything other than the discount/free item they provide?
Yeah I've definitely considered it. It's on my list of things to do, but I'm also sort of experimenting with the website and trying to optimize the user experience and make the site fun.
At first glance, I thought that your website was listing random free items on the internet and that you'd make money with affiliate links. I looked at a few items and they were all given by "MuxMe" so I was really confused as to WHY you were giving free items. I then looked at the about page trying to understand a bit more and there it is, you seem like a genuine nice person giving free stuff away, hoping one day to become a non-profit.
I'm still a bit confused. In a way, it seems "Too good to be true". I would craft a nice paragraph and put it at the top of the page so that first-time visitor understands what you're trying to do. You cannot blame people for thinking that this is scam (Hey I'm receiving emails every day telling me I won $1M).
Also, you realize that if I tell my friends about your website I have less chance to win.. why would I do that?
That's very valuable feedback. Thank you for telling me that you thought I was listing random free items and made money with affiliate links. I like the idea of making an extremely visible "about" at the top of the page so that a first time visitor reads what the site is about before making an assumption.
You're absolutely right that the more people you tell, the less of a chance you have to win. The model is flawed right now. The winners are telling their friends (or even friends are asking the winners how they are taking them out to dinner), so if I could somehow get more winners with a low budget, then the site would be a success.
My goal is to work on the website full time. It makes me very happy running the site and I'd say it's the only thing I think or care about. Also, I thought that maybe some of the users are interested in learning programming and I could create Youtube videos to teach them how to make websites/program. I've always wanted to be a teacher.
Neat concept you have going! You come off as a genuinely nice person in your videos, which is great for building trust. My one small piece of feedback would be to consider changing the 'About' link to 'How it Works' instead. I went to your site and immediately started scanning for those words, because usually a sweepstakes site has a catch of some sort.
when you talk to your users, ask them if they've shown this to their friends. If they haven't ask them why they haven't. If they have ask them why their friends didn't like it. I would also recommend sending out a NPS survey to all your users
Its amazing you've doing this. Definitely keep it up. My advice would be to find a business guy who could do a solid pitch of this for companies. I'm sure there are some out there who would be interested.
Thanks, I've had my ups and downs the past month but contacting the winners and hearing their responses is what keeps me going. I appreciate the comment.
I agree that if I had a business guy that could do a solid pitch that I could get the donations from companies. The website is also very experimental right now, so I think I'm going to keep it up and figure out a good model before introducing people and companies into the mix. The great thing is that the website is currently a hobby project, so I can do whatever I want to it without being forced to do something I disagree with.
The more people that enter the giveaways, the less of a chance you have to win. There's a guaranteed winner every time and your odds are 1/(total number of entries).
I'm not worried about money, I'm worried about growth. There are services like RaffleCopter / Gleam / KingSumo / Woobox / etc. which let you create Sweepstakes to promote viral growth for your website or business.
This is some real feedback I've received:
"It sounds like a scam to me. If you want to try to scam people by getting them to click on your fake website, you should have enough common sense not to use the website as your username. Better luck next time!!!!"
"Scamming people on Christmas Eve using someone's else's platform. Tacky."
But yeah... this site isn't working. I'm thinking of scrapping it and writing an app/browser extension that automatically enters you into sweepstakes. Let's say Person A enters 10 sweepstakes on different websites. Person B enters 5 sweepstakes on different websites. When person C downloads the app, he will automatically be entered into the sweepstakes that Person A and Person B entered (via my magic backend system that I have yet to create). The more people that download the app and enter sweepstakes, the more sweepstakes everyone with the app will automatically be entered into. Now people will start winning prizes for literally doing nothing but downloading the app.