Themes and plugins I’ll compare in the upcoming roundup review:
[one_half_first]
[one_half_first]
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- SalesPress Pro
- InstaBuilder
- FlexSqueeze
- … (your suggestion here)
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Question of the week:
Let me know your thoughts and comments on the Hybrid Connect update the affiliate idea, the branding stuff or anything else!
Please leave a comment below.
Note that I don’t reply to all comments, but I do read them all. If I don’t reply to your comment, it most likely means that I agree with what you say and don’t have anything meaningful to add, myself. I appreciate and read all comments and your comments play an important part in what I write about, so keep them coming.
Spammy comments are always filtered or removed. No surprise there.
Hello Shawn,
I am a long time user of FlexSqueeze and really love(d) the platform. However, I have had to abandon it as it is not responsive. In forum postings in the Support section the developer has stated that there are no plans to make the theme responsive due to the theme platform size. In my opinion anyone putting up new web sites today that are not based on a responsive design is leaving a big portion of their potential customers out of the picture. My sites are already receiving upwards of 50% of their traffic from mobile devices (tablets & smartphones) so it is really something to consider depending on your users. I have been converting my sites over to responsive designs this past year.
Thank you
Hi Charles,
I agree that responsiveness is becoming an important factor for any website design. It’s a factor I will be using as a test criterion and I also want to add it to imimpact on the next redesign.
I would like to see you compare Weaver II. They have a free version and a relatively low cost paid version. Very flexible and of course it has built-in mobile capabilities.
While we are the subject of products, whatever happened to your update of your Quizmaker plugin? You don’t even list it on your site anymore.
Hi Martin,
Thanks for your comment! Concerning Weaver 2, please see my reply to Akbar further below.
Viral Quiz Builder is still in development. Please see the reply to Rahul below, for more details.
I am also looking forward to the comparison of the wordpress themes. If you just add Ultimatum Theme and Headway theme than it will be ease for us to know which option is best.
One more thing to say and apologies in advance for off topic You have not updated us on Viral Quiz Builder Plugin. This is your first plugin and than you release Hybrid Connect Plugin and One webinar connect software and one course on webinar. You make major improvements in Hybrid connection plugin and Webinar connect software but still the Quiz Builder plugin is pending for promised major improvements. Did you abandon the Viral Quiz Plugin.
Rahul
Hello Rahul,
Concerning the themes, please see my reply to Akbar, further below.
Viral Quiz Builder is still in development, believe it or not. It has been a bit of a nightmare of development with delays followed by more delays.
The current projection is that the new version should be ready by the end of November.
Hi Shane
Lot of good players in the sales page market who treat their customers and affiliates well so will be interesting to see your conclusions
Have promoted Profits Theme in the past along with other products of Welly’s he seems like one of the good guys in this industry
Like the idea of instant commission products from a quality operator like yourself because I know the end customer will be happy with the product and will be looked after if any niggles arise
Thanks for sharing
Tony
I agree that Welly is one of the good guys in the industry. Creates a solid product, too. :)
Thanks for your input on the instant commissions!
Although the roundup review is about sales page theme types, I would love to see thesis 2.0 added coz it can be customised as per your needs and it has a unique approach too. Even, I would like to get an update on the viral quiz builder plugin as well?
Thanks,
Akbar
Hi Akbar,
Thanks for the suggestion. I will, however, not be adding Thesis to the roundup. My reason for this is that, as you say, it’s not specifically made for building sales pages, squeeze pages, launch sequences etc.
Sure, you can customize things to end up with sales pages and squeeze pages and so on, but there are two big differences:
1) The average user will probably not invest the time and effort necessary to get this result. In the case of Thesis, most users will also lack the necessary coding knowledge to even make that happen.
There’s a big difference between setting up a squeeze page by selecting a template and adding some text or starting completely from scratch and designing/coding a squeeze page on a framework like Thesis.
2) If I include Thesis in the roundup, that would mean I’d also have to include a dozen or so similar “does everything” theme builders and theme frameworks.
For the review, I really want to focus on themes and plugins made very specifically for marketing pages.
Hi Shane.
I’ve owned OptimizePress for a while and like it. However it has been very quiet on the OptimizePress members site for a while.
I did see James Dyson pop up on the Warrior Forum earlier this year to say that he hadn’t gone away and that he was working on developing OP Version 2, which was supposed to be a huge update.
James mentioned an August release but that has obviously come and gone and I haven’t heard anything since.
Have you heard anything about V2 at all?
Cheers
Peter
I’ve heard nothing but rumors, myself.
My plan is to test the current version (1.55, I think) and update the review as soon as the new version is released, assuming that the changes are dramatic enough to warrant an update.
I have read a thread in the Warrior forum i do not have the link where the owner of the Op theme is telling that he is creating the version 2 entire different from scratch and it is not available for free to optimize press version 1, although they get huge discount on Version 2. and he said that he is now testing it and removing the bugs from the theme. and When it is ready than he put into the market.
Rahul
Hey Shane,
I am a big fan of the Genesis Framework put out by Studiopress and very much look forward to your analysis of their Premise product.
I am just starting to transition from doing affiliate sites to doing my own products, so your choice of products to review is very timely for me.
BTW, I liked the chapters feature on your video. I invariably want to re-view something and end up playing the guessing game trying to locate it. The chapters make it much easier.
Regards,
J. Greene
Yes, another convert! :D
Glad to hear that you’re getting into product creation.
Hi Shane,
I like the instant commissions. One product I use pays instantly in their aff program. I don’t really promote it, but I put my aff link in a forum post where the product would be of use to the person asking the question. I don’t get many sales, but it is always a nice surprise to get an email saying I’ve received a commission.
One the video chapters. A good thing I think, but it would be nice to know up front what is in each chapter. Maybe you could put a short chapter description (maybe even just a title) under the video.
Thanks for the feedback, Doug!
I’m hoping that Wistia will add a nicer feature for adding chapters, sometime soon. I think for some videos, it’s a great feature to have. You can see the chapter titles when you hover over the dots below the video, but it’s not ideal, I know.
Hey Shane, I know this is a bit off-topic, but do you prefer PC or Mac? I need to buy a new computer and am wondering what you use and why….
Maybe you could do a review on PC / Macs when it comes to using them for business and internet marketing. I say this because I seem to find the Mac OS a bit distracting and on the other side I find PC’s to have lower quality hardware…
I use PC and always have. Mac aren’t very attractive to me, on the one hand because they’re overpriced and on the other hand because the whole Mac = Lifestyle Statement vibe turns me off.
I know many people see it very differently, though. :)
Finely. Someone has stated this correctly. I will quote you on that.
I just turn red when Apple fanboys get in my face.
Therein lies the power of the brand, though. It evokes emotion. Just as much as you hate it, the “fanboys” love it. That’s a good thing to have.
I know we’ve been here before but my experience – as a very non-tech guy – is that Macs are just soooo much easier and more pleasant to use. That’s it. I’m not a fanboy and don’t even like some aspects of Apple. My sole reason is, as they say, “It just works”. (and this factor alone has saved me a ton of time over the days when I used PCs and spent untold hours just trying to make the damn things do what I bought them to do ..)
Each to their own but for non-tech peeps, in my view and experience of both, Macs win hands down.
Hi Shane,
One plugin you might like to add to the list is WP Sales Engine.
Regards
Chris
Thank you for the suggestion!
Unfortunately, it seems like it’s currently closed and there was supposed to be an update in October.
While it looks like you can still find an active sales-page with a bit of Google-fu, I’d rather wait for an official version. I’ll keep my eye on it, though.
Hi Shane – I recently purchased “Socrates” theme on a special promotion which looked very affiliate friendly. Haven’t had time to play with it yet – but thought it was worth mentioning here nonetheless. http://www.socratestheme.com/
Thanks for the recommendation! I’ll take a look to see if it fits into the review.
Hi Brett.
I used to use Socrates, but it doesn’t compare with OptimizePress and the other themes that Shane is going to review as it isn’t specifically designed for building sales pages.
Socrates positions itself more as an theme for marketing sites. It has a lot of built in features for displaying ads and affiliate promotions.
Cheers
Peter
Thanks, Peter!
I’m very keen to hear what sales page is best, I use optomise press, I just paid $97 – so I’m hoping you say that’s a good one!!! Also, interesting topic affiliates, James Schramko is shutting down is affiliate products now saying too many scams (CC’s etc) and he’s over it. Paying instantly would be something that would worry him even more!! Wouldn’t it be nice to be so big that that is our problem!!
branding, oh boy, where do I start on that one!…
:) Kate
(Can’t wait to hook up with you soon too Shane!) :)
I find that very surprising. Sure, there are always bad apples to deal with, but many very large companies maintain affiliate programs because the ROI is there. I guess it depends on the types of products he sells, but it’s hard to imagine that removing affiliates from the equation would not hurt his business…
He has also had problems with affiliate scams as per my reply below. Yes, he really is shutting down his affiliate program, lock stock and barrel.
I like the chapters so that I can just find what I want later.
I use Catalyst theme which is very good with built in CSS and so forth. I do find it a litlle technically difficult though for my (very) limited skills. However some people sell skins to get around this including this guy who also has an opt-in form builder so you may want to include that.
http://bestdynamikskins.com/optin-rocket/
I tried Thesis a long time ago and found it a bit off-putting. Without CSS knowledge, a Thesis site will just look like ever other Thesis site. That was my impression, anyway.
Hi Shane!
I’m so happy to see you’re still going from strength, you give such amazing value.
1. May I ask what theme you’re currently using? It doesn’t seem like any of the themes you’re reviewing…?
2. Your ‘brand’ has always been You! Even when you were doing your GetRichQuickReview days.
If I were to brand you I’d put down something similar to your WRriorforum tag line – “Obsessive tester’ or perhaps ‘awesome, epic and slightly insane??’
Cheers
Samith
Thanks!
The theme on this site is a modified Striking (found on Themeforest). Some things about it are great, but it also has some disadvantages. For example, getting loading times down has always been a struggle, with this theme.
“Awesome, epic and slightly insane” has a nice ring to it! :D
Hi Shane,
An affiliate program would be great. Something to be aware of though is the scams. JVZoo implemented a delayed payment option due to so many vendors being scammed. You may want to touch base with Brian Zimmerman to get some more input before you go to instant commissions.
Love your Sunday updates!
Thanks, Rhonda!
I’ve read about this issue as well. I’m hoping that it can be solved by manually approving affiliates.
It’s also one of the reasons why this will be a test run, at first. If things work out, we’ll move ahead. If not, we have a working system we can keep using. I just want to find out if we can make things better for our affiliates.
Hi Shane,
Always enjoy the Sunday updates. Looking forward to the Hybrid update! I also have the Socrates theme. If you could take a look at it and consider adding to your review.
thanks,
Mike Sweeney
Hi Mike,
Thanks for the suggestions. Peter replied above with some details on the Socrates theme. Looks like it would be an apples-to-oranges comparison with the rest of the bunch. But maybe I should do a different marketing-theme review at some point?
Hi Shane
as always another great Sunday Review.
Looking forward to the upgrade to Hybrid Connect but, after buying almost all the premium opt-in form generator type programs, Hybrid Connect ALREADY stands head and shoulders above them all, even without further upgrades!
Regarding your upcoming review I would suggest you look at Alex Goad’s Authority Pro theme – it’s another Optimize Press but with a few unique twists, however I also use OP and think this is hard to beat but, we will wait and see!
I noticed your earlier comment regarding Striking theme being slow. I also use Striking and, no matter what I do I just don’t seem to be able to improve the load time. On a more positive note it is a great looking theme with lots of in-built functionality and a relatively low learning curve in comparison to some.
Best wishes
Thank you very much, Maurice!
Thanks for the suggestion to add Authority Pro. I checked it out, bought it and added it to the review.
chapter is a great concept. Will the ab testing module only be available on web connect or a plugin for WordPress with the testing only? In terms of branding..your USP in my humble opinion is providing actual results not hype… Happy Thanksgiving.
The split testing is built into Hybrid Connect. It’s a free update for all customers, too.
Hi Shane,
Sounds like you might be moving to JVzoo? If so, it’s a great sales platform. But be REALLY careful about instant commissions. I just lost about $500 on my redirectbacon.com product through an affiliate scam.
This is the way it works, they apply for instant commissions. You okay them, they run a bunch of fake traffic and sales on stolen credit cards, then take out the money from Paypal and close the account. You’re left holding the bag and need to make the refunds, minus the affiliate commissions to the buyers, who didn’t “buy” anything but rather, had their credit cards stolen and then fake charges.
I hope it’s clear. So my advice, be REALLY careful giving instant commissions. Really careful! Now I only give instant commissions to people i know. Or after 10 sales with no charge back problems over a period of a month, I’ll upgrade the affiliate to instant commissions. I highly suggest you follow the same procedure.
Best of luck to you and I will be promoting your plugin as I think it rocks! Great job!
William C. Allen
Thank you for the words of warning, William!
I’ll be using DigiResults and they also have the option to grant instant commissions only to certain affiliates. This means I can give instant commissions to affiliates I know and to those who have a track record of good promotions.
For every one else, we can keep the 30 day payment delay, so that will hopefully weed out the scammers.
Hi Shane
A friend says great things about Canvas from Woo Themes. Also Thesis is widely recommended. Reviews on these would be great.
Also, I’ll be moving into ecommerce soon, so reviews of WordPress ecommerce themes and plugins would be truly valuable.
cheers
Leo
Hi Leo,
A theme framework review could be interesting as well, yeah. I’m adding it to my ideas list. :)
Woocommerce seems to be quite popular. I haven’t done any ecommerce since 2010 though, so I’m rather out of the loop on that front.
WOOHOO! Instant Commissions. That’s a Massive Win especially since you guys offer a two tier program. There’s nothing quite as great as instant gratification.