If someone needs to think about what you sell, you’ve already lost them.
In e-commerce, clarity isn’t just helpful – it’s non-negotiable. Most founders think they have a traffic problem. They don’t.
They have a messaging problem.
Customers don’t scroll for answers – they bounce. And if your product doesn’t “click” in three seconds or less, you’ve already paid for a visitor you’ll never see again.
Let’s break down the psychology behind why most product messaging fails – and how to fix it.
1. Customers don’t read. They scan.
You’re writing like they’ll read every word. They won’t.
Eye-tracking studies from Nielsen Norman Group show users follow an “F-shaped” pattern – scanning headlines, bullets, and bolded sections. Not paragraphs. Not prose.
Jakob Nielsen, the usability pioneer behind these studies, says design presentation is just as important as the words themselves. And yet, most e-commerce sites bury their value in copy no one will read.
Founders write like storytellers. Customers behave like skimmers.
If your value isn’t seen at a glance, it’s as good as invisible.
2. The curse of knowledge is killing your clarity.
You’ve spent months (maybe years) building your product. But your customer is seeing it for the first time. And they don’t speak your language.
That internal phrase you love? They have no idea what it means. Donald Miller, author of Building a StoryBrand, calls this “the curse of knowledge” – when you know too much to explain it simply. He’s helped thousands of brands simplify their messaging using one rule: if a 5th grader wouldn’t understand it, rewrite it.
Founders fall in love with their product – and forget how it sounds to someone new. That’s why your homepage reads like a pitch deck, not a sales page.
You don’t need a new funnel. You need a new first sentence.
3. Your product page should answer one question: “Is this for me?”
Customers don’t convert because your product is impressive. They convert because it feels relevant.
If your product page tries to speak to everyone, it speaks to no one. Val Geisler, DTC copywriter for brands like Podia and AccessAlly, calls this “empathy-based messaging” – copy that mirrors what your customer is already thinking.
One DTC brand I worked with had a stunning product page. Gorgeous visuals. Slick design. But sales were flat. We rewrote the headline to: “Made for night-shift nurses who never sleep.”
Sales jumped 33+% in a week.
Clarity is conversion. Relevance is revenue.
Most e-commerce brands don’t lose sales because their product is bad. They lose sales because their message makes people think.
Customers scan. They bounce fast. They’re silently asking: “Is this for me?” And if your page doesn’t answer that instantly, they’ll answer for you – with a click away.
Make your message so clear it sells before they scroll.
If this resonated, here’s what to do next:
→ If you’re tired of content that fills space instead of driving sales, let’s talk. Schedule a quick demo.
→ If you’re ready to turn product pages, email flows, landing copy, and more into silent salespeople for your brand, subscribe to either our Unlimited Standard Plan or Unlimited Professional Plan to get started.
Your story deserves better than generic copy.
We make it unforgettable.