Lack of Sales

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

A new Shopify store selling gymnastics apparel (useliteathletics.com) is struggling with zero sales despite running paid ads on Google, Facebook, and Instagram, building social media presence, and partnering with influencers. Traffic has increased, but conversion rates remain extremely low.

Key Issues Identified:

  • Poor site performance: PageSpeed scores are critically low (accessibility and speed both need improvement to 90+)
  • SEO problems: Logo incorrectly set as H1 tag, overly long meta descriptions, missing alt text on multiple images
  • Weak conversion elements: Lacks urgency triggers, social proof, trust signals, and clear value proposition
  • Targeting concerns: Ads may not align with landing page messaging; cold traffic needs better nurturing

Community Recommendations:

  • Add urgency elements: limited-time offers, countdown timers, low-stock alerts, free shipping thresholds
  • Implement social proof: visitor counters, customer reviews, real-time activity displays
  • Optimize technical SEO: fix H1 tags, compress images, shorten meta descriptions
  • Build email list with incentives (currently using Klaviyo popup with 20% discount)
  • Improve product storytelling and brand differentiation on landing pages
  • Use analytics tools (Google Analytics 4, Hotjar) to identify drop-off points
  • Retarget influencer-driven traffic with email/SMS campaigns

Current Status: Store owner is actively implementing suggested changes and seeking specific examples of better-converting sites for reference.

Summarized with AI on October 26. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

We launched our website and Shopify store and haven’t seen any sales. We have an instagram account (@u.s_elite) and a Facebook account (facebook.com/useliteathletics) that we have started for social engagement. Our website is useliteathletics.com. We have run some paid advertising via Google, Facebook and Instagram and saw some increased traffic, but no sales. We have sent product to some gymnastic influencers and received some good feedback and some social post recognition.

Any insight from the community on ways to increase site traffic and generate sales would be appreciated.

2

You should know that there’s a lot of things to do before running ads

things like SEO, complete branding and setup of your stores profile is required. You do require a marketing expert

I do assist base on stores owner budget cause I know making sales is sure

3

Hi @uslelite ,

I would like to recommend following things, like there are many things depending upon products and target audience. Some may work, some won’t. Please check the following details:

1.) Offer & Urgency: Are you giving people a reason to buy now?

People don’t convert because:

  • The price feels too high for what they get.

  • There’s no urgency to act now.

Ideas to test:

  • Launch a limited-time offer (“15% off your first set”).

  • Offer free shipping over a certain threshold.

  • Include a countdown timer or low-stock alerts.

  • You can use the Loyalty program

2. Audience-Product Fit: Are you targeting the right people?### Consider:- Do your ads match your website messaging?

  • If your ad promises elite gymnastics gear but the landing page feels generic, people bounce.

  • Are you targeting buyers or just getting clicks?

    • Awareness-stage audiences (cold traffic) need education. Retargeting and warmer audiences often convert better.

  • Influencer Strategy:

    • Good social posts don’t always translate into action. Did the influencers include product tags or promo codes? Are you capturing that interest with email/SMS follow-ups?

Action:
Try:

  • A/B testing different audiences (e.g., gym moms vs. teen gymnasts).

  • Use Meta’s Advantage+ campaigns or conversion lookalike audiences if pixel data exists.

  • Create a “Gym Starter Kit” or offer bundle to test product/price sensitivity.

3.) Audit Your Website & Conversion Funnel

I have checked and confirmed that your website is slow and Accessibility score is . The ideal performance has to be 90 or Accessibility has to be above 90. 70% of eCommerce traffic comes from mobile—ensure fast loading speeds — URL to check page speed (

AiTrillion_0-1750866822599.png
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I have checked your site and confirmed that you have both a popup and product reviews in place. I hope you’ve been able to collect emails or SMS contacts from the traffic driven by influencers. You must re-target them to inform about offers or Loyalty or any sale.

Additionally, I checked and confirmed that you’re not using any deceptive pricing practices. However, you should consider clearly displaying discounts to create a sense of urgency of discount and encourage customers to make a purchase.

If you have any questions, feel free to reply here or message me. I am more than happy to help you.

4

Hi @uslelite

Apart from publishing ads via several platforms, you need to focus on page content optimization and store SEO meanwhile. As an SEO product provider, I can give you some ideas to boost your sales via SEO way. Please check my shared opinions here based on my examination and hope can give you some reminders meanwhile.

  1. On your homepage, you set store logo as H1 tag, which is actually not so suggested here, as it will confuse Google and get wrong information when indexing your page. Always remember to set up a real text content as H1 tag, and it will be better for understanding on Google end.

SEOAntJeffery_0-1750927601196.png
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  1. This web page on your store appears to have quite a long meta description content and cannot let visitors read full content completely. Try to shorten the length of this page meta description within 100–200 characters and after updating, it shall have a better status in search results.

https://useliteathletics.com/pages/us-elite-ambassadors-wanted?srsltid=AfmBOop1f3Ej9Am1wAgJxhumIT7Z0UYLftRxoq28ywRredojzNcGxKtZ

SEOAntJeffery_1-1750927746640.png
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  1. Several images on your website are lack of alt text content, which will make Google fail to understand the meanings directly and block bots from getting the details about images and text contents properly. Better add them from backend properly and get rid of potential influence on your store. I have shared some example image URLs below for your reference.

https://useliteathletics.com/cdn/shop/files/US_Elite_53_-_Smiling_Duo.jpg?v=1747155094&width=1500

https://useliteathletics.com/cdn/shop/files/US-ELITE_Launch-Social-34.jpg?v=1744724189&width=1500

https://useliteathletics.com/cdn/shop/files/US-ELITE_Launch-Social-35.jpg?v=1744724370&width=1500

By the way, I notice you have optimized page content in a very good way, but also pay attention to page SEO status still please in the process of optimization. You can do the SEO Check regularly to better know page situation and see if meet demands from Google or not, a kind reminder here and may your store have better performance with all the efforts made continuously.

5

You are definitely taking the right first steps by setting up social channels, running ads, and getting influencer feedback. A common challenge for new stores is converting that initial traffic into sales. One thing to focus on now is building trust and social proof on your website. Visitors need to feel confident that your brand is credible and that others are buying from you.

A simple way to start is by showing real-time visitor activity. An app like Trafficly - Visitor Counter by CareCart can help by displaying the number of people currently browsing your store. This creates a sense of activity and can encourage hesitant shoppers to explore further. Also, consider adding customer reviews, clear shipping and return information, and highlighting any user-generated content from your influencers. Keep testing small changes to your product pages and track where visitors drop off using Shopify’s analytics or a heatmap tool.

6

Hello Uslelite,

New sports brands can be slow to pick up, but so far, you’ve done well to leverage social media and paid ads to drive more traffic to your website. What I recommend you focus on to boost conversions is earning the customers’ trust.

You can do this with a pre-purchase EDD display on the checkout page. With ParcelPanel, you can set this up in minutes. More than just showing your customers when their orders will arrive when they check out, the app lets you customize how the EDD is calculated to fit your store’s order processing and fulfillment workflow.

ParcelPanel lets you determine the default pre-purchase EDD rules, define your business days, set specific rules, and even exclusion rules for products that should not display the EDD. When your customer places an order, they can return to your branded tracking page to follow the progress of their order or receive automatic alerts whenever there is an update.

Custom EDD.png
Custom EDD.png1089×572 73.1 KB

Try the app for 40% off and let me know if you convert more customers.

7

Hi,

Your store looks great, and many others have already shared solid advice. I’d like to add a few more actionable tips:

  1. Create Urgency with Social Proof
    Use a visitors counter on product pages to show how many people are currently viewing the item. This builds trust and creates a subtle sense of FOMO (fear of missing out), nudging users to make a purchase.

  2. Grow Your Email List & Drive Sales
    Consider using a pop-up or email collection bar that offers store credits (e.g., “Get $25 store credit when you subscribe”). This gives users an incentive to join your list and make a purchase. You gain both a lead and a potential customer. Check out the app in the profile description.

  3. Analyze and Improve User Experience

  • Google Analytics 4: Understand where your traffic is coming from and identify which pages cause users to exit.
  • Hotjar: Use heatmaps and session recordings to detect friction points or confusing layouts on your site.
  • User Testing: Ask friends, relatives, or use a tool like PickFu to get unbiased feedback from people similar to your target audience. It can uncover problems you might not notice yourself.

Hope you find it useful

8

Thank you for taking the time to review my site and for your feedback. I did review the site speed using PageSpeed Insights. Any advice on how to improve my scores would be great.

9

Thank you for taking the time to review my site and for your feedback. I made some changes based on comments. How do I change the Logo from a H1 tag and what should it be?

10

Thank you for taking the time to review my site and providing feedback. I will add the traffic counter per suggestions. Any other feedback would be appreciated!

1 Like
11

Thank you for taking the time to review my site and providing feedback. I am currently using a free pop up by Klaviyo with a 20% offer to build my email list. My conversion rate based on site traffic is extremely low. Any suggestions? I will follow your other suggestions - Thank you so much!

12

You’re already doing some of the right things — launching social accounts, running ads, and sending product to influencers. That puts you ahead of many early-stage stores. But based on where your brand is now, there are a few core areas that need focus before you’ll start seeing consistent sales.

Your site isn’t ready to convert traffic

The fact that you have a discount popup is a good start, but overall, the site lacks persuasive elements. There’s not enough product storytelling, clarity on your value proposition, or trust signals to convince a new visitor to buy. Even positive influencer feedback won’t convert if your site doesn’t build confidence and urgency.

Paid ads won’t work if the landing experience is weak

It sounds like you’ve driven some traffic through Facebook and Google ads, but if you’re not converting any of it, the problem likely isn’t just the traffic — it’s what people see when they land. With no content, minimal product detail, and no visible differentiation, most visitors will leave without exploring further.

You need to fix the foundation before scaling traffic

Before doing more outreach or advertising, take a step back and improve how your website communicates. Explain who the brand is for, what makes your gear different, and why now is the right time to buy. Add even small amounts of social proof or influencer quotes. Make your homepage and product pages feel like they were built with a customer in mind — not just for launch.

Start slow SEO and content work

You don’t need to register in directories or go all-in on blogging. But you do need to lay the groundwork. Optimize your existing pages for basic keywords, fix meta titles, compress images, and write even a few short articles that answer real customer questions or show product use cases.

Leverage your early audience and community

Start collecting emails, even if it’s just to build a list for later campaigns. Repost influencer content with commentary. Engage in online spaces where gymnastics families and athletes hang out — not just with promo content, but by being helpful and visible.

13

Thank you for the great insight - I really appreciate it. Is it possible for you to give me any examples (other websites) to show how best to improve my site, specifically your points #1 and #4. I have tried to show who the brand is for, what we are about, how we differentiate etc, but obviously I am not doing a good enough job at that. Any examples or thoughts on how I do that would be great.

Thanks again!

14

@uslelite . Basically you need to implement the CSS and JS to improve the score.