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Carlo V.

Philippines

Contributor Level

Total Points
80

1 Review by Carlo

  • Gumroad

11/1/21
Verified purchase

I'm a comics creator from the Philippines (https://carverhouse.gumroad.com) and I have been using Gumroad for a few years. I sell only digital products, and have earned US$2,600 since 2017. Not a lot, as I only have a few products.

For context, I am not a power user. I haven't maximized everything Gumroad can do. All I wanted was a place to sell my stuff, and get a mailing list of people who I know will buy what I have to offer.

What I really love about Gumroad is how simple it is to set things up, and that I get my own mailing list. I also like how I don't have to pay a monthly fee, though I wish that Gumroad opened up a donation option for themselves. I haven't sold anything new lately, so I feel guilty about taking up space.

I also like how Gumroad gives many options for setting up subscriptions. I haven't taken advantage of this, because of my audience's concerns about using credit cards.

The Pay-What-You-Want option is awesome. I've been using it for most of my products. Try it. It's a great way for you to find your "true fans."

In the past, I did have a problem with my account being flagged because of a chargeback, but that was quickly remedied after talking to Gumroad support.

Of course, Gumroad isn't perfect. Here are a few concerns I have:

1) Customer support. While their customer support is very helpful, I sometimes don't feel a lot of empathy from their email responses. It feels like the reps just want to quickly get the concern out of the way, so the tone of their emails tends to raise an eyebrow at times. I also had a problem with the way they answered my inquiry about Google Pay. If I were to rate the customer support alone, I would give it 3.5 to 4.0 stars.

2) This applies to my case in the Philippines. While many have bought stuff from me using their credit card, many others are wary of doing so, and not many have Paypal accounts. While Google Pay is integrated, it's still tied to a credit card. I wish that there was a way for people to pay me through Google Pay but using their mobile phone accounts. This would be a super game changer for me.

Potentially, the next best thing would be e-wallets. The Philippines have e-wallet services which are very popular (GCash, Paymaya), and have their own virtual cards. I have been able to buy stuff on Gumroad using these virtual cards, but it's a hit or miss, which can be very frustrating. I don't know if Gumroad can find a way to remedy this.

3) To take advantage of the Pay-What-You-Want option, the maximum file size is only 25MB. I wish it were higher, as I would like to sell tutorial videos. The only way around this so far is to use discount codes, but that's an extra step from an audience standpoint.

4) This is a nitpick, from a design standpoint. Gumroad has a Discover Marketplace, sort of like Creative Market or Cubebrush, but the Gumroad design doesn't have the same robust vibe as those other sites. I'd like to think that the casual feel of Gumroad is intentional, but this presentation can make Gumroad look less professional, and more subject to skepticism.

My advice for those who are thinking of using Gumroad: start small and lower expectations. Gumroad is not Amazon, it's not Shopify, it's not Etsy. So I would imagine Gumroad would have to make some tradeoffs. It's still the best platform I've found for my purposes. Thanks, Gumroad!

Tip for consumers:
Start small to get your feet wet.

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