Gumroad
Gumroad is an e-commerce website focused on digital files. It allows companies and individuals to sell things such as comic books, eBooks, software, music and films directly to consumers, bypassing sites such as Amazon and iTunes. Customers can pay creators with a wide variety of credit cards, and creators receive payments through PayPal. Creators pay Gumroad $10 per month for the service plus a 3.5% fee for every transaction, along with a transaction fee of $0.30. The site also offers something called Gumroad Discover, which helps creators find customers. Sales from this are subject to an additional 10% fee. Among the built-in features Gumroad provides are in-depth analytics and customer management tools, including email capabilities.
- Built-in data analytics
- Customer management tools
- Can send emails to customers
- Can sell subscriptions and pre-orders
- Has a discovery tool to help creators find new customers
- Is very easy for creators to setup and sell digital products
- Is reasonably priced
- You cannot have your own self-contained site
- Limited site design and functionality
- Limited to tangible products
There are many good options when it comes to a eCommerce solution, such as Shopify and WooCommerce, but what makes Gumroad standout is its focus on digital products. Here you can sell digital music and eBooks and things of that variety. You can also sell subscriptions and pre-orders. But while you theoretically can sell physical goods, it is really not designed for this. By limiting itself in this way, it makes the whole selling process from setup to sale much easier. Gumroad also has excellent built-in analytic and customer management tools. Among the latter tools is the ability to send emails to your customers, which can be very useful in building an eCommerce site. Its pricing is also similar to other eCommerce websites for what it provides. However, Gumroad has many drawbacks. Unlike most other eCommerce sites, creators cannot build their own self-contained website. Their customers have to go to the Gumroad site to buy any products. Also, creators are limited in both the design and functionality of their site. You are also limited to selling things that have tangible value. This means that you cannot sell products such as online workshops. Still, for small creators that are looking for a simple and reasonably priced way to sell their digital products, Gumroad is well worth considering.