Just here to offer my support! I guess disrupters don’t like being disrupted, do they? You are an incredibly intelligent man, full of energy and with a lot to offer. I do very well on TpT but am always keen to learn more. Until now, I’ve not found a place to communicate where I’m comfortable. I think I might have just found it. Thank you, I hope you are a huge success! I’m following you!
Hi @eternal-student – you just made my day with your comment. (Also, I’m typing outside while I’m walking the dog and my hands are frozen.)
Thank you so much for leaving a public comment of support. You’re a leader showing other TPT sellers it’s okay to join the discussion (both to agree or disagree)
I love that you’re doing very well on TPT!
I also love that attitude of trying to learn more. I wonder if those two go hand in hand with your success because life (and business) constantly change.
The biggest compliment was the idea that you think you might have found a safe space to communicate. (Which is a little funny because we’re chatting on a public forum, but I know what you mean!)
Your YouTube handle says it all: eternal-student
Out of curiosity, how do you do it? How do you stay in that mindset of lifelong learner when you’re faced with hurdles and obstacles?
Publicly allows others to make connections with your perspective, but of course, everyone has a different threshold for what they’re able to share publicly.
@SEOTpreneur Actually Mike, I am 64 this year 🙂 and about to start a Masters Degree. I am a late developer and enjoying every minute. I still teach a few hours a week and love it, but most of my focus is on Tpt. I will probably drop you a line privately at some point. I admire your energy and intelligence and I think it’s good to surround yourself with people you chime with!
You are so inspiring! That’s exactly what I want to be doing when I’m 64: a little bit of teaching, plus a little bit of school (I want to do grad work exploring Pedagogical and Cultural Paradigm Shift through Teacher Entrepreneurial Adventure), plus a lot of TPT fun.
I believe in the idea that you are the average of the five people you hangout with the most. I would definitely love to chat to learn more about you and your lived experiences!
(PS – I don’t check my email regularly so I might be slow to reply. I’ll let you know when the Time Machine is ready so we can pause life for a moment!)
See you in the next comment and I’m glad we’ve met in the SEOTpreneur YouTube community! Cheers, Mike
Hey @teachkidsmusic – I agree with everything you said! Business is business, things change, and I’d love for things to improve for everyone.
But I also recognize that it’s hard to separate our self identity / self worth from our jobs (and or TPT stores).
I wonder if TPT is more personal for teachers compared to other entrepreneurs because some of us sell lesson plans we use in our own classrooms – so then it feels like if our TPT stores don’t work, it might feel like a comment on our lesson or teaching ability… when it’s really just business is business…
Speaking of which, how are things going in your TPT business?
Hi @teachkidsmusic (I love that YouTube handle by the way – are you using that across your brand – or is it just because what you really wanted on YouTube was already taken?)
Thanks for chiming in that you think this is an important conversation to have.
I appreciate the feedback. I think it’s important but it’s good to hear there are other TPT Sellers who also agree it’s an important conversation topic!
I’ll reply to your next comment separately! See you in the next comment! Cheers, Mike
Hi Denise, thank you for leaving a public comment saying that you requested a TPT Seller survey about the dashboard.
The CEO of IXL said during his keynote speech at TPT Forward in Boston that he read all of the results from the previous survey. So, it sounds like the TPT survey is a good mechanism to enact change!
I know you’ve had your TPT store for a while.
I appreciate you leaving a public comment showing other TPT sellers it’s okay to take action. Thank you for being a leader.
Hope things are well in life and with your TPT store.
Absolutely, Mike! Your video hit the nail on the head. I’d like to add something though – being a teacher doesn’t automatically equip one with the skills to design products for fellow educators. It seems there’s an additional, let’s call it a ‘2.5 step’, that’s often overlooked. Teachers should also focus on acquiring the know-how to design products that not only serve educational purposes but are marketable as well—products that sell! The pen needs to work first so you’re able to sell it. Sell the pen, MIKE!
Lol I always love getting your comments because you continually give me something good to think about.
“The pen needs to work first before you’re able to sell it.”
One hundred percent.
I think one of the valid criticisms of TPT (or any teacher to teacher marketplace) is there can be a lot of poor quality teaching resources.
Just because a teacher made the resource doesn’t mean it’s good teaching (or that it meets the curriculum expectations that the TPT seller says it meets.)
I watch a lot of Star Trek (Strange New Worlds) – and there’s a common theme of working towards the ideal (of the Federation – ie it’s not perfect, but we work towards the best / almost utopian possibility.)
So for me, my base assumption on SEOTpreneur is that your teaching resource is great and awesome… and the problem is learning how to sell and market.
But, of course, we know that’s wrong. There are lots of poor quality resources on TPT (and any marketplace) that might do well for lots of reasons. First mover advantage, pretty packaging and convincing copy.
I’m very curious where your passion for quality educational products come from. Is it because you’ve seen lower quality educational resources they do well?
Side note: I might argue that any lesson that worked well in the classroom is marketable (to other teachers like you with students like yours.) What might be an example of a resource that meets an educational purpose AND worked well in your own class, but wouldn’t be marketable?
See you in the next comment! Cheers, Mike
(If it takes time for me to respond to your comments, it’s because I have to put a lot of thought.)
and my SEL / growth mindset resources that I sell on TPT.
The TPT Seller coaching stuff right now is a loss leader for me right now. (Eventually it will grow to cover costs, but I’m still growing.)
So I think my TPT Seller Business Model is disruptive in the current marketplace because my goal is to give away all of my ideas about TPT SEO for free… and then sell affordable high-quality tools that I know we need (and for me, that’s hosting.)
As always, thanks for challenging my ideas. They help me question what I do and refine my efforts.
Hope things are well in your part of the world – how goes your TPT store?
@SEOTpreneur Helloooo Mike….! So, as a bit of background about me, I’m currently the senior multimedia designer at a fintech firm. I’ve had the pleasure of working with companies like Taylor Guitars and even Disney in the past. It’s been a while since I wore the hat of a teacher, but I miss those days. TPT is more like a hobby to me. I wish I could devote more time to it.
About the side note – Some teachers have this innate ability to make even the most crappy resources work wonders, simply because they’re exceptionally good at their job. But the real game-changer is a product that aids those teachers who might need a bit more hand-holding. A product that offers them options and guides them throughout the lesson. You see, teachers who are on the hunt for resources on TPT probably fall in this bracket. Shhhhhh! Don’t tell anyone I said that….
Speaking about DATA (and this is purely my personal viewpoint) – I think it could be potentially damaging for some teachers to concentrate too much on data too soon. Maybe that’s why TPT isn’t so big on analytics. A product might be a bestseller, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good enough to retain customers or meet their needs. Sadly, there are teachers out there who’ve mastered the art of marketing junk products. I recently fell into the trap myself and bought a product from a popular YouTuber, just out of curiosity. Oh boy……it was bad! She can sell it…
The truly valuable data comes after the product has been used in class. That’s when you get the real lowdown on the product – what clicked, what didn’t. And that’s how you curate a top-notch product line that will continue to sell over time—-for ever and ever……..
Keep up the fantastic work! I’m really digging your new, relaxed style. It has a nice, conversational vibe to it.
Thanks buddy! I appreciate you leaving a public comment!
I was laughing when I was watching the published video because I realize I said something like it’s not like an improved TPT dashboard will instantly solve all problems, which is the exact opposite of the premise that an improved dashboard will help all TPT sellers.
There’s no simple answer with data, and to be honest, I don’t always look at the data as much as I used to. My data analysis mode comes and goes…
Out of curiosity, how often do you look at the numbers? And what key performance indicators do you look at to determine what to tweak?
No rush in responding. Selling on TPT is a long journey!
That’s a great point – trying to figure out if we’re even showing up and getting seen in the TPT directory…
How could you separate if it was a problem with the covers, the product title or the product description snippet that was the problem?
But that’s a good point – knowing the number of impressions a product showed up in TPT search would tell us information about the earlier part of the funnel.
I’d also love to know how much of our traffic comes from google organic search (instead of lumping it with TPT) – a good portion of our traffic comes from organic search and wouldn’t show up in the impression data on TPT.
Have you emailed TPT support yet asking them to do a seller survey about the TPT seller dashboard?
@SEOTpreneur If we think of this as a storefront with a window display: First, we need to know if people have even walked past our store.
If we keep changing the display because nobody comes inside – but it’s really because nobody is coming down our part of the street, we are burning ourselves out for no reason. Once I know how many people are walking by, then at least I can change one thing at a time in the window display to see what gets people to “click” or walk inside.
And it goes even farther.
I really feel like I’ve wasted time reworking the look of my shop, but if nobody is walking inside (clicking on a resource) it’s an exercise in futility. It all starts with knowing if people are even walking down your street, or at least getting to your shop on the street that has all the biggest sellers in the beginning.
@susanmasterson Hey Susan! Thanks for chiming in – anything else you wish we could see in the TPT seller dashboard? I know you’re on some other platforms – what do they have that you wish the TPT Seller Dashboard had?
@100videosbyRoger Thanks for having the courage to leave a public comment on this video! I know it seems simple, but by doing so, you’re letting other people know it’s okay to share their thoughts about Free TPT Seller data tools.
If you haven’t already emailed TPT support, can you consider doing so? Here’s the link shown in the video:
I know TPT support has looked at this video and read the comments at the time. But they weren’t sure there was appetite to do another TPT seller survey.
By emailing TPT support directly, TPT sellers can let IXL learning know what’s important to them. Your voice matters!
(If you do send them an email, let us know how your conversation went! Good luck!)
Also, on a side note, welcome to the SEOTpreneur YouTube community! I think this might be your first comment? If so, thanks for taking the time to say hello!
How goes your TPT journey? See you in the next comment! Cheers, Mike
@SEOTpreneur – Nov 03, 2023
@learnwithpuzzles
Mike, you outdid yourself with this one. This type of analysis is not just useful but thought-provoking and entertaining.
Hey Liz @learnwithpuzzles – is this your first comment here? If so, welcome to the SEOTpreneur YouTube commmnity!
I wonder if the difference between the TPT product stats CSV and TPT dashboard are due to what they’re reporting.
I think there’s a setting somewhere if you’re looking at all data, or TPT Marketplace sales, or TPT School subscriptions. (I can’t remember what it’s called officially.)
My guess would be that the product stats CSV only records TPT marketplace sales, but the actually TPT Seller dashboard would report both your marketplace sales and your sales through TPT School Access.
Does that help? If it does, can you come back and let others know what you did to make the numbers match up.
If it doesn’t help, come back and we’ll see if we can figure it out together!
I love that you put GREAT in capitals! I’m glad you’re enjoying the tool. It’s little comments like these with TPT Sellers like yourself that keeps me going!
Hi Mike, Yes it is my first comment here! Thank you for the warm welcome.
Here is what I discovered when I dug a little deeper. As closely as I can come to $0 variance, here is what I discovered with the info I had: total product sales (From Dashboard) minus ‘Deleted Items’ (this shows up in the dashboard when ‘all products selected’ has been toggled >> you see it in the pull down list) and minus ‘School Access Sales’ ALMOST. Having done the math, there was a variance of about $7 between what the Dashboard says and what the downloaded Product Sales file total says.
Hope this helps. And, thanks for the reminder about the School Access sales. Cheers! Nice to learn that you are from our Nation’s capital! 🙂
Hey @learnwithpuzzles – I love that phrase, the Nation’s capital! Where in Canada are you from? I had a quick peek at your channel (nice logo), and website but couldn’t find the answer. (Side note: do the Google ads on your website lead to any meaningful revenue? I ask because I used to do affiliate marketing on another site. I would make way more on the affiliate marketing sales than from Google Ad revenue on the same page, so then I wonder if the Google Ads compete with the core purpose of building trust and getting eyeballs on your TPT store?)
I hadn’t even realized that there would be a “deleted” items category lol. Do those products show up in your product stats CSV or are they completely omitted?
When I was playing with uploading my Sales Data CSV, I did notice that some of the early years have another CSV column for shipping or something, and this column moved my earnings into the wrong spot.
When you talk about your CSV data not matching the TPT dashboard data, are you talking about the Product Stats CSV or the Sales CSV?
Looking forward to learning more about your TPT journey! See you in the next comment! Cheers, Mike
@SEOTpreneur LOL, you had not heard of that phrase before? I lived in Ottawa many moons ago. And, just loved the cycling the Rideau Canal route and the tulip festival every year. I live just north of Toronto. Thank you for your comments about my logo. I hired that out. As for the ads, I do have a number of challenges with it. Probably the biggest challenge is the fact that I have a custom .php site so the ad code needs to fit into the boxes. LOL As with budgetary constraints across the world of advertising, marketing, etc., things are not what I wish for. I have not added any affiliate links to my site. Perhaps, food for thought.
Now, back to the data. I did not see the words, ‘deleted items’, when I did a search in the .csv file I downloaded to input into the free tool. I have yet to go through each product sales , total the sales to see if that matches what the ALL time earnings shows in the Dashboard. I will put that on my list of things to do, LOL, and report back. You wrote: “When you talk about your CSV data not matching the TPT dashboard data, are you talking about the Product Stats CSV or the Sales CSV?” I am referring to the Product Stats CSV.
I have never heard of shipping…interesting. Anyway, until next time. Cheers, ~Liz
UPDATE: I compared the sum of all earnings by year (.csv files for each year) with my Dashboard for “all time” earnings. There was about $4.50 ish variance. So, not sure where the difference lies. LOL And, oh well. ~Liz
