The shirts are ordered and will be delivered in a few weeks, first to Chez Non Veni, then out to all the happy customers.
I conducted this little experiment out of curiosity, more than anything else. I mean, of course I wanted one of the shirts myself, but I really wondered what we would learn from such an exercise. I won’t reveal the actual numbers, for fear your heart might sink upon discovering the tininess of Tradland. But I will share some percentages on the analytics that may or may not have spiritual and/or psychological implications.
What I will say regarding quantity is that we far exceeded the minimum needed to break even, and in fact delivered a small surplus that I will be sharing with worthy benefactors, notably Frank Walker at canon212.com and Ann Barnhardt, who both drove traffic to the effort. Thanks for playing!
Here are the analytics:
- Overall site traffic fairly typical for a post endorsed/linked by Frank and Ann, although slowed a bit by the Sunday timing
- The post at barnhardt.biz drove more than half of the referrals, and it is worth noting that her post explicitly laid out what the reader was getting themselves into, including a picture of the product
- Of the people who viewed the post here and saw the picture of the product, 30% of them clicked on the link to go to the store to buy the product – this is called the “click-through rate”, and 30% is off the charts high
- However, once they got there, only 6% actually followed through and made a purchase – this is called the “conversion rate”
So if you complete the math, what it says is that only 2% of the people who read the post bought a shirt. Contrast this data point with the single most instructive data point we have regarding the disposition of trads at large on the issue of whom is the one true pontiff: The Saint Louis Catholic blog poll results show that fully 72% of trads, and anyone else who voted in that poll, believe Benedict to be the only true living pope. While highly unscientific, the dichotomy at play here is so glaring that it begs a psychological explanation.
Draw your own conclusions. Maybe I suck at art.
But it seems to me that fear plays a large role in this, and we need to get past that fear if things are ever going to be corrected, and the truth prevail. Polls are anonymous; action requires conviction and commitment. To those of you who chose to participate, even in a lighthearted/fun sort of way, thank you.
I wrote a short essay last year on the difference between fortitude and courage. It was directed primarily at clergy and “professional” Catholics, but it applies to everyone HERE.
With apologies to you nvp, to FW and glorious Ann, but while tempted, decided against getting the shirt because, tho still the sole Pontiff of the Faith n’all, His Holiness isn’t, you know, doing any reigning. Forgive me further for not deeply pondering what would’ve provoked a purchase: ‘Reassume your solemn duty Holiness’ – photo – ‘The abdication was invalid’ off the top, but likely that’s too many words. Meantime regularly read & very much appreciate your site. Onward & upward – In Christo Rege – Antigon
Great ideas! Perhaps the swag shop might soon reopen, with greater selection.
!!!
I was brought here through Ann’s site. I usually dont buy swag, that is just me. I did however bookmark your blog. But here is my 2 cents, and it isnt really worth a cent, the Pope is not St Peter, he fled Rome, he has abamdonned his sheep and has shown he is a major part of the problem. My the Lord Bless the Pope and lead him home.