5 Products, 27/100 Average: The Vagueness Trap

This week we ran 5 simulated AI users through 5 different indie products. None completed their flows. Average score: 27 out of 100.

These are not real people, they are AI agents stepping through your signup journeys, recording exactly where friction lives.

The Pattern: Claims Without Backup

Every product this week made big promises on the homepage. A scheduling tool claimed to be a multi-role 'assistant' handling 15+ job titles. A calculation platform promised to 'finden, kalkulieren, kaufen' with almost no explanation of how. A real estate product announced it was 'trusted by modern teams' with no logos, numbers, or names to prove it.

The common thread: marketing language where specifics should be. When visitors land, they need to understand what the thing actually does and whether it costs money. This week, neither happened.

Where the Collapse Happened

Users encountered vague feature claims stacked on placeholder design. No product screenshots showing real workflows. No pricing page or cost hint anywhere, not even a 'request demo' link that signals commerce. One product buried its only concrete detail (a cookie policy) and left the actual feature section in pure marketing speak.

Missing navigation elements compounded the problem. Footer links to legal pages were absent on at least one, which compounds skepticism before trust is even built.

When visitors don't find pricing quickly, they assume one of two things: you're hiding the cost because it's huge, or the product isn't real enough to price yet. Both are dealbreakers.

Fix It

Show your work. Replace marketing claims with screenshots of your actual UI. Label them. Walk through a real workflow step-by-step.

Reveal pricing. Even a starting price and comparison table, or a clear 'request custom quote' button, moves you from mysterious to legible.

Narrow your claims. 'Handles 15 roles' with no examples sounds like nothing works. 'Automates cold call logging' with a screenshot of the log sounds real.

Check your footer. Legal pages matter, especially if you operate in regulated regions.

Want to see where your own flow breaks? Run it through https://indiecru.sh/roast