First I would like to say I love the appilcation so far, but I wanted to know two things.
- How do I use my own API Keys
- Are we able to remove the branding for the studio
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Hi Devon. Glad you’re enjoying Pickaxe.
To use your own API keys, you enter them in the control panel of a tool. You can watch this API Key walkthrough video for more details instructions on how to get an OpenAI API Key and where exactly to enter it in Pickaxe.
Yes, you can remove Pickaxe branding from your studio and fully white-label it. If you want to remove the “Powered by Pickaxe” you can do in the so in the Studio Manager in the Design tab under Content. There is a toggle that says “white-label” there. This post explains how to white-label your studio more detail.
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Thank you much I so appreciate it
How do we replace the url in the embeddable code with our URLs?
So we can use <iframe id="embed-preview-iframe" loading="eager" src="https://embed.ourdomain.com/axe?id=.... instead of <iframe id="embed-preview-iframe" loading="eager" src="https://embed.pickaxeproject.com/axe?id=...
Thanks
You cannot replace the URL within the iframe embed. It is required to communicate with our server and render your Pickaxe.
The problem with having the pickaxeproject.com url in the embeddable code is that it kills the whitelabel feature.
A solution is to purchase a “white label domain” that directs nowhere, kind of like what you guys did with the mail.studio URL for the emails, but making sure that when entering mail.studio in the web browser, it doesn’t redirect to pickaxeproject.com.
The ideal would be for you guys to fix and fully whitelabel the mail.studio URL so it doesn’t resolve in pickaxeproject.com and then you can even use mail.studio for the embeddable codes. That way you would fulfil the whitelabel feature.
Thanks
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Hi @casteleiro,
All whitelabel solutions exist on a spectrum. Nominally, stripe & shopify can be fully white labeled for example. But if you went to any page that used them and inspected it, you’d see their urls in the network traffic.
My question is, what are you trying to do that necessitates hiding one of the tools you used (Pickaxe) from even motivated, technical users? Are you concerned users will build tools for themselves if they find out what platform you’re using and how easy it is?
Our whitelabeling is sufficient for the majority of business applications that want to own their customers and their branding, but if your requirements are that your use of our product is hidden from everyone no matter how hard they try to figure it out, I’m afraid you’ll be constantly disappointed.
Stripe and Shopify are not examples for Whitelabel solutions. Let’s start with a definition: " White Label SaaS (Software as a Service) refers to a software product or service that is developed and owned by one company but is rebranded and resold by another company under its own brand name".
Good example:
Vendasta- Look how their embeddable code uses https://cdnstyles.com/ instead of Vendasta.com, and if you try to visit https://cdnstyles.com/ it doesn’t even have a page.
https://support.vendasta.com/hc/en-us/articles/4406958561047-Create-an-Acquisition-Widget
Why is this important?
If your clients want to sell pickaxes embedded into their clients’ websites, the code would reveal that they come from Pickaxe, which would defeat the whole purpose of purchasing a white-labeled solution because it is not really white-labeled.
The purpose of your Whitelabel feature is for your clients to be able to sell products or services as their own, and if your embeddable codes contain your URL, well then you are not fulfilling that Whitelabel feature. Same thing with redirecting the mail.studio domain to your Pickaxeproject.com domain.
I hope this helps
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In this case, I would not consider us a whitelabel solution for you, and we don’t intend to be. Our purpose in whitebaleling is to allow our customers to retain their branding and move their customers out of walled gardens, not to completely hide the tools they use under intense scrutiny.
I hope this helps
Thank you for providing the example of Vendasta. Very helpful.
It seems to me there are two categories of Saas Companies, somewhat Whitelabeled and fully Whitelabeled. The output of the tool should not redirect to their servers if they were truly whitelabeled. What they offer is only the Bookshelf Branding, not as we own the whole tool. I mean they need to showcase their product, and make it known to others, in order to sell.
I somewhat agree with them that we cannot gatekeep the tool, but if they have charged for an LTD + a 10% sales fee on on top of that, plus Future Add-Ons this is enough to sustain the business.
I believe Pickaxe should sustain & support existing customers to sell more, so that it generates even more in the longrun. If we feel comfortable & sell, then Pickaxe profits more from our collective effort. That is why community building is important. Furthermore, they can incentivise us to promote their services, with an advantageous Affiliate system so that we can act as Agencies, employing us to sell more of their future products. But it depends entirely on them frankly.
For me the Studio should be Fully Whitelabeled, result shown to the user in a separate window. But if the user wants to embed the tool with a snippet code, then let it be as it is.
In the meantime, a possible solution for you is to embed the Pickaxe output file into a gated CRM Portal Page. Do not let the user generate a pdf directly from the Studio. Let him give you his email first to opt-in, and tell him to sign up & enter to your Portal to get his file. You can externally automate the Output file of the Pickaxe to be sent to your Database first, and then be copied in a shared file with your client. If you do not have a Portal, then send it to him via Email. This is more complicated, but can be done.
You literally sold us “You can white label and embed the tool on your website” and, I might be wrong but, for Pickaxe to create a whitelabeled domain in the embedding code shouldn’t take more than about $10 per year and a few minutes editing its DNS, to point it to the other domain. Then your users can choose to use the code you give now, or to replace the pickaxe domain for the whitelabeled one… And if you think about it, you don’t even need to purchase a new domain, just create a new CNAME for mail.studio
something like embed.mail.studio and make sure that mail.studio doesn’t open pickaxeproject.com
They can’t use their client’s users. If that’s the case, they can’t sell a whitelabel solution. It is one or the other.
It seems we have different interpretations of “white label” @casteleiro
It sounds like Pickaxe isn’t a good fit for you. Sorry to hear that!
I showed you what White Label means
What’s your “interpretation” of White Label, then?
@nathanielmhld I showed you what White Label means
What’s your “interpretation” of White Label, then?
@casteleiro I have already explained that above.
“Our purpose in whitebaleling is to allow our customers to retain their branding and move their customers out of walled gardens, not to completely hide the tools they use under intense scrutiny.”
We would consider Stripe and Shopify to be prime examples of whitelabeling. It is up to our discretion as we build our company what that means to us. If you feel you were misled by some marketing material, I would encourage you to seek a refund.
Shopify doesn’t sell a whitelabel feature, and no one resells Stripe as a white label payment gateway solution. But you sold pickaxes as a solution that can be white labeled and re-selled.
I understand that you might not have known the meaning of the term whitelabel when you sold pickaxe, but that’s not an excuse to not try to make it right now @nathanielmhld
You don’t know what you’re talking about.
Raybans is one of Shopify’s largest customers. You won’t see Shopify branding on their site.
Nobody has to resell Stripe in order for Stripe to be whitelabeled. White label means you’re able to use it without the branding, IE, your customers don’t see that “your” payment solution is actually “Stripe”. But that doesn’t mean you are empowered to “become a payment provider”.
Either way, it seems Pickaxe isn’t a good fit for you. I encourage you to find another platform to build on.
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Raybans is one of Shopify’s largest customers. You won’t see Shopify branding on their site.
Exactly, and even if you look at the code there’s no mention of Shopify.
Let’s do the same thing with Pickaxe.
And about your “encouraged” suggestion, second time you say it by the way, you should know that I already spent too much time and money working on pickaxe, Since the easy way out is not going to work, please honor what you sold us, a whitelabel solution. Thanks