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Advice Needed: How To Sell Unix Utility Software Package
Question:
[...] >1. Charge on a "if you like it send me a check" basis. Allow unlimited > downloads and hope that if someone uses it that are honest enough to pay > for it. Has anyone ever made any money this way?
Yes — but that’s no guarantee that you will. I once worked for a shareware publisher who was doing a couple million dollars in sales every year, mostly on a shareware package priced at around $100 per copy. (There were some other titles that helped, but the flagship product was responsible for most of the revenue.) That product was "nagware" in that it was fully functional, but it reminded you every time you ran it that it wasn’t the paid-for version. But that was back in the late 80s and early 90s, and it was for a DOS product. You have a substantially different scenario — attitudes about software are changing, particularly with the publicity behind GNU/Linux. I think your checks would be extremely rare, if you ever saw any at all, especially at $500 a copy. >2. Sell a license to use the product. Build a time-bomb into any downloaded > software to expire after a trial period. Customers would have to pay an > annual fee for unlimited downloads and a finite amount of support. > Question: What if I am hit by a bus, or if I "don’t feel like" doing > this any more?
Time-limited demos are plenty common, and they do seem to work. Whether they would for your particular product is beyond my ability to give any reasonable estimate. If you get tired of doing it, you can release a new version under a new license (going back to #1, where you probably won’t get many checks, but any revenue at that point will be gravy). Another route is to release it under GNU GPL and sell support, documentation, and (perhaps more importantly) "certification" to others who can support it. That way, you’re in step with the Open Source/Free Software movements, and you’re still in a strong position to make some money from it. If you sell certification to others, and make it known that said certification is something that people looking for support should check to ensure optimum quality, then you can safely walk away from the product in the future and continue earning revenue. Just some things to think about, — Join the 2-tier Bamboo Affiliate Program, earn $4.50 per sale: http://www.uninova.com/bamboo/
Response:
I will go through each of your scenarios with the advantages and disadvantadges, then make my decision at the end. 1. Free software is a nice thing–of course, I imagine–your company PAID for you to develop it? What kind of kickback are they receiving from this? Although you may be able to track who downloads it, I wouldn’t bank on honesty in terms of expecting checks in the mail. And the software companies may expect something in return for the use of their software–but I really do not know here. 2. Licensing is a good idea. Again, you protect yourself and your investment with a security measure to keep from being taken advantage of. I think you should charge, much as anyone else, x amount for the downloads–but a "finite" amount of support? That is poor service. The whole thing behind e-commerce is about the customer. Don’t get away from that. And if you develop it, and one day want to walk away from it, you can sell the technology-again, depending on the issues with the other software companies. 3. Charge per download isn’t a bad idea either–but I think a better idea, better service, would be to offer free upgrades to customers. While my company was developing Actinic Catalog, we offered free upgrades and unlimited support, and I know our customers appreciated it. Final decision-Charge once, free upgrades. Douglas Braunsdorf Internet Evangelist Actinic Software-Everything You Need To Sell On The Web http://www.actinic.com
Response:
Bill: No one in MBMM can answer your question. Only the marketplace can answer your question – in the form of ACTUAL purchase response or non-response. Do you have any feedback from your co-workers who have inquired? How did they learn about it to have inquired? Have you offered it to any of them for $500? Any other price? Would they be buying for their company’s? How much would it save their companies per year, per month, per 1st usage? Have any former co-workers purchased it? If not, why not? You need to dig in and find this out. Do you have any kind of marketplace contacts already established – inquiries, customers, etc – where you can split 3 ways and do a test offer of all three offers head to head? And by the way, the most effective offer may lie beyond the 3 offers you’ve listed. Do you know of someone who has an economically accessible audience, that profiles similar to your interested former co-workers, that you can use to test the three offers with no cross-over – keeping the three audiences mutually exclusive? To accurately answer your question, you face planning and executing an Offer Test. Otherwise your answer comes from eenie-meenie-minee-mo… just pick one arbitrarily, toss a coin, draw straws… whichever. Next to identifying effective lists or audience segments, Offer Testing is the second most critical part of your marketing strategy development and your ability to manipulate your results effectiveness. Your testing needs to be structured to get results that are proven REPEATABLE and PREDICTABLE, not based on what prospects SAY they may buy. Don’t always believe what prospects SAY they will do. Rather, WATCH what they ACTUALLY DO. Your Offer Test planning needs to keep this in mind. Hope this helps. Good luck. — George Wehmann Direct Marketing Resources Group, Inc. Raleigh, NC, Voice: 919-231-2728 Nothing’s as devastating to a subjective opinion… as an actual result. — DMRG Website: http://www.improvedresults.com — Direct Marketing Training In Videotape Format:
Response:
Bill: You may wish to contact some of the firms that operate fee-based download sites on the Web. You would have to pay a royalty, but your involvement is much more limited. I don’t think there are too many people who like ‘time bomb’ limited use / trial software, and a number of marketing consultants are arguing against their use. There have been come software entrepeneurs that have done well with the ‘if you like it, send me money’, but the better of these have provided updates (improved products), documentation, etc., as value added for licensing the products. At $500 a pop, you may need to pursue other approaches – marketing to businesses. If you’d like to discuss it, drop me an email – George – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I am in the process of setting up a venture where I sell a Unix based > Informix/Oracle Database monitoring tool. *** My question is, what are > the pitfalls associated with different types of pricing schemes?
Response:
Hi! I am in the process of setting up a venture where I sell a Unix based Informix/Oracle Database monitoring tool. This is a tool that I have developed as part of my full-time job at a major corporation. I have received permission from them to proceed at this. I have received numerous inquiries from former co-workers about how they can obtain a copy. I don’t know of any other low-cost comprehensive monitoring solutions like this, so I think that there is a market for it. I intend to charge something like $500 per copy which is a small fraction of the cost for more sophiciticated solution. My question is, what are the pitfalls associated with different types of pricing schemes? Scenarios: 1. Charge on a "if you like it send me a check" basis. Allow unlimited downloads and hope that if someone uses it that are honest enough to pay for it. Has anyone ever made any money this way? 2. Sell a license to use the product. Build a time-bomb into any downloaded software to expire after a trial period. Customers would have to pay an annual fee for unlimited downloads and a finite amount of support. Question: What if I am hit by a bus, or if I "don’t feel like" doing this any more? 3. Charge per download? TIA for any advice, Bill Border