Tutorials on Sale

[Laura B]

Just wanted to get opinions on the subject of putting a tutorial on sale or even just lowering the price permanently.

Votes are anonymous.

[NLC Beads]

No different from any other item being put on sale to me...

[Sue H-K]

I agree with Nikki...it's just the same as paying full price versus buying on sale!

[myrdlebp]

It happens at Target, what's the dif?

[Melanie_M]

A sale price wouldn't bother me unless I bought at full price less than a day prior to the tutorial going on sale.

[MelanieG]

I love all of these threads about how tutorial writers manage their respective businesses. I think it's really productive discussion, and can't fail to do anything other than generate good feelings.


My personal opinion is that the way that tutorial writers sell their tutorials, the price they sell them for and whether or not individual consumers buy them are very personal things and none of my business.

[kbinkster]

Chances are if you had already bought the tutorial a while before it was marked down, then you have already earned (maybe more than) the money you would have saved had you waited and bought it on sale, or at the very least, you are in a better position to realize a faster payback than the people who are just now buying it on sale - because you have had a head start over them.

[AKDesigns]

I'm not much of a sale person. I won't be putting my tutorial up for sale at any different price other than the original $19...ever.

[tammydownunder]

I have no issue with putting them on sale. But, if you've written a dud tutorial and you put it on sale the first week, you better make sure that you've refunded the 7 people who bought it at full price.

[Chuckie]

I can't think of anything that the price doesn't drop after it's been on the market for a while. Except maybe Frantz's odd lots...

[cgbeads]

If you're worried about that, maybe you could look at it in 'the other direction' and maybe you could leave the price the same and add on a few extra pages instead.

[Kevan]

I have just put my photo tut on sale for the first time for $3 off the regular price (No, I'm not advertising). It's been out for almost 2 years now.

If anyone bought it right before I put it on sale I would gladly refund them $3 if the contacted me. I wouldn't expect someone to do that for me, however. Just like I don't go into Target when they put sheets on sale the week after I bought them. Tough I have a friend who told me she had done this and gotten back the difference. lol

I would do it gladly, however. I mean, are people never supposed to put something on sale? How does that work?

[Mitosis Glass]

My vote is that is doesn't make any difference to me. Like it's been mentioned in this thread already, things go on sale all the time.

Now when you buy a computer for top dollar and that same computer ends up being worth less than a pair of PayLess shoes a year later, now THAT drives me nuts! However, that has nothing to do with tutorials.

[Laura B]

Wow... I'm so glad I asked!

I love that the general concensus is that it's not like I'm going to be pee'ing in anyone's Wheaties if I decide to put one of my tutorials on sale.

[Karen Hardy]

Like most of the others, I'd feel the same way I feel when
I see the bathing suit I bought for 90$ marked on sale
for $20. HOWEVER, that is the price I pay for getting the
bathing suit in JULY when it's hot and I need it,
rather than in December - when it will sit in my drawer until
I pull it out next July (and go "What the hell was I thinking....
Fuchsia polka dots on a yellow background?????).

The price I pay for getting the item NOW before everyone
else is the price I pay. Yes, of COURSE it sucks to see that
you could have saved some money if you had waited,
but that's what life is about.

On the flip side, I ALSO appreciate those who offer a
pre-sale special price to people who pre order tutorials.
I love saving money like nothing under the sun, and if I
can get some savings by buying early and waiting - I will
gladly do so.

[ironmountainglass]

It wouldn't make a difference to me. I love a good sale but If I miss it or I bought the week or day before at full price its not going to piss me off. It would be the same as buying at a store.

[Laura B]

I just realized the high number of votes for option 2 have me back in "debating land".

[Karen Hardy]

Originally Posted by Laura B

I just realized the high number of votes for option 2 have me back in "debating land".

The reality is, NO one wants to see something they paid for
cost less at a later date. It has nothing to do with whether we
think it's "fair" or "justified" to go on sale - it just plain sucks.


I think the better way to phrase your poll would have been
"I'd be upset since I paid more, but I accept that things go
on sale eventually - so I wouldn't hold it against you"

I think the "whatever" part of your poll is making people sound
more upset than they would really be.

[maren]

Originally Posted by Karen Hardy

I think the better way to phrase your poll would have been
"I'd be upset since I paid more, but I accept that things go
on sale eventually - so I wouldn't hold it against you"

That's the way I interpreted it.

[Laura B]

Originally Posted by Karen Hardy

The reality is, NO one wants to see something they paid for
cost less at a later date. It has nothing to do with whether we
think it's "fair" or "justified" to go on sale - it just plain sucks.


I think the better way to phrase your poll would have been
"I'd be upset since I paid more, but I accept that things go
on sale eventually - so I wouldn't hold it against you"

I think the "whatever" part of your poll is making people sound
more upset than they would really be.

Excellent point! I was projecting... bad me.

I was trying to put some gradient reponses... from really caring to not really caring.

[mandyjw]

I don't really care, but I'm the type of person who doesn't care for sales anyway, on anything. I'd rather people just pick a fair price for stuff and stick with it because then I don't have to agonize over the right time to buy it. If I know something increases in price over time I'm more likely to buy it than I am if I think it's going to go on sale later.

I think the main purpose of having a sale is you get to advertise again to announce it.

Someone might not be thinking about buying winter coats at all, but then they might see an ad for "20% off all last year's winter coats" so they buy a winter coat.

It sounds a heck of a lot better than an ad that says "Buy last year's winter coats!"

Basically I don't really care, it's simply the selfish part of me that hates to see something on sale that I paid full price for earlier. I might feel slightly worse about this with tutorials because, I know there is no huge leftover stock the person is having the sale to try to get rid of. You can sell an infinite amount of tutorials and you'll never get stuck with any "left over". Because I feel this way I'm not going to put my tutorial on sale at anytime.

I really don't think anyone is going to care too much either way though and if the authors of the tutorials I have put them on sale, I probably wouldn't think about it at all. After all I've had the use of the tutorial for a very long time now, that otherwise I wouldn't if I had waited for the sale.

Sorry that's a lot of talking to basically say nothing.

I think you should just do what you want.

[Laura B]

Originally Posted by mandyjw

I don't really care, but I'm the type of person who doesn't care for sales anyway, on anything. I'd rather people just pick a fair price for stuff and stick with it because then I don't have to agonize over the right time to buy it. If I know something increases in price over time I'm more likely to buy it than I am if I think it's going to go on sale later.

I think the main purpose of having a sale is you get to advertise again to announce it.

Someone might not be thinking about buying winter coats at all, but then they might see an ad for "20% off all last year's winter coats" so they buy a winter coat.

It sounds a heck of a lot better than an ad that says "Buy last year's winter coats!"

Basically I don't really care, it's simply the selfish part of me that hates to see something on sale that I paid full price for earlier. I might feel slightly worse about this with tutorials because, I know there is no huge leftover stock the person is having the sale to try to get rid of. You can sell an infinite amount of tutorials and you'll never get stuck with any "left over". Because I feel this way I'm not going to put my tutorial on sale at anytime.

I really don't think anyone is going to care too much either way though and if the authors of the tutorials I have put them on sale, I probably wouldn't think about it at all. After all I've had the use of the tutorial for a very long time now, that otherwise I wouldn't if I had waited for the sale.

Sorry that's a lot of talking to basically say nothing.

I think you should just do what you want.

Actually, I quite liked your post. It made a lot of sense to me. Thanks.

I, too, was kind of wondering why people put their tutorials on sale.

My reasoning behind putting this poll up wasn't because I want to put one of my tutorials on sale, but rather because I'm thinking of permanently changing the price of one of them.

I have noticed, however, an awful lot of tutorials "on sale" lately. Kinda makes me wonder what's going on with the tutorial business these days.

I haven't had a new tutorial in years, though. Working on the book is taking up all my free time. OMG... it's like one massive tutorial. Ha ha ha!

[alb6094]

I voted that it doesn't affect me at all.

That doesn't mean that sales don't influence my buying habits, they frequently do. However if I want something I'm going to buy it, whether it's on sale or not. If it goes on sale at some later time (even that afternoon) I really don't care. I paid what I felt was a fair price or I would not have purchased the item.

Marketing is important for anyone selling goods and sales are an essential marketing tool. You will always have people who will think/say "If I had waited...." or "You could have said you were having a sale....." and if they decide not to purchase from you again for that reason you can't control that. IMHO, the benefits of having a sale far outweigh the complaints, chief among which is attracting new customers. If that weren't true no one would have sales, right? You'll never be able to please everyone and IMHO other than providing good products and good customer service there is no reason to stress about it.

If we had the key to what pleased everyone all the time we'd all be rich.

[Over the Moon]

I don't mind either way - I just get the feeling that some folk might wait rather than buying a new tute, knowing that particular author has a habit of putting their tute's on sale. I agree that a pre-sale with a discount is always a good thing.

What I would like to see is a separate thread for all the sale/promo/ etc tutorials. It's getting harder and harder to wade through the tutorials for sale what-with all the sale notices going on. Just one woman's opinion...

[Laura B]

Great input. Thanks everyone!

[Chuckie]

Originally Posted by Laura B

I have noticed, however, an awful lot of tutorials "on sale" lately. Kinda makes me wonder what's going on with the tutorial business these days.

It's kind of a natural progression in the sale of any product. When a product first comes out, people snap it up. When sales start to dwindle as people move on to a different fashion, fad or gadget, people lower prices to generate continued sale of any given product.

The people who could afford to buy at the new release price have already done their purchasing. The only market left pretty much are the people who couldn't afford to pay the higher price. Lowering the price opens the market up to new consumers. It's the retail version of squeezing blood out of the turnip.

[Laura B]

Originally Posted by Chuckie

It's kind of a natural progression in the sale of any product. When a product first comes out, people snap it up. When sales start to dwindle as people move on to a different fashion, fad or gadget, people lower prices to generate continued sale of any given product.

The people who could afford to buy at the new release price have already done their purchasing. The only market left pretty much are the people who couldn't afford to pay the higher price. Lowering the price opens the market up to new consumers. It's the retail version of squeezing blood out of the turnip.

Well, that makes sense.

[Kevan]

People getting pissed because something is put on sale after they bought it pretty much does away with putting anything on sale ever, doesn't it?

[Laura B]

Originally Posted by Kevan

People getting pissed because something is put on sale after they bought it pretty much does away with putting anything on sale ever, doesn't it?

Ha! I guess, but I don't have much perspective in this area because for twelve years I've sold one of a kind things, so if I put an item on sale it was such an isolated incident... related to nothing else I sold or would sell in the future.

I'm sure I'm over-thinking this. Things go on sale all the time, and often dependant on circumstances. Like... I buy silver wire and beads, but don't expect them to be the same from year to year.

[Deborah]

I don't care one way or another about whether a vendor puts a tutorial on sale. Would I like to get it at the lower price? Sure. If I don't, it doesn't upset me at all.

I think folks put up sales and specials to raise quick cash - at least, I've done that in business.