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DP Directory, Inc.
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Subscribe Now to Al Harberg's Software Marketing Newsletter, the best way for software developers to get free, usable marketing information. We'll never use your email address for anything besides sending you this twice-monthly newsletter.
It's all about selling more software.
Selling major software upgrades to existing customers can be a major source of income. If done properly, moving from version 2.4 to version 3 can bring in some serious sales. Here are a few things to think about when you email existing customers about their paying you to upgrade their software: (1) Send a plain-vanilla text email. When you tell your customers about the upgrade, send them plain text, and not HTML. When people see colorful, formatted email messages, they immediately think "spam", and their finger is poised over the "delete" key. A plain text email looks much more like correspondence from a friend or business partner. (2) Use a "from" address that will make them comfortable. There are three names that your users might recognize: Your personal name, your company name, and your product name. Use the two most recognizable ones as your "from" address. For example, if you think your users are most likely to know your product and company names, then send them an email from Widget Support widget@widg-co.com. (3) Use a "subject" line that makes them feel comfortable. Before you attempt to use the old 3-step formula that says Get their attention, Get their interest, and Get their order, you have to reassure them that they're not being spammed. Say something in the subject line that lets them know that they're receiving communication from a business colleague, and not spam from a stranger. Mention the product name, or the chief benefit, or some buzzword that they will recognize. (4) Personalize the body of the letter. One key to Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is personalization. You have the data about your customers, and doing an email-merge is worth the extra effort. Start the body of the email with something like, "Since you purchased Widget in March of 2002, we've made a lot of improvements. And for a modest upgrade charge of $12.95(US), you can now get benefit-a and benefit-b". (5) Include information for people who use your software every day. Tell them the advantages of the new and improved version of Widget. In addition to telling them about the new features, tell them about the new benefits. Paint a word picture in which they can see themselves saving even more time, or even more money, or doing something tomorrow that they can't do today. (6) Include info for people who haven't used your software for a year. There are people in your customer database who didn't even migrate your program to the new computer that they bought last winter. Make sure you include context information that reminds them what your program does, and why they purchased it some months back. You may entice them to install your software and use it, perhaps for the first time. (7) Sell the upgrade, and not the download. They already trust you. Most of them already know what the program does. Don't ask them to download the new version and try it for 30 days. Go for the sale. (8) Ask for the sale. Most sales pitches fail because there is no call to action. You have to ask for their order. Say something like, "Please purchase your upgrade by visiting http://www.widg-co.com/upgrade/ and using our secure order form." (9) Make it easy to unsubscribe to future product-related emailings. At the bottom of the email, tell them that they've received this email because they purchased Widget, and that you'd be happy to remove their names from your list, immediately and permanently, if they no longer wish to hear about product upgrades. To sum up, too many developers complete their beta testing, and spend a half hour batting out a quick-and-dirty upgrade letter. If you take it seriously, and think through how you're going to convince your users to upgrade to the new version, it will be time well spent. Think about how the market has changed, how your software has changed, and how the industry has changed. Tell your existing customers about the benefits of using the latest version of your software. Sell them the upgrade. ____________________
Independent Software Developer Forum
Austin Shareware Schmooze
European Shareware Conference ____________________
It's easy to spend too much time worrying about direct costs, and not enough time worrying about lost opportunity costs. What's a lost opportunity cost? A good example would be the cost of missing well-targeted editors who would like to print a press release about your software. - How much money would you lose if your next press release weren't sent to the computer editors at The Associated Press, Bloomberg News, Copley News Service, and the other news services and syndicates? - How many more sales would your press release have generated if you had sent it to the proper people at USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and the other 250 US newspapers that have circulations from 50,000 to more than a million? - How do you measure the lost sales from press releases sent to computer magazine editors who have moved on to other jobs? Don't cut corners. It will cost you dearly if your press release isn't sent to key editors, or if the trial version of your software isn't available on key Internet download sites. You'll make more money if you think about both direct costs and lost opportunity costs when making your marketing decisions.
Deliver a simple message, and sell more software!
Don't Make Me Think: by Steve Krug (published by New Riders) It's a mistake to believe that people will read your web site, or study it, or spend some time trying to understand it. By simplifying your web site, you increase your chances of selling software. The Big Picture - Krug's first law of usability is "Don't make me think!". For example, software developers shouldn't display a button labeled "register" or "purchase". Show your web site visitors a button that says "Buy Now", and you'll sell more software. People don't read web sites. They skim them. If you include paragraphs of text, many visitors will ignore them. People aren't looking for the correct button to click. They'll settle for anything close. If you make it easy for them to buy your software, you'll make more sales. Break pages into clearly defined areas. Make it obvious what's clickable and what isn't. Trim text to the bare bone. In support of these broad principles, Krug offers suggestions for making it easy for your web site visitors to know where they are, and where they're going. And he includes many targeted examples to illustrate his principles. Krug takes a lot of time to explain why untested opinions are dangerous. Testing can be easy, and it's worth the time. What it Means for Software Developers - This book provides keen insights into the web browsing habits of real customers and prospects. It forces you to think through the message that you're trying to convey, and to deliver the message simply. The Bottom Line - Buy it. It's a quick read. While the message is simple, Krug brings it home effectively. Your web site is your number-one sales tool, and this book can make it significantly better. To UNSUBSCRIBE from this newsletter, send me a note. I'll remove your name immediately and permanently. To SUBSCRIBE to the email version of this newsletter, send me your name and email address. I'll only use your name and email address for this newsletter. I'll never spam you, or let other people have your name or email address. al@dpdirectory.com To SELL MORE SOFTWARE, bookmark this web site, and visit often. There's a lot of free, useful software marketing information on http://www.dpdirectory.com/.
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