Should I release this new software?
Posted by Guido Nussbaum | Posted in News | Posted on 28-02-2010
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It’s been a while since I’ve updated this blog. The last couple of weeks I’ve been really busy. We launched the Viral Traffic Bar website that runs on the MTB script and I had to fight with several bugs that were in the script. Now the Viral Traffic Bar website runs smoothly and it grows very fast.
Now that we are done with the Viral Traffic Bar launch it’s already time to get prepared for the Easter Giveaway that we run every year. This year I’ve teamed up with Brad Smith again, the guy who started the very first Easter Giveaway.
Many of you know that I’m still programming and testing the Giveaway Manager 3 software. We’ve used the software for my past 5 giveaway events and steadily improved it. It’s not a secret that the signup rates and conversions are way better than with other giveaway event software. This comes from an integrated tracking feature that no other software on the market has. The software is also the first one that can show up to 3 One Time Offers in a row (and we can switch it to show only 2 or 1 or even no One Time Offers, easily through the Admin area).
Many of you have seen the new Points System that only the Giveaway Manager 3 software uses and many of you have seen the new Web 2.0 Integration with Profiles and links to Twitter, Facebook, your Blog and your Website. What you haven’t seen yet are the new features that I’ve integrated this week into Giveaway Manager 3. These are again very new features that no other software out there has and you’ll see these new features the first time at… yes you guessed it right… at the Easter Giveaway 2010.
We plan to open the doors for contributors on March 9th, so watch out for our emails and blog posts that announce the opening for contributors.
Now, some of you might be wondering: “When will Guido finally release the Giveaway Manager 3 to the public?”.
Well, to be honest, I’ve been thinking a long time about this and many times I came to the conclusion that I shouldn’t release it at all. That’s because with this software I have a unique standpoint in this industry… my events are different than other people’s events. With each giveaway event that I run I make a profit of between $5000 and $15000 and that is only the direct profit from the event… affiliate commissions from banner ads or the income that I make from the new list subscribers are not included.
So tell me, would you release this software… and if you would, how much would you charge for it?
But that’s not all, there is another problem: How many copies of the software would you release?
See, most people who buy a giveaway software run a giveaway event that is targeted to the Internet Marketing crowd. How many Niche giveaway events did we see?
So if I release 500 copies of the Giveaway Manager 3, the market would be flooded with giveaway events.
I guess you can see the problem… Post a comment below and let me know what you think I should do because I haven’t made a decision yet.
Have a great day!
Guido Nussbaum
Contains over 200 directories that you can submit your sites to.
Well, I’d certainly be interested!
Can I see an event running the script?
Personally I think there are way too many giveaway events now. I think the number of copies should be very limited because 500 seems like a hell of a lot.
I know it might not seem fair only releasing limited copies but even the ones who get the program still partner with others to put on events. There are always like 1-3 event launched weekly for the circles I hang around
i’m interested…but pls keep it affordable…
Thanx and tc
If you make 5 – 15,000 on each event you organise Guido, I would not sell it – but would consider licensing it per event…
In fact I’m sure it would generate a bigger income for yourself if you had staff that could do what you do in setting everything up for each person wanting to run an event, and you could take an upfront fee for the initial workload – along with a % share of the events profits!
Provided the initial fee was high enough to justify your help – but reasonable enough to guarantee a profit, I’m sure no one would object to paying a % of the net profit,
Plus they then have a massive list and some great contacts!
Win/Win
Just my opinion without knowing what would be involved Guido
Randy
http://www.RandolfSmith.com
My experience tells me that truly remarkable software that is a cut above as you yourself indicate in the post, is not generally released for any price. If it is truly that good, I would not put a price on it for somebody else to in the long run penetrate my market. But hey, there’s the selfish side of me talking.
Guido,
The Manager 3 software seems to present some very unique capabilities. Would you consider allowing a few of us to explore prior to the Easter GiveAway?
I am unable to effectively answer your concerns at this time.
I would like a test drive.
great site and hopefully will be useful for people
well
my opinion is 500 is tomuch
you must stop at 100 copys
ewerything else is losing of time and money
Hello Guido,
If I where you I would wait another at least two or three years before the release to the public,because now you the only one with this script to organize a huge Giveaway,and I would keep it like this to rake in $60.000 a year.For that kind of money you have to sell if you charge $300 a copy, 200 copy’s.
And therefore the Market will be swamped with Giveaways,and that is not fair against the people who have the Giveaway Manager 2.
Thing about it??
Regards,
Hans Castiglioni
Yes Guido, please
Not a site owner but I believe many people join sites (free or paid for) without exploring all opportunities to advertise them!
Hello:
yes 500 is way to much, if you do put it out only do between 50 and 100. There is so many giveaways out there its hard to keep up with them all. Good luck!!
If the software is as good as you say, why release it. It would only lead to 100s of Giveaway events watering down their effectiveness. I agree with Rany above – maybe licensing it per event – maybe 2-3 per year.
Cheers!
Tony
I’d release some to the members and close assocs.
I agree with the others there are to many giveaways.
Limit to a very small amount and make it a fair price.
Like other comments I would go down the licensing route.
You get to vet the users of your system, this will ensure that your software remains special and trusted as only the reputable will be allowed to use your software.
You will also remain in the brand loop as you could specify a condition of use that your link is put discretely in the footer.
I would keep the licensing levels reasonably low but grow them, such that eventually you and your software are the Mr Giveaway, who everyone will turn to to power their event. Then it is upto you to decide who you work with.
igor
I bought the first one, it was full of bugs and a complete waste of my money and time, then the second one came out with a few posts about how the first one should never really been released.
There is nothing unique anymore about these scripts, when jv firesaleautomater came out it was unique, broke but unique, still shut my paypal account down, crashed the server, put 13 thousand on my list and put my rank @ 30 thousand.
Everyone now seems to have the scripts, everyone is your mate, we are all way respected in our field etc etc etc
I love the social network idea, and i would embrace that fully, i think if you are really going to release it then it should be restricted, and at a higher price so that not every stupid wannabe can get their hands on it and kill the system
James
P.S Sorry for this, but when so many people buy the script, dont unique it and expect to make thousands and build a big responsive list, install it one day and launch it the next, its a bit of an annoyance, many an unsubscribe button gets hit with the same email.
I agree with Tony. You see same stuff in many giveaways already. And you have to got something to give away to your list too…
Kari
How about you keep it. License it for NON IM giveaways, keep the cash, and give the licensing party the list. That way we don’t see so many IM giveaways, and you make the money.
Heck, I might be willing to help with the headaches of finding new license partners if it came to that!
Otherwise, I ‘d say keep the number of sales to a minimum (100 or less).
Best wishes,
Linda
Hi…Go for it…
Guido, I think you should at this moment in time decide to not decide.
There are only so many minutes in the day. You’re talking about going down a path where much will need to be outsourced, and that eventually includes coding. I would instead stay focused on the value YOU add, because as I’m certain you will agree, there is so much more in the way of innovative functionality to be deployed through your application. So much more to create… don’t become distracted with the logistics of software marketing and support – at least not yet.
Perhaps what you are really after for the time being is a greater “feedback loop” through a group of customers/beta testers. You don’t need to take the app public in order to get to where you want to go. And if I may be so bold as to venture a guess as to where that might be, I’d have to say you want to be, like any of us, one-of-a-kind in a market that knows it and pays you handsomely for it.
Hold off, Guido… there’s so much more innovation and market positioning for you to accomplish. The competition will eat your dust and that’s a good place to be.
-xearther
To many giveaways already, with not really free offers
@xearther Yes, that is so true… there would be alot of support work involved if I release it. That comes with a huge problem: I don’t want to outsource the coding of my software, I want to know every single line of the code. Also outsourcing the support for this software is something I don’t want to do… I would want to do the support myself because as the programmer I can help faster and therefore have happy clients. I’ve seen so many software launches where they had a support team full of people who didn’t know a single line of the software code.
Looking at the market there are multiple giveaway scripts. From reading your post it appears yours is ahead of the market. It is only a matter of time before someone else add the new features you mention.
Why not capitalize, license the software, and train support to your standards. Regardless of how many you sell there are going to be multiple giveaways weekly with the numerous scripts out there. It is profitable for those who utilize it to their full potential.
But if you decide to sell 500 copies at $200 each that is $100,000. I think it would be safe to assume 500 copies would sell in a month. Wait 3 months and decide if you want to sell additional copies.
Regardless, looking at a possible $100,000 month, just from this line of business, would be my choice.
I will definitely be securing a copy if you decide to launch it.
Guido,
I would offer some limited amount of copies to your existing customers of the GVM2 as an “upgrade” and then watch the market if there is enough space for more copies to sell, but I still would limit it to not more than 100 copies.
Regarding the price:
I would be willing to pay even more money than I paid for the second version as I already run 3 successful Giveaways with GVM2 (modified and translated by myself) in the German speaking market.
Maybe a service like Reed Floren provides could be interesting in the English speaking market.
Randy Smith already wrote about this strategy.
This way it would be more limited to people who are willing to invest more upfront and therefore also might increase the quality of the giveaway events if the giveaway operator is someone like you.
Take yourself all the time you need for making any decisions. No need for haste
Greetings from Vienna,
Andreas Obermüller
Basically, I’m a hobbyist, someone who’s driven by what he enjoys but I think I can still give you an opinion. If you enjoy making money online, releasing the product for a price would probably be your choice. If you’re in doubt and contented with how your stuff is giving you, then give it away. But let me tell you, if your product is the one big factor of your success, you’ll be the one ultimately deciding if you want to share it for free or for a fee. You should limit how much you would sell depending on how much feedback you want to get. Unless you want to have a lot of genuine feedback from customer, you should probably limit it to 100-200 like most others do.
well if it is easier than the number 2 release it!i had to pay one installer every event i organized so i stop to do it!
Paul
Guido,
I would have to agree with several people that commented.
Firstly if you released too many it would flood the market and hurt yourself.
Secondly if those people ran the giveaway improperly it would hurt your reputation.
Thirdly I think Licensing or Renting the rights would be a wiser move.
Fourth and last I would limit it to 10-20
I personally would consider doing one as I have a particular niche in mind, however dont believe I would pay more that $200.00 to get a license. I would prefer to rent it once and if the niche giveaway works then I would consider paying more to purchase the script or license for it.
I also would greatly value your assistance in running one for the first time as you have so much experience and success with them.
Best of Luck
Kaye
i agree with those leaning toward licensing as the option. I know scripts can be hacked but if you licensed at reasonable rates, maybe payment based onsuccess. then you would show your faith in the script and your integrity as a marketer
Guido,
If the program is as good as you claim, do not release controll. Keep the code and lease the program out.
I am not long on the web, but I can also see what is happening with all the free ebooks. Suddenly there are similiar books all over.
Releasing (selling) the program will drastically lower the value and effectiveness. Keep control and I believe the web would be better served because the system remains unique.
yes you should do it it sounds goog and someting to help all marketers
Hi Guido,
I think you would be smart to hold off a little longer, and as you are keeping a tight watch on support issues, etc., you cannot afford to tax your time with nit-picking issues that would arise with novice users of the script.
As there are far too many giveaways running every week, month in month out, we need to categorize things into specific niches. Perhaps limiting the number of licenses sold to between 25 – 75 would be a start, and require a disclaimer from the licensee for a specific niche perhaps. I think some tracking of which niches the giveaways are targeted to would be useful.
Best to you always,
Paul Klein
Hi! Guido, I am certainly interested, but will be guided by the price, I tend to agree with the fact that there are way too many giveaway events now, create a special event with rewards.
My experience tells me that truly remarkable software that is a cut above the rest as you yourself usually deliver, is not generally released for any price. If it is truly that good, I would not put a price on it, personally I would not sell at all if it is so special. But hey, that’s just my view.
I am interested, but you better hold it for a while, until the right time for you to release.
thanks
Agus Sofyan
Tough Call as a owner of GM1 I was just about to purchase GM2 now you tell us there is GM3 yes of course I want the latest. Time for me to sit on the fence and wait and see what ultimately is your decision Guido.
go a head and do it.
mazal tov and best of luck
Dedi
Hi Guido,
This is a tough call.
If you only released to a few persons or choose to license it out, this will drive the price up and you may not get many new owners. It will not be a win-win for all.
Personally, I hope you released it.
I believe I am one of the folks who asked about this last year as well.
A suggestion for you to consider: Why not do a time-limited special for your past customers before you close the door and then open it again a few months later? That way, you can manage the usage and you can do a launch once every 3-4 months?
cheers,
Keith Choy
P.S. Btw, I saluate you for wanting to do the support yourself. I experience your responsive response previously myself and I must say I am most impressed. Thanks! (never got to say that last time.)
Guido: As you stated in an early post you are a programmer. I know I for one was told many months ago that you would be releasing the script and that you would limit it. As a programmer I would think that you would want to have the things that you create out there helping others to become a success. And yes there are alot of giveaway events that happen, but when you stop and think about it there are many of them that are ran with different software. So I really do not think that by releasing a new version that it would drastically increase the output of events.
If in fact you decide not to release it and to keep it as your own, then I might suggest that in the future that you not build up your clients hope on releasing a new version of your software until you finally decide on keeping it or selling it.
I do agree that you should limit the number that you sell, and I also agree that the price should not be $197.00 where anyone can buy it. It should be more like $300.00 to $500.00 if in fact it is as good as you claim with all those features. another point here is on the income that you make per event with this. That is not just because of the script Guido and I think that gives a false inpression of the software. Your list of clients that help you promote your events is very large, and that one factor has more to do with what you make then just the software.
hey itz great and hopefully it will be benited to peoples and more to interested people’s…….keep rocking!!
Well, I’d certainly be interested!
is good software
your software thats good,but you must be carefull about sofware godbless you
I wouldn’t release it at all.
I don’t have to much of an opinion about whether you should release the software or not. Your blog looks nice, but I do have to say that the 1 & 2 things that come up to begin with go back and forth too quickly. Can you slow them down a little? It’d make it easier to read them before they disappear.
Regards,
Brenda
Dear Friend, Guido Nussbaum!
Hi,
I enjoyed a lot, being visiting your website, a few minutes ago.You know better!
In my opinion, you don’t hold info-Products with yourself, but keep on sharing with lots, who are interested & need it.
I am sure, your this Software will definitely be “Your another Success Story” as before.
Wish you to Succeed the Big-Success! Take Care!
No Guido.
Definitely not.
As you quite rightly say, your giveaways are far superior due to their unique featurres.
most people in the industry don’t have the clout you have built up and so the benefit to the community at large of having more giveaways cloned on yours would be minimal. Their reach would be limited, and as such, the size of potential lists would be smaller.
I would rather build a larger, stronger list from your own giveaways.
As for the idea that a giveaway event of this type would have relevance for a niche market doesn’t read.
Consumers in the niche aren’t interested in list building and won’t want promo emails flooding their in-boxes from those marketers using the event.
Looking forward to Easter
I don’t have to much of an opinion about whether you should release the software or not. Your blog looks nice, but I do have to say that the 1 & 2 things that come up to begin with go back and forth too quickly. Can you slow them down a little? It’d make it easier to read them before they disappear.
Regards,
Brenda
No Guido.
Definitely not.
As you quite rightly say, your giveaways are far superior due to their unique featurres.
most people in the industry don’t have the clout you have built up and so the benefit to the community at large of having more giveaways cloned on yours would be minimal. Their reach would be limited, and as such, the size of potential lists would be smaller.
I would rather build a larger, stronger list from your own giveaways.
As for the idea that a giveaway event of this type would have relevance for a niche market doesn’t read.
Consumers in the niche aren’t interested in list building and won’t want promo emails flooding their in-boxes from those marketers using the event.
Looking forward to Easter
hi great site and great helpful post keep posting