Comment by t4nkd | Hacker News Reader

Comment by t4nkd | Hacker News Reader

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The "complete package" gave me sticker shock, so much that I almost closed the page then and there. It was only out of curiosity as to why the $200 price tag was worthwhile that I even kept reading to find more purchase options. It put a bad taste in my mouth, honestly, and I'm left feeling pretty confused by why you won't let me cherry pick my own interview+book package. I'm just having trouble seeing the dollar value in what you've assembled, though I'm sure if I broke out each piece of what you're offering, it'd seem like quite a deal, no one is offering "pieces" of what you're offering, so I just see the whole thing as overpriced.

I was excited to follow the development of this through the newsletter, but I'm not a customer now. Maybe if you offered to trickle out the interview content as you developed it, for some kind of $9/mo fee? I would've been on board with that, or a similar approach. Though I guess not being a total squid I might not have been your target, I was really just interested in what those accomplished professionals had to say, maybe also thumbing through the book -- which while I'm at it -- I'm also not convinced provides the kind of value a $30 price should. I was kind've under the impression you'd include some real "how-to" meat, at least periodically, but there doesn't appear to be any of that. I think I'd get more value out of "Don't Make Me Think" or "Rocket Surgery Made Easy", and I could score both in a native kindle format(for $30).

I think you probably did a lot of hard work, and I'm still tempted to spend the $200 just for the interviews; but I don't feel good enough about what I might be getting. I saw the early version of the Ryan Singer interview and it didn't leave a $200 impression. I hope you've had a lot more success selling to others who really need a comprehensive resource or don't understand many of the fundamentals, it certainly seemed like it would be more valuable for them.

Also, just as an aside, the WordPress favicon feels cheap, and worse, lazy.

Thanks for the feedback. I am always trying to improve my content, sites, and marketing.

My target market is people who are serious about web applications. In an industry where it isn't hard to charge $100-250 an hour for design or development work, $200 for everything included doesn't seem like a lot.

But I understand that for some people (students) that can be a ton of money, so I am also selling the book by itself. I have no intention of competing with standard eBook prices ($5 or $10?). It's just not worth the time it takes to put together a book.

I am really curious to see how people react to the pricing order (highest to lowest). So thanks for your feedback on that in particular!

Hey Nathan, I sell e-books on iOS design, and my 2 cents re: price is to show all the prices in the same visual area so people can see immediately that they have a choice other than the $200. I had to scroll down pretty far past the $200 to see that just the individual book was available (and I'd guess that a ton of people are going to just buy the book, since it's a lot of great content at a really great price!) so rather than lose a lot of buyers at the $200 price point, why not gain them at a lower price point by visually positioning all the bundles together so people can choose?

Mike, Thanks for the feedback (I've read nearly every article on your site). I'll definitely try out some different layouts for the packages. I wanted to see what affect flipping the package order would have.

For the record, my company would pay for this resource if I asked, and I don't see what's offered as being all together valuable to a professional who charges < $150/hr; only pieces of what's offered would act as a resource for learning, most of it would never be cannon reference material. I doubt any of those professionals you're targeting(< $150/hr) need wireframes or tutorial videos. More to that point, hourly rates like that don't go directly into pocket, as you may well know. It's not as simple as saying, "Find an hour of contract work and it pays for my bundle!", to try and justify the price in that manner makes me even more wary that there's not $200 of value in the product.

I'm just not convinced the asking price is justified. I'd be tempted to pay $80 for the book, all seven interviews, and the case study+bonus content. And, since I've touched on it, I'm kind've taken aback that 4 sections of the book were cut and added as an up sell; that just doesn't sit well with me. But even at $80, I'd expect a lot more quality in the interviews than I'd seen before; being unable to see some shorts, and basing my experience only on the freeview through the newsletter, I still wouldn't buy.

I hope, for the sake of the energy you've spent on this project, that I'm totally alien in the way I feel about your product. I hate to be disheartening or seem like I'm just playing devil's advocate to the positive reception you've had so far, that really isn't my intention.

Just to touch on your comment of "standard ebook prices" -- $30 is pretty standard. But when I pay that, I'm usually buying Manning or O'Reilly; getting early(beta) access and post-launch updates/errata. Also, I'm usually being written to by a community leader. I'm not trying to shoot down your integrity, but the people who write $30 ebooks tend to have significantly more provenance than yourself.

Wishing you success, thanks for the reply.

Was your thinking was to put the higher priced package first to make the reader feel like the less expensive packages later one are a better deal? It's an interesting idea and I'm glad you're doing the experiment. I wouldn't let the comments here dissuade you too strongly from attempting this.

However, you absolutely need final "Buy the book" button at the bottom of the page. And ditch the question at the bottom of the page - "Are you ready to buy?" is far less effective than a simple call to action - for example, a "Buy Now" button. :)

As one who is serious about web apps, I have some different feedback for you.

I would pay at least $300 for the interviews alone.

While there are clearly improvements that could be made to the sales page, they are all tactical. I think your strategy is spot-on, and I think you've compiled a package of incredible value.

Thank you for putting this all together in such a well-designed way! Clearly if one values their time, this investment is far more productive than sifting through "hundreds of blog posts."

On the issue of price, is there avenue where someone can purchase the book and "upgrade" to the higher packages later?

Sure. Just send me an email by replying to your purchase receipt.

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