I have a couple of problems. I’m short on cash – and, in these recession hit times, aren’t we all. I’m also short on time – which is a nuisance for everyone who uses my software because it means that I can’t provide you with the support that you deserve. I have few ideas which might help me solve these problems – and you can explore them from the labs page.
Cash
45RPM Software costs a surprising amount of money to run. Quite apart from my time, and the cost of software and kit, I need to pay for hosting and for my developer subscription with Apple. It all adds up and it’s neither free nor cheap. I need to find a way to recoup these losses.
- Advertising – how much money can I make from Adsense, affiliate programs with Amazon and other similar schemes? The risk is that, by polluting my website with advertising, I risk diluting my brand and alienating my users (that’s you, that is) – neither of which I want to do. So I need to find a way of placing adverts discretely and in such a way that they add value to the site. You can witness my experimentation here.
- Charging for software. I’m afraid to say that the writing is on the wall for free 45RPM Software. Beginning in April, I will start charging for some of my software. If you download software from my website, it will remain donation ware (to charity, of course). From the App Store there will be two versions of some of my larger programs – a ‘Lite’ version (which will remain as donation ware), and a ‘Pro’ version which will offer extended functionality and cost a nominal sum of money.
I hope that, by doing this, I can supplement my income enough to make 45RPM Software financially viable. I know you guys like what I do – I only have to read the reviews to know that, the question is ‘How Much?’
Time
I don’t have very much free time once I have finished my day job, and the free time that I do have is split between my family, writing new software, supporting existing software and my other interests. Something has to give. I clearly can’t do less of my day job since that is what pays the bills. Similarly, I can’t give less time to my family – on the contrary, I want to give them more time. I’m not going to devote less time to my other interests, because I’d go mad if I did, and I don’t want to devote less time to writing new software either. The only option is to squeeze supporting 45RPM Software.
The problem, of course, is that users of 45RPM Software deserve good support – and it’s a matter of personal pride that I continue to provide it. My solution, currently in the lab, is a Support page. You can see it here. Please join in. If you have a solution to a problem that someone else is experiencing, please feel free to answer. If you have a question, please ask. I will answer questions as they come in – my hope is that, by using a forum, I won’t have to answer the same question twice (or more).