<P.MAYER1> Ok who wants to ask the first question?
<[zilch] M.RILEY16> Paul, how do we get access to the ASP section on GEnie/HOSB?
<P.MAYER1> Ok Walt is first, go ahead Walt.
<[Walt] R.REESER> I've had over 100 dowloads in two weeks; how many can I expect will pay?
<P.MAYER1> Walt, download counts are not an indication
<P.MAYER1> of what you can expect. It really takes
<P.MAYER1> getting your programs into as many hands
<P.MAYER1> as possible. I first started by uploading to
<P.MAYER1> CompuServe and GEnie and one BBS in Chicago.
<P.MAYER1> That first year, I was getting 1 or 2 registrations
<P.MAYER1> a month and thought that was the way it was
<P.MAYER1> supposed to be. Well I was certainly wrong. <grin>
<P.MAYER1> What happened is that I joined the ASP and learned about marketing
<P.MAYER1> shareware and how to get into the channel.
<P.MAYER1> What I do now is to send out disks to 300 plus vendors
<P.MAYER1> each time I have a new program or update and upload to as
<P.MAYER1> many BBS' as I can. The second year of shareware after
<P.MAYER1> joining the ASP, the flood gates opened. I earned $80,000
<P.MAYER1> that year. It didn't happen untill I got the product
(Job 8)<P.MAYER1> into as many hands as I could. This also did something
<P.MAYER1> else for me. I started getting reviews in all of
<P.MAYER1> the popular PC Magazines. The first one was about the time I joined
<P.MAYER1> the ASP and it started the ball rolling. I'm going to tell you
(Job 8)<P.MAYER1> that from discussions with other authors, we can expect between
<P.MAYER1> 1% to 3% will register. Does that answer your question?
<[Walt] R.REESER> yes, thanks. How to join?
<P.MAYER1> Ok to join, download the file APPLIC.EXE in the library here in HOSB.
<P.MAYER1> It has information as well as the application form.
<P.MAYER1> The next person in the que is Jeff, go ahead Jeff.
<JEFFCHASALOW> thanks....
<JEFFCHASALOW> I do custom type programming and software now...
<JEFFCHASALOW> what kind of stuff goes over big with shareware that won't be just another also ran???
<P.MAYER1> Jeff, you need to stumble on an idea that no one else has found.
<P.MAYER1> Like my GRAB Plus, I was the first on the block back in
<JEFFCHASALOW> build a different mouse trap, huh?
<P.MAYER1> 1986 with an envelope addressor. Nobody had one and I was
<JEFFCHASALOW> which would be better, applications,or utilities???
<P.MAYER1> king of the hill. It's very important to
<P.MAYER1> not only have a great idea, but to build it better than
<P.MAYER1> anyone can. You have to remember that you'll not
<P.MAYER1> only compete with other shareware but commercialware too.
<P.MAYER1> You definately don't want to come out with a hard disk
<P.MAYER1> manager, if you look in the data libraries, I'll bet you can
count
<P.MAYER1> over 50 of them. Utilities for tasks that can save
<P.MAYER1> time are what's hard to find and goes over well in shareware.
<P.MAYER1> Also if you feel like tackling a full blown application
<P.MAYER1> then you've got a chance if it is well done. I've found that
lately with
<P.MAYER1> my payroll program. It's taking off now like I never expected. Any other questions Jeff?
<JEFFCHASALOW> not now, thanks....i took tonite off from writing an inventory system for a client
<P.MAYER1> Ok the next in line is AJ, go ahead AJ.
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> Would you discuss the effectiveness of various methods of distribution? What works best? BBS? Mailings? Catalog?
<P.MAYER1> AJ, it depends on the size of your program.
<P.MAYER1> I found that in the past when my packages were small (60k or
so)
<P.MAYER1> the BBS method moved them fast and registrations were heavier
from
<P.MAYER1> that mode. However as they grew larger (on two disks in
compressed format)
<P.MAYER1> the BBS registrations dropped in comparison to Catalog
<P.MAYER1> vendors. I'll have to say though that the
<P.MAYER1> vendors have been stronger for registrations by far than
<P.MAYER1> BBS registrations. I'll venture to say that they move more
disks
<P.MAYER1> and get to a lot of people that are just getting started in
<P.MAYER1> computers. These are the folks that are starving for good
software.
<P.MAYER1> Does that help? And any other comment?
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> Are the supermarket shareware stands that we see now useful at all?
<P.MAYER1> I'll tell you, last year I started getting registrations
<P.MAYER1> from people that found my payroll package
<P.MAYER1> in book stores. It was from all over
<P.MAYER1> the states and I couldn't figure out why.
<P.MAYER1> Finally I tracked it down to the chain called the
BookWharehouse.
<P.MAYER1> They had bins of shareware disks next to the checkout counter.
<P.MAYER1> Yes it works! Last yaer they resulted in more registrations
<P.MAYER1> for the payroll than any other source. It get to, once
again, those that
<P.MAYER1> have not seen shareware and are fresh customers. A
<P.MAYER1> Any other comment or question?
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> Thanks ... I'll yield the floor to the power users
<JEFFCHASALOW> not now, thanks....I took tonite off from writing an inventory system for a client
<P.MAYER1> Ok the next in line is AJ, go ahead AJ.
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> Would you discuss the effectiveness of various methods of
distribution? What works best? BBS? Mailings? Catalog?
<P.MAYER1> AJ, it depends on the size of your program.
<P.MAYER1> I found that in the past when my packages were small (60k or so)
<P.MAYER1> the BBS method moved them fast and registrations were heavier from
<P.MAYER1> that mode. However as they grew larger (on two disks in compressed
format)
<P.MAYER1> the BBS registrations dropped in comparison to Catalog
<P.MAYER1> vendors. I'll have to say though that the
<P.MAYER1> vendors have been stronger for registrations by far than
<P.MAYER1> BBS registrations. I'll venture to say that they move more disks
<P.MAYER1> and get to a lot of people that are just getting started in
<P.MAYER1> computers. These are the folks that are starving for good software.
<P.MAYER1> Does that help? And any other comment?
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> Are the supermarket shareware stands that we see now useful at all?
<P.MAYER1> I'll tell you, last year I started getting registrations
<P.MAYER1> from people that found my payroll package
<P.MAYER1> in book stores. It was from all over
<P.MAYER1> the states and I couldn't figure out why.
<P.MAYER1> Finally I tracked it down to the chain called the BookWharehouse.
<P.MAYER1> They had bins of shareware disks next to the checkout counter.
<P.MAYER1> Yes it works! Last yaer they resulted in more registrations
<P.MAYER1> for the payroll than any other source. It get to, once again, those that
<P.MAYER1> have not seen shareware and are fresh customers. <P.MAYER1> Any other comment or question?
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> Thanks ... I'll yield the floor to the power users <g> ...
<P.MAYER1> Ok on to Joey.
<[Joey] JEROBICHAUX> Thanks ...
<[Joey] JEROBICHAUX> I'm getting decent regs from shareware sources, but things have started to
<[Joey] JEROBICHAUX> rocket since I began direct mail. Question is: what do I do from here? Do I
<[Joey] JEROBICHAUX> move on to dealers and distributors? If so, how and why?
<[Joey] JEROBICHAUX>
<P.MAYER1> Joey, you can do both. Jim Button, Marshall Magee and other have
<P.MAYER1> shown how it works. You can effectively have both shareware as
<P.MAYER1> well as commercial sales. Actually this year I added some
information
<P.MAYER1> to my registration reminder screens. I tell the customer that
<P.MAYER1> they can buy from me or go to their local Egghead store.
<P.MAYER1> This is a way of getting a foot into the commercial market.
<P.MAYER1> Another good way is to
<P.MAYER1> try and get packaging deals and or other publishers
<P.MAYER1> to handle your products. I've got a California publisher that
<P.MAYER1> sell GRAB Plus through a different commercial
<P.MAYER1> channel. It's still called GRAB Plus but they print their
<P.MAYER1> own manuals, do the packaging and support. I get a commission.\
<P.MAYER1> The direct mail is a great way like you
<P.MAYER1> are finding out. If you can find authors with similar
<P.MAYER1> products and exchange mailing lists, you have half the battle won.
<P.MAYER1> I've done this with several other authors with good success.
<P.MAYER1> Any other questions?
<[Joey] JEROBICHAUX> No ... thanks, I appreciate it ...
<P.MAYER1> Ok J.Rigdon was next, I think I saw him
<J.RIGDON> thanks
<P.MAYER1> drop out though and after him who's been raising his hand all
<P.MAYER1> night is Riley. I see Rigdon is back Go ahead.
<J.RIGDON> I'm having line trouble. but I'll try. Are you actively selling thru other channels?
<P.MAYER1> Yes, I've got a deal in France, California and one packaging deal.
<P.MAYER1> It's good to get these as they cause extra cash to come in
<P.MAYER1> without me doing any work. <grin> I'll tell you another way
<P.MAYER1> to get extra cash. On my payroll package I promote Deluxe
<P.MAYER1> checks. Well Deluxe as well as other forms companies
<P.MAYER1> have these programs where you can get commissions for pushing
<P.MAYER1> their products. I'm told that so far this year I'm the number one
<P.MAYER1> source of Deluxe getting new customers. They called and asked
<P.MAYER1> what I was doing to get so many for them. I told them nothing
<P.MAYER1> other than having it printed in my manuals and sticking
<P.MAYER1> in their sheets with the delivered orders. If you look around there
<P.MAYER1> are lots of ideas for generating extra income from this business.
<P.MAYER1> Anything else?
<J.RIGDON> What kind of royalty structure is reasonable if the othe company publishes and I support?
<P.MAYER1> If the other company does all of the publishing, you can expect between 5% to 15% average. Remember, they will be doing everything, all you do is collect
<P.MAYER1> the checks. <grin> GA
<J.RIGDON> I've got a deal with DFS forms myself. BTW They'll pay you 30 cents per name for your customer list.
<P.MAYER1> Ok let's go on to Riley.
<M.RILEY16> thanks...
<M.RILEY16> I talked to Parson's, SoftKey and Dickson...
<M.RILEY16> They all want EXCLUSIVE rights...
<M.RILEY16> You obviously know of some publishers who will still let you...
<M.RILEY16> market your shareware...How do we find them?
<P.MAYER1> I'd shy away from exclusive rights unless you can get a
<P.MAYER1> real GREAT deal. One that made all of your sweat and blood worth it.
<P.MAYER1> What you need to do, is to go to COMDEX and hunt up the
<P.MAYER1> deals. These publishers all have booths at these shows
<P.MAYER1> and you have to "dress up" and walk in and make a presentation.
<P.MAYER1> One of the fellows that started out a few years ago doing that was
<P.MAYER1> Paris Karahalious from Trius. Those are the folks
<P.MAYER1> that brought you AS-EASY-AS the spread sheet. <P.MAYER1> of publishing deals as long as your arm. Actually That's where I met
<P.MAYER1> Paris, at COMDEX several years ago trying to sell AS-EASY-AS
<P.MAYER1> to me. <grin> GA
<M.RILEY16> I have very limited idtribution to this point...
<M.RILEY16> If you only had $500 to spend getting your product to as...
<M.RILEY16> many hands as possible how would you do it?
<P.MAYER1> With a budget of $500 (I hope your talking about a 1 disk package),
<M.RILEY16> yes
<P.MAYER1> I'd send a copy to the major disk vendors and the major BBS'.
<P.MAYER1> The ASP Mailing is one form of doing this. However, I don't have the
<P.MAYER1> figures to see just what $500 would do. Remember, $500 don't buy
<P.MAYER1> that many disks and postage. Any other questoons?
<M.RILEY16> no...thanks
<P.MAYER1> Ok I guess it's on to Mike.
<M.DWYER4> Thanks..
<M.DWYER4> I would like any ideas on customer support. i work fulltime days and
<M.RILEY16> exi
<M.DWYER4> am not around to do support. Any Ideas??
<P.MAYER1> Ok Mike there are several options you can use.
<P.MAYER1> I used to use a computer as my answering machine when I also
<P.MAYER1> had another (was my real) job. I'd have a message that
<P.MAYER1> sounded like we were busy and if they'd leave a message, we'd
<P.MAYER1> call them right back. Well what would happen is the
<P.MAYER1> answering board in the computer would call a beeper number
<P.MAYER1> (no I was not a drug dealer <grin>) and I return the customers
<P.MAYER1> call. Now if you have a job that won't allow you to return the
<P.MAYER1> call, you can do like I did before the computer. I'd have
<P.MAYER1> a message on an answering machine that would tell them to call me
<P.MAYER1> between 7pm and 10pm for support and had an 800 service that took
orders
<P.MAYER1> for me and I'd pick them up on the way home from work every night.
<P.MAYER1> These are known as "Answering Services". Or the new system is the
<P.MAYER1> Tech Support companies such as Advanced Support Group. They have
<P.MAYER1> services for providing support and taking credit card orders for
<P.MAYER1> shareware authors. Any more?
<M.DWYER4> Were your customers satisfied with your call-back phone support
method?
<P.MAYER1> That was a long time ago and I really don't think it
<P.MAYER1> was good for Corporate customers Mike. That's why I'm glad Im
<P.MAYER1> in the position where I am now where this is my living. GA
<M.DWYER4> Ok. Thanks.
<P.MAYER1> Ok on to Mike Barillier.
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> To some people, shareware lacks some of the
respectablility and apparent reliaility (typo...)
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> of major commercial software packages ...
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> How do you counter that, especially when you're targeting narrow-minded corporate suits?
<P.MAYER1> This is something that we have to try and change Mike. The perception
<P.MAYER1> has to be changed. If you call my office, I don't answer the phone
<P.MAYER1> I have a board in an old computer called BigmOuth. It answers
<P.MAYER1> similar to the voice mailboxes that you hear when you
<P.MAYER1> call IBM or General Electric. "If your using a touch tone
<P.MAYER1> phone press one.... Then "If you want to place an order
<P.MAYER1> press two... For dealer orders press three... For technical
<P.MAYER1> support press four, and so on. It makes the caller think that
<P.MAYER1> they've called this big office complex and hear I'm sitting
<P.MAYER1> in one of my two rooms. <grin> You should also have a Laser printer
<P.MAYER1> if you can afford one and make all of your correspondense
<P.MAYER1> look good and same for invoices and such. Present a professional
<P.MAYER1> image. I'm a little embarrased when I get calls from local business that
<P.MAYER1> want to drive over to pick up a copy. Sort of blows my "image" that I've set with the phones. <g>
<P.MAYER1> You should also be professional when talking
<P.MAYER1> to the customer on the phone. Try and give them the feeling
<P.MAYER1> that you've been doing this all your life. Presententation
<P.MAYER1> is 90% of the business front, the rest is the software. GA
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> What does ASP provide for a software author, and how
much will membership increase registrations/distribution?
<P.MAYER1> Mike the biggest thing that I've gotten from the ASP is
<P.MAYER1> education. I've been able to pick the minds of Jim Button,
<P.MAYER1> Marshall Magee, Tom Smith, and others that have been here from the
<P.MAYER1> start. That and the ability to be in a booth at COMDEX and PC-Expo
to
<P.MAYER1> promote shareware as well as tout my own products. It's also given me
<P.MAYER1> a lot of contacts. The ASP members share a lot with each other. Some of these things are publishing deals, places to buy supplies
<P.MAYER1> or equipment at prices you'd not expect. Help in designing packages
<P.MAYER1> help with manuals, and more. I have to say that going from 1 to 2
<P.MAYER1> registrations a month to $80,000 that first year after joining the
ASP
<P.MAYER1> that $50 was the best $50 I EVER spent. ANy other questions?
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> Thanks ... I'll yield the mic ...
<[Joni] NASS> Paul....
<P.MAYER1> Ok on to John Hamrick.
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> John is off ...
<[Joni] NASS> Am just curious what you'd say to me **IF** I want to drive right
over and pick up a copy -- now. You said it blew your image... how do you
handle it?
<P.MAYER1> Ok John is off next is Mike Barillier
<[Joni] NASS> Uh oh!
<[Joni] NASS> Sorry.
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> Feel free to answer Joni's question ...
<P.MAYER1> Joni, I normally
<P.MAYER1> Tell them at that time that I work out of my house, that they are
welcome
<P.MAYER1> to come if they'd like. Ok now on to Mike
<[Joni] NASS> Thanks!
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> Are you or any other shareware authors concerned with
unregistered users, or corporate mass-distribution, and how do you handle those
cases if you are?
<P.MAYER1> Ok Mike, I personally don't worry about non-registered
<P.MAYER1> users. Let me explain why...
<P.MAYER1> You see the shareware user is our unpaid advertising.
<P.MAYER1> If a person is using the program, they most likely like and
<P.MAYER1> will tell their friends. They might pass on copies in addition
<P.MAYER1> to telling their friends. I get registrations all the time
<P.MAYER1> and the people tell me that they heard about or got a copy from
<P.MAYER1> "John Public" (I made that name up) and I look in
<P.MAYER1> the data base to see if John is a customer. In more than half
<P.MAYER1> oh I'm going to say 3/4 cases, John is not registered. This
<P.MAYER1> means that John is out there selling for me and I don't have
<P.MAYER1> to pay him a penny. One of the most important things
<P.MAYER1> in shareware is to get your programs into as many hands
<P.MAYER1> as possible. This is one of the ways that's done. It's a fact
<P.MAYER1> of shareware marketing that if a person don't like your
<P.MAYER1> program he's not going to use, he's not going to register it
<P.MAYER1> but most important, he's not going to tell his friends about it.
<P.MAYER1> I look at all of those unregistered users and my "Adveretising
<P.MAYER1> Executives". <grin> Bless them all. Anything else?
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> Nice point of view ... I never thought of it that way.
Also, I've got some ideas for packages that would be more appropriate
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> for corporate use rather than home use. Is there any
precedent for this type of shareware?
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> (communications packages and stuff like that)
<P.MAYER1> Corporate shareware is better than Home.
<P.MAYER1> I'll tell you why.....
<P.MAYER1> In the Corporate world, they DON'T want a shareware
<P.MAYER1> screen displayed on the monitors of the computers for too
<P.MAYER1> long. It's not like John Public I mentioned above who's
<P.MAYER1> sitting at home and the only person that sees his screen.
<P.MAYER1> The Corporate world has to keep employees honest
<P.MAYER1> and in order to do that, they must project an honest image
<P.MAYER1> themselves. So it stands to reason that you have a
<P.MAYER1> better chance. My Corporate and Business registrations far
<P.MAYER1> outnumber my "home use" registrations. Anything else?
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> Are you then a proponent of Nagware?
<P.MAYER1> No mike, I won't even look at a Nagware program. A single RRS
screen that only takes a keypress is all I believe in.
<P.MAYER1> I looked at a COMM program
<P.MAYER1> a while ago called Unicomm. I looked for 15 minutes and gave
<P.MAYER1> up did a DEL *.* and ordered XTALK for Windows that afternoon. Anything else?
<[Michael] M.BARILLIER> Nah, unless nobody else has a question ... (can't see from here)
<P.MAYER1> Ok lets go on to Directory.JL, what a name?
<[OhNo!MeAgain] AJ> he's off ...
<J.RIGDON> i think he left
<[Joni] NASS> Yes, he did have to leave.
<P.MAYER1> Ok on to P.Reeser then.
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> He left, too.
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> I have a zillion question, I hope ou have plenty of time :)
<P.MAYER1> Oops that's Louis-Eric.
<P.MAYER1> go ahead
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> First: does the perceived size of a shareware company
affect
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> the number or registrations coming in ?
<P.MAYER1> I think it does Lou, people seem to be
<P.MAYER1> afraid of "fly-by-night" companies, we all are.
<P.MAYER1> And to thing that a person working out of their
<P.MAYER1> bedroom or basement is someone to depend on is almost
<P.MAYER1> unbelievable. That's why you need to try and give the
<P.MAYER1> impression that you're a big business. Or one that has been
<P.MAYER1> around for some time. I've never done it, but adding the
<P.MAYER1> line "Established 1983" to my letterhead might give me even
<P.MAYER1> more credibility. That's when I started so it should give the
<P.MAYER1> prospective customer that warm feeling that I'm not going to
<P.MAYER1> take off tomorrow. GA
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> Right. But is it better to look like a medium-sized
company on its way, in
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> order not to be labelled as a "large company which
doesn't need that extra
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> registration" ?
<P.MAYER1> I don't know, did you see that Jim Button came back to
<P.MAYER1> shareware? He's one of the biggest and shareware is a big part
<P.MAYER1> of his sales. I think that you just need to get away from
<P.MAYER1> the impression that shareware authors are hackers working in'
<P.MAYER1> the basement. A medium size company is ok, actually when I get
<P.MAYER1> forms from the Universities and Government that have
<P.MAYER1> the boxes Minority or Small Business, I make sure and check off
<P.MAYER1> small business because they have a quota to fill in doing business
with
<P.MAYER1> small busineses. GA
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> Fantastic. How effective is a commission-based
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> "inducer" at increasing distribution/registrations/good
will ?
<P.MAYER1> Bob Wallace of PC-Write used that scheme years ago.
<P.MAYER1> I asked him at the last COMDEX meeting why he dropped it. Bob said
<P.MAYER1> that the accounting caused more work than it was worth. He told
<P.MAYER1> me that not that many people took advantage of it?? Go figure? You
give
<P.MAYER1> someone the opportunity to make a few extra bucks and they
<P.MAYER1> don't take advantage of it. An important thing
<P.MAYER1> to think about also is will you want to continue
<P.MAYER1> doing something like that if you should start? Remember, old
<P.MAYER1> shareware will be on BBS' for years to haunt us. I got a registration
<P.MAYER1> today on a form the guy filled out from a version that had the
<P.MAYER1> old price and wrong address. I've moved almost <P.MAYER1> now and he found me. I called to tell him about the price increase
<P.MAYER1> and ask how he found me. He read a review in a magazine recently.
<P.MAYER1> Still got the order with the price increase too. You just have to really
<P.MAYER1> think things out before you release anything that you might
<P.MAYER1> not want several years down the road. GA
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> Great. Four (easy) questions left. Is it important for a Canadian company to
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> have a U.S. mailing address ? Will it affect its credibility ? (That was 1
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> question <g>)
<P.MAYER1> No I don't think that's necessary. Randy Maclain (FormGen) went over
a million dollars in sales this year, a Canadian Shareware author. GA
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> Is Comdex an effective way at getting credibility ?
<P.MAYER1> rYes COMDEX is the show where anybody that's important in
<P.MAYER1> the PC world will be. I've found that I'm best at getting
<P.MAYER1> the official party list and then schmoozing with the members
<P.MAYER1> of the press. That's why I've been so successful at getting so
<P.MAYER1> many reviews. This goes back to my early days in the ASP
<P.MAYER1> picking the brains of Marshall Magee. Marshall is a EXPERT and
<P.MAYER1> (that and don't belong there) at getting PR. He can talk his
<P.MAYER1> way into anything and gets the press eating out of his hands.
<P.MAYER1> COMDEX can really give a shareware author some great breaks
<P.MAYER1> if he does the right things. GA
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> That's someone I'll have to observe. Large computers magazines
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> often review shareware and "commercial" software
separately, if shareware gets
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> into the picture at all. Is there anything done, now, by the ASP or any other
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> group, to request that all good quality programs be reviewed, regardless of
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> the distribution channel used ?
<P.MAYER1> PC Magazine is the best as their attitude is that
<P.MAYER1> software is software, it don't matter what the source is. The ASP is
<P.MAYER1> the source of most reviews that you're seeing these days in the
<P.MAYER1> magazines. We've gotten a lot of friends in the press
<P.MAYER1> that have been fortunate enough to talk their editors into
<P.MAYER1> allowing them to write about shareware. One step at a time, we
<P.MAYER1> have to walk before we can run. The reviews and stories are
<P.MAYER1> getting better, bigger and more plentyful with each new issue. I
<P.MAYER1> think that we've made major strides in this area and look for
<P.MAYER1> improvements as time goes on. Was that 4? GA
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> Nope, one left. Is there a risk with a 900-line to turn down many
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> potential customers ? (I know you've had some experience with this tech support
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> medium).
<P.MAYER1> I'm not really sure yet. It's been about a year now and working out
pretty
<P.MAYER1> good. I do offer free support by mail, CIS, GEnie and FAx though
for those
<[Joni] NASS> nd excellent dark room gal, etc.
<P.MAYER1> that don't want to pay. The 900 service also has two other
<P.MAYER1> options, a $50 per year or a credit card as you go plan on a regular
<P.MAYER1> line. I've had a few complaints but after answering their letters
<P.MAYER1> they understood how it helps keep the prices down.
<P.MAYER1> The best part is that it's given me time to get back to
<P.MAYER1> writing code again. <grin> Ok, we have Joni and J.Rigdon still
waiting.
<P.MAYER1> Ok on to J.Rigdon.
<J.RIGDON> I forgot my question. Just a couple of comments. I started last
August mailing bi-weekly
<J.RIGDON> letters / press releases to about 200 media writers / reporters. In 6 months I received 5 reviews
<J.RIGDON> which I couldn't have bought for 100 times the $300 i spent on postage.
<J.RIGDON> It was a slow process, but is paying off for me BIG!
<P.MAYER1> You're darn right, reviews and press release mentions are better than
<P.MAYER1> any paid advertising. When it comes from a reputable
<J.RIGDON> I also started a series of freelance articles target to my
industries and several have been accepted for regular features.
<P.MAYER1> source (eg. PC Magazine, PC World, etc) it's a lot different tha
<P.MAYER1> you telling how good a product you have.
<J.RIGDON> besides your payroll, what other kinds of products to you have?
<P.MAYER1> I've got GRAB Plus and WinGRAB which is the envelope addressor
<P.MAYER1> and database systems, 4Shell which runs a popular DOS program
<P.MAYER1> called 4Print and 4Book in Windows and ZK-Shell which runs Eric
Isaacson's
<J.RIGDON> How are your Windows registrations compared to DOS?
<P.MAYER1> ZIPKEY in Windows. I started today on the Windows version of the
payroll package. That's going to be a major piece. And just finished last month
<P.MAYER1> on a custom version of the payroll for the TraveLodge hotel/motel
<P.MAYER1> chain. ZPAY is now the official payroll for
TraveLodge. GA
P.MAYER1> Is that all J?
<J.RIGDON> thanx. I think I've seen several of your packages. I'm bout ready
to go myself... Keep on DREAMing...
<[Janet] J.ATTARD> Nite John Thanks for coming
<[Louis-Eric] L.SIMARD> Paul: your help is really appreciated. Thanks again !
<P.MAYER1> Ok folks, let's call it a day! Thanks to all for showing up and let's plan on the fourth Wednesday of next month for the next one. Good night
all!
<[Janet] J.ATTARD> Paul, thanks so much for being here tonight!
