A week and a half ago, I got an e-mail from a guy, who asked:
I am interested in using your study guides to work with a class in November. I am teaching a Technician class this time, although I am hoping to teach a General class in January.
I wish to purchase guides for all my students for this class and expect to have between 4 and 8 students in the November class. IF I use your .PDF version, printed here, what will be the cost for these licenses?
I wrote back:
Why print your own copies? I’ll sell you as few or as many of the print versions as you like for $10 each.
To which, he replied:
I realize that. I was trying to save myself some money, as I am paying for these out of my own pocket for my students. I figured if I paid you the fee for them and printed them myself I would save $2.01 per copy. At this time I expect to have 4 students and I need a copy for myself, so I need at least 5 copies. I am semi-retired, so saving a little bit helps pay for the next piece of hardware for the shack.
I honestly didn’t believe this. This guy was going to go through all the trouble of printing and binding his own copies to save ten bucks. In my final message, I pointed out to him that, being a freelance writer, the study guides have become a substantial part of my income and that even at $10/copy, my study guides are cheaper than the ARRL or Gordon West study guides.
I also noted that I think it’s a mistake to pay for study guides himself. I’ve found that unless students put up a little money, then they don’t really value the class. That’s the reason I charge a $10 fee to attend my one-day Tech classes.
I never did hear back from the guy as to whether he wanted to go ahead and purchase the printed version at $10/copy. Maybe I insulted his frugal nature.
Wayne Boline says
I think you hit it right, there is a time to be frugal and a time to value convenience. I spent 23 years in the military and learned to be very financially efficient because there were some very lean times during those years. I used to change the oil in all my vehicles and even rotate the tires in the garage to save money. After I retired from the military and joined the civilian world and had a little more money to stretch my time and convenience took on new value. Going through all that work to save $2.01 a copy does not make a lot of sense, I like your approach of saving 100% per copy and charging the student $10 and getting them to put some skin in the game as you suggest. Produces a more engaged student. Good post.
Paul K9PLG says
Reminds me of a joke I overheard @ Dayton last year – “You know how copper wire was invented ? Two Hams fighting over a penny ! ”
I agree that the students should be responsible for the cost of the book. Folks seem to value something more if is not free – like books, education, etc…
Dave, N8SBE says
Pointing out to someone what your costs are, etc. means nothing to them. Marketing 101 says you need to convince them of the value proposition in what your are offering. You should be able to convince folks to pay *more* for your books because they are superior to anything out there, and therefore are a *steal* at the price you are offering them for. If you try to compete against the other books out there solely on price, you will lose. Don’t invite price comparisons. Focus on serving the customer with the best product possible (and toot your own horn about that), so they won’t even consider the alternatives. Also don’t waste time trying to sell to someone that isn’t really your customer.
Dan KB6NU says
All good points. In general, I don’t mention that mine are the least expensive–because they’re not really. They cost less than the ARRL and the Gordon West study guides, but there are others that cost less. My selling proposition is that my study guides are clearly written and to the point, i.e. no nonsense!
The guy still hasn’t gotten back to me. I guess he’s decided that his pride is worth more than offering his students a good deal on a good study guide. That, or he’s ripping me off, even as we speak.
Dave, N8SBE says
There was an interesting (at least to me) discussion on TOP (The Online Photographer) blog a few days ago, regarding book pricing. Follow this link http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2015/10/saturn-run-takes-off.html and read down in the comments section to the long comment posted by Ctein (one of the book authors). The salient portion is posted below:
“**On a tangent, because someone is bound to ask this: “Why do I have to pay so much for any book like yours if it’s so cheap to produce?” Answer: because as with any piece of art (written with a very small a), you are not paying for the material cost, you’re paying for the experience and enjoyment you get. The stuff has no intrinsic value.
The more the buyer values the experience, the more they are willing to pay. Some musicians can get $200 a ticket. Some can only get 20. The ones who get $200 don’t work 10 times as hard and don’t have to have 10 times the overhead (although they might choose to). The author who gets a five-figure contract does not have 1% of the “production costs” that John and I do. My darkroom photographic prints were considerably more expensive and took considerably longer to make than Ansel Adams’ did. By the manufacturing-cost argument, he should not command prices 10-100 times higher than mine; mine should be higher than his.”
Frank says
I think you’re missing something. Most people, including hams, are not solo artists. They have families. There is a perception, created from very common behavior, that ham radio operators spend a lot of money, and isolate themselves from their families. Let’s face it, unless the entire family is licensed, there are few activities in ham radio that involve the family unit.
After a while, the money thing gets worked out – and most hams have found that as long as it APPEARS that they’re trying to save money, they don’t get as much scrutiny from the rest of the family.
This is the reason why so many products have an MSRP but are never sold at a price that high.
In some cases, it’s cultural…I worked in marketing for a major electronics company for 15 years, and learned that in some Asian countries, purchasing agents are paid on the basis of the discounts they get. If they buy $10 products for 40% off ($6), they get paid more than if they bought a different product with the same function for $5, but no discount.
Don’t immediately blame it on being a penny-pincher. He may simply be following the method that his family and he worked out to keep everybody satisfied that he’s conscious of the family needs.
However, I agree with you – when I’ve taught ham radio classes, I’ve never found a student who wouldn’t buy their own book.