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mike-ferenduros / ChunkyTNG-issues

Issues-only repo for ChunkyTNG project
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Pick a payment model #32

Open mike-ferenduros opened 6 years ago

mike-ferenduros commented 6 years ago

Pick a payment model, implement it.

Paid upfront

Super-duper easy to implement + manage High chance of buyer's remorse - app will not suit a lot of users at all, and they'll have to pay to discover that Initial growth will likely be sloooooooooooow

Free-with-IAP

Tough to pick features to make pro-only - cosmetic / peripheral stuff, large pieces of functionality, or numerical limits on (eg) sync folders? Some chance of buyer's remorse - users frequently upgrade in Chunky 1 in the vague hope that it'll make feature work differently or better, others upgrade but then don't know what they actually unlocked. It's kinda aggravating doing support for entitled cheapskates Worked out great for Chunky 1

Ad-supported with IAP

Ad revenue unlikely to be significant, so ads would function mainly to drive users to upgrade Don't need to remove any features, so minimal chance of buyer's remorse Won't save me the annoyance of supporting entitled cheapskates I really don't want ad-network SDKs in my address-space

Subscription with free trial

Minimises chances of buyer's remorse Apple takes a smaller cut of sub renewals. Equitable... if I don't keep users happy they can stop paying me, and am motivated to make free-trial users happy No-one likes the feeling that they're only renting software Kinda painful to implement - will I need a limited 'lapsed sub' mode that (eg) lets you download but not sync?

Transfer upgrades from Chunky 1?

Mechanism is already in place to transfer a Chunky 1 upgrade to TNG running on the same iPad, after which they can restore their purchase to other devices. Too easy to accidentally pay for the full upgrade, which will probably generate more angry feedback than having no transfer at all. Works by unlocking a free or reduced IAP, so not compatible with paid-upfront model

stephenegriffin commented 6 years ago

My random thoughts: Paid up front or free limited with IAP are my favorite choices here. I'm not a big fan of subscription models, though I do understand the ongoing revenue can make it easier for you to justify spending time on the project. Perhaps if the subscription price were on the low end I might be happier with it.

I totally agree with wanting to avoid ads - so many ad networks are just virus vectors right now.

I would be totally cool with not transferring the upgrade from Chunky 1. Chunky 1 works VERY well for what it is. TNG is a new thing.

Free/limited/trial notions: Only allow X downloads at a time. Only allow X downloads ever. Only allow the first X pages of a book.

The last may be the best option - I could see that the app can connect to the servers I need it to connect to, that it can open the books I need it to open, that it does layout and page turn correctly, etc. Once I'm satisfied with all that, I'd be ready to upgrade to the full app without buyers remorse.

mike-ferenduros commented 6 years ago

I like that last idea, but if I do go with free+IAP I'd want the app to be usable as a reader. One option would be to ship with dropbox etc working normally, but the 'pro' server types (SFTP, OPDS, chunkyserver) stuck in first-N-pages mode.

claym commented 6 years ago

perhaps the option of IAP, low monthly sub, or one time purchase?

Best of all worlds!