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Is it just me?

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Is it just me?
I have only bought a paid links product from GT so far and I am looking to upgrade to SQL, sometime later.

I have been frequenting here since 99. I have seen GT grow and introduce new products. While GT products are very good, I have a feeling that with new updates and introductions GT has moved away from it's core userbase (mostly small webmasters like me). While I believe the new products command the pricing (meaning there are people willing to pay) I think they are far expensive for small sites. What made GT great was Links2.0 and DBman, which most webmasters could afford to buy without giving much thought - not to mention all the free copies being used which only helped GT creat a userbase and added publicity. I do not think the products should be free. However, the recent GT products/versions are very expensive for small sites.

For example, GT forum is very good and I would love to buy it, but most of us have several other excellent choices from free to cheaper options. So, if GT had priced the forum to cost say $99-$150, I would have probably purchased it. This means a lot more people would have done so too and GT userbase would have expanded or stayed here rather than looking for other solutions. Similarly, the email software is excellent but there is no way most sites can afford to spend $650 because there is not much return on email. Email could be used for small businesses too and most small businesses will not spend $650 - again if this were priced at about $200-$250 and with special licensing arrangements for web hostong companies, this would have/or would explode. So on and so forth.

Maybe, GT wants a limited userbase and in that case it is fine but if not, simple economics and all the facts mentioned above tell that GT can make more profits, genereate more visibility, by bringing the price point lower and expanding the userbase rather than shriking it. I may be wrong and GT may be happy with their current plan and sales. However, I thought I would comment based on my business experience. As much as I would like to go GT all the way, I just cannot do so knowing that I have other affordable options albeit the quality may not be as great in some situations. Just my opinion, that's what I think - what do other longtime users have to say?
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Re: [socrates] Is it just me? In reply to
Hi

As a buyer who as puchased Gorum, Links SQL and Gmail i have had them over 6 months and am just starting to use them. Regarding prices i think they are charged correctly after all the Gteam needs there cut after all they provide great programs and upgrades plus are on hand anytime you need them, to me having my posts / support questions answered within half an hour from my post entered is worth the amount i paid for the scripts alone.

I just had a clone of getresponse.com done and it cost me $1350 and is full of holes, if i had knew about there autorespod program before hand i would of waited but who cares i will still buy.

I would not worry much about prices after all you get a great product and suppior service for noting, in my eyes.

Just my 2 cents (stupid EURO money)

Kirk


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Life isn't like a box of chocolates ... it's more like a jar of jalapenos. What you do today might burn your ass tomorrow.

Last edited by:

mekro: Mar 22, 2002, 2:58 PM
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Re: [socrates] Is it just me? In reply to
Hi,

Thanks for the feedback! I'll try to address some of your pricing concerns.

Gossamer Forum is released under the same terms as Links 2.0, meaning it is free for individual or non profit users (providing you keep a link back to us -- something paid users don't have to do). We went this route as we didn't want to alienate our existing Links 2 and DBMan users, while still being able to offer a quality forum. For commercial users, $200 is close to what you'll find from other sites, and you get a product backed by a solid company (we now employ 15 people, 12 of which are in development).

Gossamer Mail is more expensive because it is a much more powerful program. It's been designed with very large numbers of users in mind, and most sites that would really make use of it would have a very large member base. It also requires considerably more support then our other scripts due to the integration with email (and the number of different ways you can set it up, and the number of different email server out there). That's also one of the reasons the AutoResponder is priced where it is. We are still considering offering a scaled down version of Gossamer Mail (i.e. no admin area, but only a gateway to existing pop accounts) at a reduced price.

We've tried to maintain a balance of price ranges for our products. With the exception of Gossamer Mail, we haven't raised our prices in 5 years, and have yet to charge anyone for any upgrades.

I do recognize that purchasing a suite of products is out of the budget for a lot of sites, and this is something we would like to address.

Let me know if you have any questions,

Cheers,

Alex
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Gossamer Threads Inc.
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Re: [Alex] Is it just me? In reply to
Yes, I agree. I am not complaining or anything but I wanted provide some of my thoughts from the business standpoint and knowing who most of the GT users are (agian, this may have taken a new turn in recent times). There is no question, the products are very good. My wish is to be able to buy them for the site, be able to justify the spending and make a profit and I thought/think most GT users are in the same boat. But hey, there is always a compromise and I agree you get what you pay for in most cases. Even if I buy some other products I might consider upgrading later to GT but I was commenting more from the initial investment standpoint. Either way, I hope our comments are beneficial to both GT and other users.