Sell Software
No matter how skilled or innovative a programmer you are, you need to find customers in order to make money from your programs. Understand how to sell software, whether it's selling some already-made software to those who want it, or finding a niche market with a software need that you can fill.
Contents
Steps
Sell Already-Made Software
- Determine what problem your software solves or what else makes it worth buying. It could be a RPG (Role Playing Game) for a smartphone, a simple spreadsheet program without all the popular bells and whistles, or some other type of program.
- If you created the software, check the Terms of Service for any place that you have already uploaded the software or registered it for sale, to make sure you still have the rights to sell the software.
- If you bought resell rights for the software, read the fine print to make sure you know all the rights and limitations involved in selling the software.
- Figure out who would be interested in your product. A quest game fan with a smartphone might like your RPG. Meanwhile, a small business owner who just wants to keep track of earnings might prefer a simple spreadsheet without all the bells and whistles that can bog down mainstream spreadsheet programs.
- Build a marketing plan that targets your intended audience. Are there websites that audience frequents that might let you guest post, or reviewers who focus on your type of software?.
- Evaluate your market. Know how much competition is out there for your software and learn what the competition charges.
- If there is no competition on your chosen platform, evaluate how much comparable software costs on any platform, if it exists.
- If your program is effectively a simplified version of another program, consider the prices of those more advanced options when pricing your product.
- Consider how you want to host the file when selling your software. Do you want to sell your software from your own website, which will develop large bandwidth requirements if your program gets popular? Or would you rather use another site to host your software for download, which can irritate some buyers?
- Set up a website and cart for selling your software by download, and possibly also by CD.
- Go live and follow your marketing plan to sell your software.
Plan Software to Sell
- Evaluate your target market. Who is it, and what do they want, need, or lack?
- Develop a marketing plan for that market, its audience, and the gap you'll be filling.
- Create software or get resell rights to software that meets that gap in the market.
- Set up your online store.
- Test your online store, then go live.
Tips
- Use competitors' prices as a guideline, not an end-all. Also consider how they compare in appearance and quality. Every market has its cheap, mid-range, and high-end programs. Free Open Source versions exist for many types of software, but companies still make money selling their versions.
Warnings
- Always read the T.o.S (Terms of Service) for anything you use in connection with selling your software. That includes the rights taken by a blog that lets you guest post, and the details of your agreement with your shopping cart software. Some companies' T.o.S include clauses that take all rights to whatever you submit through them, making it illegal for you to switch what companies you use for that service, while letting the company resell your product without paying you.
