Opinions needed on advertisments...

[Bloodstone Press]

I think it is fine as long as it is done modestly. The main reason I do it is, as you said, piracy. I figure there are people downloading my books who may not have been to my web site or researched my material. People will take whatever they can get for free.

So I figure a pirate may download one of my books, like it, and see the ads in the back for some other books (that he hopefully can't pirate anywhere) and buy them.....

Damn that sounds like stupid wishful thinking when I say it out loud..... Pirates are pirates, after all.

I also do it to help create awareness. There are so many d20 PDF products out there that its likely someone buying one of your books doesn't know about your other titles.

I have head one person say that they hate ads in the back so much that they delete those pages and vow to never buy another book from the offending publisher ever again.

That seems rather short sighted and unfortunate to me, but you can't please everyone.

 

[Elephant]

I hate the idea. Ads are depressingly ubiquitous in our society, and I really don't appreciate them being added to books that I purchase, be they print or PDF. How long will it be before most RPG books, both print and PDF, look like magazines with numerous interstitial ads? That would be the logical (and repugnant) next step.

 

[Sledge]

I think that it would be better as a brief text bit on each book. Multiple pages for even a 32 page pdf is a fair portion. Stick to one page of text. Stay away from anything garish. Also be sure to mention that the PDF in question is a commercial product. Without a clear statement as such the ads may make the pdf look even more like a demo/freebie. There are a lot of pdfs like that out there. A 32 page pdf with really only 28-30 pages is still quite small. I have several free books that outsize it.
(check out RPGnow! for the results of some interesting poll questions regarding pdfs)

 

[Swiftbrook]

As a consumer, I have no problem with ads in the back of a PDF as long as:

a) They aren't counted in the page count {snip}
b) They don't have to be printed {snip}
c) I don't think they should up the filesize very much. {snip}

jtb

I agree with these sentimates, but I voted that I didn't like the idea because the truth of the matter is that a, b, and c don't matter, $$$$$ matters. If PDF product A sells 250 copies and makes the owner after art, selling, etc. costs $250, an ad in the back sold for $25 increases his profit by 10%. You can't walk away from that. But once the ads start going into the PDFs (and they already have), they'll start to show up not only in the back -- "inside front cover", between chapters 3 and 4 -- with publishers saying "you don't have to print them".

Ya, I'm down on it because it's going to happen (is happening) and there really is nothing I can do about it. If it's a good product, I'm still going to buy it .... after 3 to 6 months when it's on sale

-Swiftbrook

 

[mroberon1972]

But once the ads start going into the PDFs (and they already have), they'll start to show up not only in the back -- "inside front cover", between chapters 3 and 4 -- with publishers saying "you don't have to print them".

Umn... No. No. Never. Will not do that. Period. I don't publish magazines...

If it's a good product, I'm still going to buy it .... after 3 to 6 months when it's on sale.

Heck... Even I do that!

 

[TheAuldGrump]

I wouldn't mind as long as I didn't have to print them.

Also, making the ads topical to the product is a good idea. If you are producing a book of new weapons an advertisement for a book of combat feats might well compliment the content.

Advertising other companies thematically linked products on an exchange basis might not be bad either.

But yeah, do not count the advertising toward page count. (I recently looked at a print (non-gaming) book that was selling for the usual $7, but half the book was advertising for the authors other works! (They had printed a few short stories and a whole bunch of excerpts...) Needless to say, though I like the author I did not buy this book.

 

[mroberon1972]

Good idea!

If I release a book on modern military classes (nope, I'm not) it would be a cool idea to have ads for a fellow publisher's gun book or miltary vehicle book...

Works for me...

 

[RCanning]

The reason? Piracy. If I add an advertisment to the back, I would like to think that some of those downloading would purchase the book. I think that many downloading such PDFs may not even know that RPGNow exists in some cases.

This is as good a reason I would think of for including adds in the back of the book. I know that I have a tendancy not to print them, unless they fit nicely on a duplex print in which case I don't care.

What I would like to see more of however is Previews of other materials being included in the zip files that are purchased. For example, you purcase an adventure, and in there is another pdf with some details of the other scenarios by the same publisher. As long as the samples did not add too much to the file size (though it would not bother me), I think this would be a good way of people spreading the word.

Richard Canning

 

[WCrawford]

Hmnnn... 2 say they will never buy one, and another 5 hate the idea...

Could those of you who feel this way speak on this. I want to hear your opinions as well. Speak about it and why it's so offensive. Perhaps I can make allowances to satisfy you as well...

I know I can't make everyone happy, but I would like to try...

I'm one of those that would never knowingly purchase a PDF with an advertisement. I'll even go the extra step and say that I would not purchase future products from a company that put advertisements in their PDFs.

My reasons are simple. I'm bombarded people wanting to sell me every single type of crap on the market... from penis enlargement, to viagra, to tampons (and I'm a guy), to exercise equipment, to you name it. Its a constant buzz of buy this buy that. I absolutely hate it. Advertisements turn me off.

For RPG products, I buy based on word of mouth or reviews. I learn about products through word of mouth, reviews, or the publishers catalogs.

 

[mroberon1972]

I'm one of those that would never knowingly purchase a PDF with an advertisement. I'll even go the extra step and say that I would not purchase future products from a company that put advertisements in their PDFs.

My reasons are simple. I'm bombarded people wanting to sell me every single type of crap on the market... from penis enlargement, to viagra, to tampons (and I'm a guy), to exercise equipment, to you name it. Its a constant buzz of buy this buy that. I absolutely hate it. Advertisements turn me off.

For RPG products, I buy based on word of mouth or reviews. I learn about products through word of mouth, reviews, or the publishers catalogs.

Well, I can (sort of) understand your stand. I will even support your right to your stand.

But I can't really see why you would be so sensitive to it, or why you would forgo a product you can use based on two unprinted sheets of digital paper in the back of a PDF.

I guess it's just like they say: You really can't make everyone happy...