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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Rechan" data-source="post: 5188059" data-attributes="member: 54846">It's been <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/276741-modules-turns-out-apparently-do-sell.html" target="_blank">well dissected</a> that Paizo and WotC are two very different beasts, especially when it comes to adventure writing.Paizo:Smaller, dedicated fanbase.Online focused model (Subscription based, strong PDFs)Extensive customer service.Staff dedicated to interacting with fans and responding on the internet. Talented staff with lots of resources on module writing. Weight of Dungeon and Dragon magazines as reputation.Fewer staff.WotCLargest RPG company.Dead-tree focused. Resources put all over the place (D&D rules, boardgames, M:tG)Saying that Paizo doesn't charge much for a module means that WotC doesn't need to charge much is just not a fair comparison. WotC has to appeal to a wider audience, newbies and people who do not use the Internet at all. Their modules need to stay in print longer and sit on the shelves at FLGSs. WotC is the largest gaming company and thus, for a product to break even or be profitable, it must sell many more units than a Paizo module to be considered a success. By Paizo's modules being in PFRPG rather than the broader 3.5, they've ensured that fewer people are going to buy their modules, so they have designed their business strategy around that. Cultivate a loyal fanbase and keep getting them to buy, vs WotC's business model 'throw it out there and get the most to buy it as possible'. In the link I provided above, someone gave a quote from an FLGS owner in how he doesn't sell Paizo products because Paizo offers so many incentives for customers to buy online, compared to WotC who does free events at FLGSes and otherwise tosses support to the FLGS. Not only does WotC expect more, but they've been given less room to work with; the new module (HS1) is 36 pages! In the thread "Help WotC make Better Modules", it was stated that 36 is the new limit for WotC modules. Considering the amount of detail and effort and re-writing 4 times folks want, you just cannot churn out gold in 36 pages and expect it facilitating everyone.There is way more going on than just "What people will pay for a module". Brand loyalty and yes, edition. But also, I suspect that people who buy Paizo modules may very well be different kinds of gamers, different people, compared to those who are going to buy a WotC module.  Simply put, Paizo is the best of the best, and saying "Well I expect everyone to operate on the bar set by the best" isn't a fair expectation. Nor is "I expect the biggest gaming company's prices to compare to a small third party company's".</blockquote>

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