Price of PDFs (Poll)

[Crothian]

I said $6. My rule of thumb is $1 per 10 pages, rounded down. 64 pages, $6 dollars.

That really breaks down with bigger products though. I've got a few that are easily over 200 pages and I would not pay close to tenty for them.

 

[DaveStebbins]

I buy more PDF products than print products these days. However, I would only pay more than $5 for a product if it hit an exact niche I was looking for, or if it was something I was interested in that got very good reviews (or good reviews which seem to show that the PDF meets well with what I want in a product).

But then, I'm a cheap SOB.

 

[mroberon1972]

But then, I'm a cheap SOB.

Nope, you're a possible customer.

 

[d20Dwarf]

This poll confirms what I think the real aim of pdfs should be. I've been considering releasing a series of small, ultra-low cost pdfs to see if it's true.

 

[TroyXavier]

Now I've only picked up 4 PDFs ever, as I much prefer hard copies. However, if one was dedicated to a topic I'm really interested in, I'd definitely pick up if the price was good.

 

[DaveStebbins]

This poll confirms what I think the real aim of pdfs should be. I've been considering releasing a series of small, ultra-low cost pdfs to see if it's true.

I think you've hit it. Phil Reed's small, single subject products are great. I'm much more likely to spend a buck or two on a short piece dealing with something that I'm specifically looking for than to dump a bunch of money on a product which may only have a few chapters of material I can use.

I hope more publishers use the PDF market for smaller, well-written items instead of trying to stuff them in as part of a bigger product to which they may only have tangential relevancy.

-Dave

 

[JoeBlank]

This poll confirms what I think the real aim of pdfs should be. I've been considering releasing a series of small, ultra-low cost pdfs to see if it's true.

I agree with Dave, you might be on to something here. I couldn't respond to the poll, because I would pay $8 for a pdf on a subject I found very interesting, and would probably want to see a few reviews of it first. But when you get below the $5 breakpoint, I would probably jump on it if seemed interesting, sight unseen.

Much cheaper than $5 and I am a sucker. The way I figure it, if it costs less than a fast food combo meal, I can't resist. I know I'm going to enjoy even an average pdf more than I would an average cheeseburger and fries.

 

[Nellisir]

That really breaks down with bigger products though. I've got a few that are easily over 200 pages and I would not pay close to tenty for them.

Yup. It's a guideline, not a strict rule -- and not one that even I follow very well.

For what it's worth, I've bought almost none of the super-short pdfs. It'd have to be over 10 pages to perk my interest. Paying a dollar for 4-5 pages gets you 20-25 pages for 5 dollars -- not a great deal for me.

Good if there's one or two you really want, but otherwise I'm waiting for the collected versions.

Cheers
Nell.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

I haven't bought any of the short PDFs either, I'd rather pay more and get a larger product. Hmmm, looking at the ones I use most frequently most have more than 100 pages. (With the exception of the old TSR Adventure Design Kit.) A few are over 200.

The Auld Grump

 

[philreed]

This poll confirms what I think the real aim of pdfs should be. I've been considering releasing a series of small, ultra-low cost pdfs to see if it's true.

It certainly seems to work. Try to plan a series of short PDFs so that you can later compile them. That way the people who only want one or two focused PDFs can buy those while the others looking for a larger PDF can purchase the compilation.