Free...sorta...
Has anyone else noticed that the definition of the word “free” seems to be undergoing some reshaping lately? I got an email today proudly presenting me “free” software. The software sounded interesting, so being the geek that I am I went to check it out.
I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised that the software is a “free 15-day trial” of an application. Once the 15 days are up, of course, they’re going to make me a heck of a deal to buy the full version. Wow, how lucky can a geek get?!?
At least this one is a single payment after the 15 days are up. I recently received a “free” marketing book from a big-time marketer who shall remain nameless. The “free” book only cost me $7.95 for shipping and handling. What “free” means in this case is that the marketer only made a couple bucks’ profit on each book.
That wasn’t what I found annoying. That particular ploy has been going on for years. “I’ll send you this valuable CD/book/whatever FREE! You just pay a nominal fee to cover shipping and handling!” Okay, we all know that game and we go along with it because, hey, $7.95 for an actual printed book isn’t such a bad deal and we’ll overlook the “free” thing.
I got the book and saw the “BONUS! Money-making software included free!” alert on the cover. “Cool, free software!” thought I. So, I looked in the back of the book to see what the free software was and where to download it.
I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised that the “free software” is actually a 30-day trial of an online service run by said big time marketer that features all kinds of marketing advice and wisdom. That’s apparently the money-making part of the equation. I pay to access all this great content and the marketer makes money.
“So, what happens after the 30 days are up?” I hear you asking.
Good question. If I decide to continue accessing the service, it’s a mere $39.95 per month! And I didn’t think it could get any better than the “free” book!
For the record, I’ve actually used this service during its beta stage and there is software involved. There’s a little application that you download to your machine that puts a streaming bar across the top of your screen. You click on things you see that look interesting and it opens your web browser and takes you to the site where you can access the article or whatever.
Is it worth $39.95 per month? Not to me, but others apparently think so.
My issue is not with the service. However, I find it disingenuous at best to trumpet something as “free” when it’s going to end up costing me 40 bucks a month. Call it what it is: a “free 30-day trial.” Don’t tell me it’s “free software” when it’s clearly not.
Marketers have a bad enough reputation as it is. We don’t need further fuel for that fire. I have no problem with enthusiasm for a product, but let’s not be reinventing the language to suit our own agendas.
John The Geek
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Here’s an interesting question about headers that I’m sure a lot of people have:
I have downloaded many headers to use in my graphic designs for websites. Many of them already have text on them telling me where to put “my slogan” and “my website name”…[how do I] eliminate the instruction text on the headers?
The headers are probably in PDS (Photoshop) format. As such, they are layered. The text in question is contained in one or more layers. You simply need software that understands layers.
There is a freeware package called The GIMP (Graphic Image Manipulation Package) that does anything and everything you’d ever want to do with graphics, including Photoshop graphics. There are
tutorials out there, also free, and it will be a rather steep learning curve, but well worth it if you plan to do much graphics editing.
Another possibility is Serif’s PhotoPlus, which is what I use. You can download a free version at:
http://freeserifsoftware.com
I don’t know if the free version can work with Photoshop layers, but the paid version definitely does. I have the paid versions of most of Serif’s applications and I’ve been very happy with them.
No matter which software you use, the procedure is the same:
- Remove the layer that contains the sample text
- Create a new layer that contains the text you want
- Position the layer over the graphic so the text appears where you want it
- Export the entire image as a .jpg or .png or whatever you want to use
for your site header.
The details of how to do the above steps will vary according to which software you end up using, but it should be fairly straightforward in any case.
John The Geek
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I recently launched a new online business technical training site after a pre-launch period of about three weeks. During that period I did some promotion of the site and had a form on the landing page to collect names and email addresses of those interested in knowing when the site went live.
A total of 78 people opted in and when the site went live, of course, I emailed those folks to let them know. One of those people turned out to be a fellow marketer living about 40 minutes from me. She emailed me to let me know that a few days prior to the site launch.
Launch day came and I got another email from her saying how she was sorry, but she “couldn’t afford [my] prices” and she wouldn’t be signing up for the site. She then went into a long dissertation about how she had to be very careful how she spent her money and how there are lots of scam artists out there and that she had the perfect plan for making her fortune on the Internet.
You ready? Here’s the plan:
- Put up a squeeze page and collect a bunch of names and emails
- Get those people to trust her
- Join an affiliate program and sell the product to her list
Here I’d been working my tail off for almost two years to get this Internet marketing thing figured out and she had it down to three simple steps! Who knew?!?
Obviously, she left out a few details in the master plan, like how she was going to get people to visit her squeeze page and leave their contact info so that she could then convince them she was trustworthy. I wrote back to her and told her that if she already knew how to put up a squeeze page and drive traffic to it she didn’t need my training anyway. I wondered what had prompted her to sign up for my prenotification list in the first place, but decided not to ask.
I had previously asked her what she felt was a reasonable price for online business technical training, but never got an answer. I felt (and still do) the charter membership rate was very reasonable, maybe even too reasonable, but it’s all in the eye of the beholder. I restrained myself from asking her how she expected to build an online business with a mindset that was afraid to spend a few dollars a month for training, but since she apparently doesn’t need training, the point is moot anyway.
The point of this is that I can recall when I first started out and the idea of committing to spending more than a few bucks a month was a little scary. The reason it was scary was that I didn’t know if I was going to generate enough revenue to cover it.
That can be a big hurdle for people to get over. It often entails being willing to go ahead and commit to the monthly expense and trusting that the investment will help the business generate the necessary revenue. It also requires some patience as the cash flow may not increase dramatically, but slowly over time.
The key is to make the commitment and put in the required effort. If it doesn’t pay off, you’ll have learned something and you can go on to the next thing. Chances are, however, if you give it sufficient time to work, the results will be well worth the investment.
John The Geek
