Do I like jugaad? I do.
Hey,
It's been a long-time since I sent a newsletter. You doing well?
I need you to be well so that you can read my story that follows here. :p
It started with a conversation. Yes, all stories begin somewhere within a conversation. And this came up during a chat.
A friend, let's call her Mae. Mae was looking for something that could add a paywall to her articles. Something similar to Medium, you know. Read 3-5 articles for free, and pay for the rest.
She wanted a tool that could enable such a system.
I didn't know any. So, we brainstormed a few workarounds. Start a paid Substack - Sell paid articles as ebooks on Gumroad - Set up a paid membership tier on Buy Me a Coffee.
Next came the pricing.
She said she knows people can pay. So, she can charge a premium.
But there I had a doubt.
I mean, yes, people can pay. Her target audience is well-to-do. But "will" they pay?
You see, the Indian market is the hardest to sell. I've tried. And they aren't the most supportive.
That includes me too. 👀
If I find a jugaad to get a paid product for free, I will go for it. Once I spent 3 days looking for a book PDF online for free. Did I find it? :p
I look for lifetime deals every time I like any subscription software.
I check multiple online stores for books if I don't find the price on a website satisfactory. Oh, I love hoarding books. And if mom didn't scold me already, I'd have a room full of books today. Not shelves full, a room full.
Oh, here's something I made:
OK, yeah. I look for cheap(est) prices. And I guess you, too, will look for an alternate source instead of reading a paid article.
So, that idea with Mae is still in discussion. Will find a proper working solution someday.
But soon after the chat, I realised recently I bought a book without comparing prices. So, what exactly happened there? Why I bought the book?
The answer came out to be EASE OF ORDER.
And that takes me to another incident. 🙈
A few months ago, I watched a few episodes of Tokyo Ghoul... a Japanese manga series. Didn't like that web series much, but it got me interested in manga comics.
I browsed Amazon for good comics. There were too many suggestions, with each comic released in multiple volumes.
Researching and finding the best-suited one would have taken me weeks. So, I dropped the idea.
Now, a few days ago, one of the book shops I buy from, posted a WhatsApp status that they stocked manga comics. There were only four titles to choose from.
I read about each title online. And ordered one from that shop. I don't know whether it would be a good comic, but it's a starting point.
That shop reduced my choices to a manageable number, and I could order right away with a quick message.
So, I ordered.
And that's it. That's the story.
Should I end with a moral?
OK.
Moral:
Don't perplex your client/customer with too many options. Show them everything if you want to, but then also suggest what you think would be the best for them. They'll most probably go with that option. Else, they'll take time off to "considering" your options. And that's indirectly saying, "We'll get back to you (if we don't find someone better than you)." 😆
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