astrofish
09-05-2003, 02:52 AM
Hi all,
My name is Steve Baines - I tend to use the name astrofish on forums - if any of you hang around on the www.cgtalk.com computer graphics forums then you may have encountered me before.
First thing I'd like to say is a BIG thank-you to Steve Pavlina for his articles. I discovered these two days ago, and I think that it's safe to say that they have caused a fundamental change in my attitude. (I've made a donation - the articles are worth every penny/cent).
I'm a 32 year old Electronics Engineer, working in R&D for a large telecommunications equipment manufacturer.
For as long as I can remember I've been interested in coding, computer graphics, and computer games as hobbies. For too long I put my efforts into trying to develop an overly complex game engine, which of course never got finished. I eventually chose to abandon it as I realised that it was never going to be finished, and my interests were shifting away from pure game engine design, and into wider areas anyway.
Since then, I've been playing with various graphics apps, whilst trying to improve my artistic abilities, and have settled on Cinema4D as my main 3D app. I have written a couple of plugins for it which I am selling. I know that the plugins are useful (I use them all the time), and both have sold, but in low numbers (and most of those in the first week or two after I announced them). What feedback I have received about them has been very positive, however. Now, I know I'm in a niche market with those products (Only Cinema4D owners have any use for them), but even so, I expected more sales.
Prior to reading Steve's articles, my attitude was that I was disappointed that the sales were fairly poor, but thought that all I could do was press on and hope the next ones sell better.
The first article of Steve's that I read was 'Shareware Amateurs vs. Shareware Professionals', and I was forced to admit that I fell much more into the amateur category than the pro category. I had basically assumed that I had no control over how many copies I would sell, beyond the quality of the software itself. Steve's article demonstrated with great clarity why this is flawed logic. In retrospect, it seems obvious, but most of the really great advice in life is, but you still need it pointing out to you sometimes.
I have since read all of the other articles, and found good information and new ideas in all of them.
As a result, I am rethinking my approach. I realise now that I am guilty of many of the faults described in Steve's articles, and have determined to fix them. No longer will I have large numbers of projects on the go at once. No longer will I make notes on random pieces of paper that I can never find. No longer will I assume that my sales are entirely down to the quality of the software. From now on, I'm going to take a much more professional approach to my development.
I have now signed up for an evening class in setting up and running a business (something I'd been meaning to do for ages, but never got around to), bought myself a some much needed filing equipment, and set myself the short-term tasks of:
1. Turning my computer room into a place where I can actually find things.
2. Reworking my website to make it more professional, easier to navigate, and easier to order from.
3. Improving my product descriptions to make it clearer what they do and why that's good for you.
4. Deciding which of my many projects I'm actually going to concentrate on and finish next.
5. Drawing up a plan to end of year.
And you know what? I'm feeling more successful already. Thanks again Steve.
Cheers - Steve Baines (Astrofish)
My name is Steve Baines - I tend to use the name astrofish on forums - if any of you hang around on the www.cgtalk.com computer graphics forums then you may have encountered me before.
First thing I'd like to say is a BIG thank-you to Steve Pavlina for his articles. I discovered these two days ago, and I think that it's safe to say that they have caused a fundamental change in my attitude. (I've made a donation - the articles are worth every penny/cent).
I'm a 32 year old Electronics Engineer, working in R&D for a large telecommunications equipment manufacturer.
For as long as I can remember I've been interested in coding, computer graphics, and computer games as hobbies. For too long I put my efforts into trying to develop an overly complex game engine, which of course never got finished. I eventually chose to abandon it as I realised that it was never going to be finished, and my interests were shifting away from pure game engine design, and into wider areas anyway.
Since then, I've been playing with various graphics apps, whilst trying to improve my artistic abilities, and have settled on Cinema4D as my main 3D app. I have written a couple of plugins for it which I am selling. I know that the plugins are useful (I use them all the time), and both have sold, but in low numbers (and most of those in the first week or two after I announced them). What feedback I have received about them has been very positive, however. Now, I know I'm in a niche market with those products (Only Cinema4D owners have any use for them), but even so, I expected more sales.
Prior to reading Steve's articles, my attitude was that I was disappointed that the sales were fairly poor, but thought that all I could do was press on and hope the next ones sell better.
The first article of Steve's that I read was 'Shareware Amateurs vs. Shareware Professionals', and I was forced to admit that I fell much more into the amateur category than the pro category. I had basically assumed that I had no control over how many copies I would sell, beyond the quality of the software itself. Steve's article demonstrated with great clarity why this is flawed logic. In retrospect, it seems obvious, but most of the really great advice in life is, but you still need it pointing out to you sometimes.
I have since read all of the other articles, and found good information and new ideas in all of them.
As a result, I am rethinking my approach. I realise now that I am guilty of many of the faults described in Steve's articles, and have determined to fix them. No longer will I have large numbers of projects on the go at once. No longer will I make notes on random pieces of paper that I can never find. No longer will I assume that my sales are entirely down to the quality of the software. From now on, I'm going to take a much more professional approach to my development.
I have now signed up for an evening class in setting up and running a business (something I'd been meaning to do for ages, but never got around to), bought myself a some much needed filing equipment, and set myself the short-term tasks of:
1. Turning my computer room into a place where I can actually find things.
2. Reworking my website to make it more professional, easier to navigate, and easier to order from.
3. Improving my product descriptions to make it clearer what they do and why that's good for you.
4. Deciding which of my many projects I'm actually going to concentrate on and finish next.
5. Drawing up a plan to end of year.
And you know what? I'm feeling more successful already. Thanks again Steve.
Cheers - Steve Baines (Astrofish)