Biz

What do you do when you have a great product that is better than the competition, but your competitor has better marketing and makes more money? How do you find someone to handle business side of things once you develop a strong product? Any advice?

Software or other?

If it's software, give Indiepath an email, or there Gabriels submitting service (I think it submits to over 30 websites)... You could email a demo/link of your product to magazines, with the hope that they'll agree with you how good it is and showcase it on one of their cover discs!

Or there's Coders Workshop, they publish!

Just a few ideas

Dabz

I mean real companies.

The magazines idea is a good one.

You're worried about Constructor eh? Why don't you bring someone into your company to handle marketing. You need to have 3D World Studio/Cshop in schools, being used by engineering firms, and by game developers if you want to compete with that. You definitely need a full time person to get you ahead ... or you need to get someone to help you with development if the product is going to blow up. Why don't you search the for hire pages for a marketing guru?

Of course magazines are always good ... but that's really expensive without any hookups. If you're lucky you can find someone ... who knows a few people. That's what it's really about.

That's a bit harsh - Both Indiepath and Glimmer Games are extremely professional and offer a very good service and outlet to Independant programmers.

Yeah, but Coders Workshop? Come on. They couldn't hold market a cure for cancer if they had one.

Edit: Plus, I don't think Gab's service is for developers, but rather for marketing to players. Same seems to apply to Indiepath's IGB thing.

With that attitude I'm not surprised that your competitor has better marketing and makes more money. Alienating the people who could, perhaps, offer you a wealth of advice on software marketing matters is probably the best way to bury your product.

It depends. Do you want marketing, or just promotion? If it's the later, retain the services of a publicist.

Joseph Lieberman
http://www.vgsmart.com/

He obviously specializes in game promotion. But he might be able to do some good for 3D World Studio or recommend another who could.

Quit targeting kiddies and their gaming languages and silly 3D formats like DBO or B3D. Concentrate on supporting the formats and features needed in the professional 3D engines (whether its a Windows or Console capable engine) and target the professional 3D game development companies.

Your product and your talent has long surpassed the niche bedroom coder market. Its time to grow up and move on to the real world.

Kurnon, yeah, that is what I am trying to do. I have a few contacts I know in the real world, and I am putting the word out now that I am ready to deal.

Google bought sketchup, and they are promoting it really well.

i dunno... a lot of those bedroom coders are using tools like 3dsmax and are pumping out games that are appearing on xbox360 as well as win pcs... and they are selling as well...

and the b3D format is on of the better ones that i've seen so far... but still, there may be something to what Kuron says...

my suggestions...

1- change yourattitude towards your potential audience... that comment about 'real businesses' reveals an attitude that is sure to bury anything you come up with.

2- consider a dual tier product offering for 3dws... one tier and price point for indies and the so called 'kiddies', bedroom ocders, and the languages they use... the second tier aimed at a more formalized business entity...

3- if you're aiming at the big business market, you are gonna have to present a solid presence to them, most will not consider what looks like a one man company that can dissapear overnight.. they won't risk their time nor the expense of such a gamble...

4- lower the price for the low end indie market... 3DWS is not as feature rich as Valve Hammer... at least not yet anyways...


well, that's how i see it... good luck, you've worked hard on this, and it is a good product which deserves to capture a large share of the market... both of em...

--Mike

Thanks for the mention. We submit to well over 400 sites. It's a small part of the equation, but we like to think it's good value for less than $30.

As for Halo's question, what do you do? I'd say do everything you can to steal their thunder. Be aggressive, look at ways to out do them, and aim at their market. Then when they see all that "more money" they have invested in danger, they'll hopefully try to buy you out to eliminate the competition.

just as an example of glimmer games service, type "xmas bonus" with the quotation marks into google and see how many sites come up, most are due to Glimmer Games, some due to Reflexive and BFG. Try the same with Easter Bonus. prety effective hunh!

Also Indiepath is great, don't be rude unless you were just referring to Blitz Coder.

Anyway, another alternative. Ditch the product. Find a different tangible niche market, research it, make a product that people want, sell it, get rich.

Nice to hear from one of their satisfied customers. I might give them a try when my next project is finished.

You only have to sell two games (1.5) to make the money back, unless you're splitting the proceeds of course.

Well I guess you could try hiring a slick marketing person who knows the right people and is able to showcase your product at various places. Might be costly.

It would likely be released as freeware.

I don't know what formats the new 3D World Studio currently exports to, though there is a thread (and seems to be a lot of interest) about your product on the Beyond Virtual forums:

http://www.beyondvirtual.com/smf/index.php/topic,438.0.html

Just thought i would mention it.

cheers,
Lee.

Supported file formats:
http://www.leadwerks.com/index.php?page=fileformats.htm

Thanks for the link. We actually met the Beyond Virtual guys at the GDC. I ended up with a few of them drinking beer on the 20th floor of the Fairmont, at the GameSpot party, before they kicked us out.

.

Ask BRL.






/me runs

LOL