An Open Plea to Digital Resellers - Stop The Insanity
Well it happened again - and to say that I'm 'upset' would be a gigantic understatement, because I am pissed-off, BIG TIME!
So what is it that has me seeing red and snorting like a bull about to charge?
Yesterday I found a great new product with master resale rights that I wanted to add to my SBM Distributors website. So I shelled out the $67 that the product cost, with plans to add it to the site today.
Well guess what? I just received an email from someone who is selling that brand new product - that I spent a half a tank of gas money on - for 3 FLIPPIN' DOLLARS!
After I stopped pounding my head against my desk and uttering a few choice words that are not fit for a lady to hear, much less say, I remembered a small article that I had written last year when the same thing happened to me.
I feel the need to offer it here.
The Cheapening of Resale Rights Products
I usually reserve my "soapbox rants" for my husband's ears only - and he still loves me in spite of it.
But something is happening in the area of resale rights products that has me so disturbed that I feel something has to be said about it in public.
Two weeks ago I paid a good amount of money to purchase the master resale rights to a BRAND NEW product that had just been released. But since I was in the process of putting together a new resale rights package, I put the release of the new product on hold.
Wrong thing to do. Just a few minutes ago I saw that same product being offered for FREE in a jv giveaway!
Now I've got nothing against giveaways, I even participate in a few myself, but good grief people, at least let a brand new product stay on the seller's market for longer than 2 hours before you devalue it by offering a $97.00 product at $9.99 or even worse, GIVING IT AWAY!
There's nothing wrong with trying to sell a product a little cheaper than somebody else - but offering a NEW product for pennies on the dollar is, in my opinion, asinine - and in the long run cheapens the entire resale rights industry.
So my plea today is this - let's unite to bring a respectable "shelf life" back to resale rights products - before we kill the goose that laid the golden egg!
[iamsbm]
Sharon Bray-McPherson
NOTE: I think a lot of the blame for this practice began when eBay started permitting digital products to be listed for auctions or sale. And although I realize the recent ban on the sale of digital products hurt a lot resellers, perhaps it might help to bring some value back to digitals.
As one recent commenter stated, "The way I see it is that a LOT of folks will be looking elsewhere for digital products now that they can't get them on ebay. Good opportunity!".
As I mentioned in my article, a little healthy competition never hurts anybody - but this stupid bottom of the barrel price undercutting that we're now seeing puts profit into only one pocket - the original creator of the products.
Whether you agree or disagree with my rant your comments are welcomed and will be appreciated. And if you do agree, help spread the word by letting others know about this post.
Jan Tallent & Sharon Bray-McPherson
JanRon Publishing Digital Products
You can include a link to your website in your comment and it WILL be followed.
Labels: Articles, PLR, Resale Rights
12:34 PM Permalink
7 Comments
7 Comments:
Once again, you shout out about the problems many of us are fed up with!
I agree with you. It is ultimately frustrating to shell out some hard earned money for a product with resale rights, and turn around so soon to find it being given away.
Best hope may be to turn out your own products without rights.
I dunno...
Thanks, even for the rants!
Paul
You totally voiced out mine and I believe many others heart felt thoughts.
I have been busy repackaging and even rewriting many of my PLR stuff just to gain an edge over the competition. With PLR products at least, I can do this but with MRR products........ sheesh
I stopped buying MRR and RR products for some time now.
Thanks for voicing out what we feel
Damian
You know what is a joke as well? More then 50% of the RR and MRR have a specific pricing requirement indicated in the Terms for Resale.
Unless someone can come up with a piece of encoding that sends you an email indicating that someone is not following the rules, I would have to agree that Product Creators should just sell their product with no Resale Rights. Period.
I agree totally, Sharon. We both know a couple of bigger ticket items I jumped on because of their uniqueness and one that I was sure would really be "the one" that could get my digital business back in the limelight, only to find out that other affiliates ( who had to BUY to sell ) not only started promoting it before the "premiere" day but also sold it for 10% of the sale price that was recommended and it had not even been officially launched yet!
grrrrrrrrrrrr!
Jan
Thanks for the comments so far everybody. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one upset about this trend.
And Colleen, it is true that a lot of products have a license that states what the product can be sold for, however; once the creator or copyright holder of a product sells a resale license, they
legally cannot dictate what price to sell the product for.
In other words, they've essentially given up rights to the product other than the copyright. Although it is good practice and one that I always adhere to, to follow the creator's suggested pricing for a product.
When the concept of selling resale and master resale rights started, that's where the most profit came from, selling the rights to the product. You used the option to buy the "rights" to the product as an upsell or upgrade.
Unfortunately that's not the case anymore since people have begun including the resale rights with the product and selling everything for peanuts.
[iamsbm]
Sharon Bray-McPherson
Hi Sharon and all others who dare to venture within....
It's Pete here - your friendly Martian, currently hovering over The City of London in the UK. :)
I thought that I would share a little Martian thought or two, in respect of the last posting..
"An Open Plea to Digital Resellers - Stop The Insanity"
Albeit that I am from another planet, I can't help but sympathise with both the unfairness and the dilemma, that surrounds the question of resell rights.
Especially, those who would
choose to undermine the whole internet marketing process and, who through their ignorance and/or sheer greed - seek to get their hands on the silver coin - irespective of its final value!!
Alas, I feel that their is little that any one can do, to stem the tide of human greed and as such, therefore, any vain attempt to try to appeal to their better judgement and common sense, will fall on deaf ears and greedy ignorant minds.
Moreover, until such time as those that produce such products, GENUINELY place an embargo on the numbers that they distribute - which, in all honesty, they are just not going to do - as there motivation also, is just to sell as much today as possible and not to worry about tomorrow or their buying public.. then the whole system will remain flawed and unworkable!
Sales by such Earthlings, appears to me to be an absolute cut-throat business, that displays absolutely no reagard for those who genuinely buy such products, believing all the so called hype, that the material will be protected for those that BUY NOW....
and for those who come along at a later date, only to find themselves falling into the sam abyse of conship and distrust.
Call me naive or just plain jaundiced by the whole process, but it seems to someone like me, from Planet Mars, that until a genuine group of caring, sharing earthling adults, get together with the same motivation and endeavour, of wanting to earn an honest living, without selling their soul to the devil by conning other humans,....
Then alas, I fear it will remain to be ever so.
Because, all the time that those who nurture and maintain the mentality of:
Shaft-It-To-Everyone-You-Can (including your own mother)....
And who love and thrive on the 'dog eat dog' mentality of gutter entrepreneurship...
continue to prevail without challenge, then this whole process will remain and continue to damage the whole fraternity of trust, friendship, and supportive entrepreneurship.
What I feel, for what it is worth as a silly old Martian....
Is that what is required is for a group of like minded, honest internet marketers, irrespective of their personal marketing expertise and life experiences...
To put their own agendas to one side and, get together and pool their knowledge and expereinces to date, and find and develop A TOTALLY NEW WAY FORWARD.
For it is my humble Martain belief....
That only with real
TRUST & HARMONY..
Can people genuinely help each other to succeed and devlop a
'One For All And All For One' cooperative marketpalce.
Now I realise that for GURUS out there this would not fit comfortavbly with their mantra of 'Shat onre - Shaft All'
But for many....I am sure that they would be only too pleased to join such an honest venture...
With many others folowing at a later date when they heard the supportive beating of the welcoming drums.
Why do I believe in this ...
Because at the end of the day,
both Earthlings and Martians have one thing in common...
We all want to be treated with honesty and respect...
we all want to believe that humankind, deep inside has a different underbelly to that which is often portrayed on a daily basis as being the norm..
The Way LIFE IS!
We of the Planets, believe that it does not have to be that way...
It is not an inevitable course that we all have to blindly follow........
Either In Life....
Or On The Web....in so called Internet Marketing.
What it does need, however,
is those with a strong and committed sense of right and wrong, honesty and fraternity...
To join hands and show that their really is ANOTHER WAY.....
Now, the 60 Million Dollar Question is...
Who's up for it ..
Who can make the commitment....
Who wants to be truly different...
Who wants to continue to swim
in a Sea of Sharks...or
Who wants to swim in the
Gentle Blue Waters of the Lagoon..
Who's Got the guts and determination to turn things on their head....
To Stand Out From The Crowd....
To Show Honesty & Integrity..
To Dare To Do Things Differently...
I Know I Am ...
I just Wonder..... Are You?
But Then Again...
As I said at the beginning of this piece...
I'm just a silly old Martian who is a little naive in the ways and working of the Earthlings and who,
from time to time gets his tenticles in a twist.....
But Then Again....
Does that mean that my observational asessment is wrong...?
I'm Not So Sure....
Take a Long & Sincere Look
At Your Planet...
What Do You Think...!!!
Perhaps.... Just Perhaps....
I May Not Be So Stupid
After All..... :)
Perhaps We Really Can Make A Difference...
But Then Again ....
Human Cynicism Being What It Is...
Perhaps Not :(
Only Time & YOU Will Tell...x
Pete - from - London - UK
Thank you Pete, I couldn't have said it better myself.
It is time that those of us in the resale rights industry start policing ourselves by...
1. Not following the crowd and selling products that we KNOW are worth something for a paltry amount.
I've actually gotten emails from people telling me that they can get the same products Jan and I sell on JanRon Publishing for less than what we are asking for them. I politely tell them that if that's what they want to do that the information highway doesn't end at JanRon's and that although we try to be competitive in our pricing - we refuse to devalue the products that we offer.
2. We can also make our voices be heard by refusing to do business with vendors who are guilty of the practice of "whoring" a product out.
One particular vendor, whose name I won't mention, but they have the initials of T.G., is one of the most habitual offenders of this practice. So much so that I refuse to promote or participate in anything T.G. is involved with. I've also removed their free gifts from JanRon's website.
I'm not sure how much, if any, impact this will have on their practice of devaluing digital products, but at least JanRon is trying to take a stand against the "cheapening of resale rights products."
Hope things are well on Planet Mars Pete. We earthlings obviously have some extensive housekeeping to do.
[iamsbm]
Sharon Bray-McPherson
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