Camtasia: Hiding the Offer the Company Says It Actively Promotes. Active as in "Catatonic."
April 7, 2010
Earlier this year, I made a $149 mistake. I upgraded to Camtasia Studio 6. It was late in the product cycle. I should have waited.
I can now get Version 7 for another $149. That will double the price of my purchase.
I wondered if the upgrade might be free, or maybe cheaper, for recent buyers. It is . . . if you bought it in the last 30 days. Why 30 days? Because on all Internet purchases, by law you have 30 days to back out. Anyone buying Version 6 could have canceled the order and then bought Version 7.
Here is a reply regarding the upgrade policy.
Thank you for contacting us in regards to your recent purchase.Unfortunately, free upgrades are only available to customers who purchased Camtasia Studio within the past 30 days, and/or who are under a current Maintenance Agreement. We try to encourage our customers to protect their investment by purchasing Maintenance on their licenses.
http://www.techsmith.com/purchase/magreement.asp.
Because you purchased within the last 90 days we would like to extend you a special offer. I have prepared a quote to add maintenance to your recently purchased license, and it will cover you for one year from the date you purchased. Purchasing this maintenance agreement will provide you with a free upgrade to v7!. . . .
Maintenance is priced at 25% of the new license price, and upgrades are 50% of the new license price. Moving forward, you can renew your Maintenance Agreement each year to ensure you always have the latest version of the software.
To purchase this Maintenance Agreement, please call our sales team directly, this cannot be purchased online. Please call Monday - Friday 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM EST, Toll Free at 1-888-750-0685 or outside the U.S. at 1-517-381-2300 ext. 771.
Please let me know if you have any questions or I can be of further assistance.
He said this: "We try to encourage our customers to protect their investment by purchasing Maintenance on their licenses." I have been a Camtasia user for five years. I have never heard of this option.
Go to the site: www.Techsmith.com. See if you can find any reference to it. Don't use SEARCH. That would be cheating. You already know about it.
I see the advantage of the contract. Had I known about it 90 days ago, I would have bought it. I knew Camtasia Studio 6 was on its last legs. But I did not know I had an option.
Lesson: If you sell a product, and you want extra money, a maintenance agreement is a good way to get extra money. But here is the deal: You must tell people about the opportunity. Quoting Max Bialystok (The Producers): "If you've got it, flaunt it!
If you know anyone at Techsmith, forward this article. Maybe that person can forward this to Marketing. They need to know about this breakthrough marketing concept.