In order to get your product into the hands of customers, you need to follow a few basic principles.If you want to spread the word about your software package, you need to create a web presence and a marketing plan.
Step 1: What makes your software worth buying?
For new software to be competitively marketed and sold, it should solve a specific problem or fill a gap in the existing range of software.Take a look at your product and figure out what makes it unique.This knowledge will help you market the software by focusing on how it differs from or improves upon similar software or apps in the field.You're selling a game for a phone.What do you offer that other people don't?Say you're selling a simple spreadsheet program without all the bells and whistles.Why don't clients use your spreadsheet instead of the other options?
Step 2: Determine the audience that you will be selling to.
The rest of the steps will be easier if you dial in on a specific audience.Think about who your software will help out, what kind of people will use it, and how they will access or download it.A person with a mobile device might like a game.A small business owner who just wants to keep track of earnings might prefer a simple spreadsheet without all the bells and whistles.
Step 3: To avoid taking up personal bandwidth, host software files in the cloud.
Hosting your software package in the cloud will allow you to avoid taking up too much personal bandwidth with large file sizes.You can use the site to help deploy your finished software, as well as develop it in the data center.You can compare different cloud hosting sites.
Step 4: Before showing your software to customers, try it out.
There are always going to be bugs in the code or the user interface when building a budget-calculating app or a complex mapping software package.If you want to sell the software, you need to fix any problems before uploading it to the company website.If you are selling self-made software, send it to your friends.Let them know if they find any problems by asking them to try it out.
Step 5: A marketing plan will target your intended audience.
There are many ways to market your software.Consider which websites your intended audience frequents and request that the sites allow you to type up a guest post.Write a post or two about your software in the online forums dedicated to it.Digital advertising can be used to create ads on websites other than social media pages.
Step 6: Independent reviewers are invited to use and review your software.
Third-party reviews can help prove your software's usefulness.Once you have had a few customers use your product, invite them to write reviews.Once you get about half a dozen positive reviews, post them on your social media sites or send them out in an email blast.Third-party reviewers should not have a personal or professional relationship with the software.Employees of the company developing the software are not independent reviewers.
Step 7: There is a social media and internet presence for your software.
Everyone who will use your software is online and has multiple social media accounts.fill the pages with information about the software and its uses if you have a social media account for it.The new software product can be mentioned on a company web page.If you want to spread the word and generate interest, try posting the software on your personal Facebook and LinkedIn pages.
Step 8: If you want to undersell the competition, price your software competitively.
You can find other software products similar to yours through app stores and software websites.You should know how much competition there is for your software.If your program is a simplified version of another program, price your product so it is cheaper than the more advanced option.Evaluate how much comparable software costs on any platform if there is no competition.
Step 9: Customers can try a free version of the software.
Basic parts of the software are free for a limited time before you commit to buying the premium version.If you are concerned that customers may be turned away by the software's price tag, or if you want users to become familiar with your software before purchasing it, offering a freemium version is a great marketing strategy.When your customers decide they want full access to the software features, they will be willing to pay full price.
Step 10: Search words in your website copy to get more traffic.
If you want to bring in potential clients from online search engines, fill your website text with words that will lead people to your site.People who aren't looking for a specific product will use the general term "software" to find it in search engines.For example, in website copy, try using a few words like "freemium" and "software" as well as more specific terms that describe your software's functions, such as "RPG" or "budgeting spreadsheet."
Step 11: Users can try out your software for free.
Users may want to put your software through its paces before they commit to purchasing it.Users can download and use a trial version of the software for free if you set up a link on your website.Allowing customers to try your product for free will show them that it isn't a scam or a rip-off.Free trials allow users to access the full range of your software's abilities.Users will have to pay for the software to keep the trial version going.
Step 12: Review software sale metrics to adjust your marketing strategy.
The plans for selling software are the same as any good marketing strategy.You can better understand where your customers come from with the help of analytic metrics.Try to find out which marketing campaigns bring in the most revenue.Depending on which marketing campaigns are more or less effective, you can modify your overall marketing strategy.You will be able to focus more on social-media advertising if you know that 90 percent of people who purchase your software are diverted from your account.
Step 13: You can create an online store to sell and support your software.
It's a good idea to set up a website for your software.Customers can purchase and download your software if the site has a shopping cart tab.If you are new to software sales or website development, you can use a free website platform to host your site.If you work for a large software company, the product will most likely be sold through a new page on the company website.
Step 14: The function of your software can be described in a 1–2 minute video.
A friendly video that describes your software, its function, and the gap it fills among current software options can be uploaded.Potential customers will feel welcomed by your product.Or, if you feel that your software is easy to understand, you can make a 2-minute video.You have designed a mobile-phone budget- tracking app.Prospective clients won't be put off or confused by complex parts of the software if the company makes a friendly, informative video showing how to use the app.
Step 15: Do you want your software to be open source or proprietary?
The source code of open source software can be accessed by any user for free.The source code for proprietary software restricts access to prevent users from making similar software on their own.Business owners who want to make a profit off of their software keep it proprietary so that users can't make their own versions.If you feel that the software is more important than making a profit, you should make it open source.
Step 16: Provide reliable customer service.
Customers will ask questions about your software regardless of how user-friendly it is.Friendly customer service will build trust with your clients.If you work for a large company, you should offer support for the software.Promise prompt customer service if you are a small business.If you can include a phone number on the "Contact Us" section of your website, customers will feel appreciated.It will feel more personal than an email address.
Step 17: If you are unhappy with your customer, promise a refund.
No customers will request a refund because they aren't satisfied with the software if it works perfectly.Trust in your company will be generated by offering a no-questions-asked, 100% refund to any dissatisfied customers.It will motivate skeptical customers to try it out since they have nothing to lose.If you don't like our product, we'll give you 100% money back.