Mac360 Twitter TweetsSponsorship and Advertising on Mac360Forums Member LoginRegister for Mac360 ForumsFrequently Asked QuestionsYouTube Video WatchDashboard Widget WatchPolls & SurveysMac360 Power Search Options
RSS FeedThe Mac360 Article ArchiveThe Cheap MacWhat's New!Mac Tips & TricksMacintosh User ForumsMac360 Reviews

Mac Software Makers vs. Mac Software Marketers.

Wanted - JeffreyAs if we don’t have enough disputes in the world, here’s another one: Mac software developers vs. Mac software marketers.

Is this the typical Dilbert “engineers vs. marketing” issue? Yes, it is.

Just in case you missed it, there’s been a squabble going on recently regarding a special Mac software promotion at MacHeist.

Basically, a bunch of Mac guys got together and came up with a Mac software promotion idea to sell a bundle of nine Mac utilities at a super discount for a week.

Over $350 worth of Mac software for a single price of $49. The software was a good collection and the price was excellent for the buyer.

The MacHeist marketing guys negotiated with nine Mac software developers to sell their software in the discounted bundle. In exchange for a one time fee, the marketing guys were allowed to sell as many copies of the software as they could but only within a week.

Depending on what you read and where, the Mac software developers were paid, on average, between $5,000 and $10,000 each. All nine of their Mac applications were included in the bundle for $49.

The MacHeist marketing guys handled all the promotion, the web site, the marketing, advertising, and details. The Mac software developers got a one-time cash payment, and nearly 17,000 new customers to service.

The MacHeist marketing guys sold 16,821 bundles of the Mac software titles for $49 each.

Do the math. That’s sales of nearly $825,000.

The MacHeist marketing guys played the emotional nice-nice card as part of the promo and agreed to donate $200,000 to charity. That left $625,000.

Promotional expenses were estimated to be approximately $40,000, and payment to the Mac software developers was estimated to be up to $150,000 total (divided between nine developers).

The MacHeist marketing guys gained a profit of about $435,000. Each Mac software developer, on average, received less than $17,000.

John Gruber of Daring Fireball was the first to blow the whistle on the deal and pointed out the tremendous inequity between what the Mac software developers received and what the MacHeist marketing guys received as their share of the loot.

Gruber estimated that the MacHeist marketing guys received between 75-percent and 87-percent of the loot, vs. an estimated 1.1-percent for each of the Mac software developers.

Is the disparity between what the marketing guys made vs. what the software developer guys made too much? Did one group screw over the other? Does marketing deserve that much profit compared to the development group?

It’s easy to argue that everyone was a winner. Buyers of the MacHeist bundle got an excellent deal. Good Mac software, very low price. If the numbers are anywhere close to accurate, the MacHeist marketing guys made their own bundle.

What about the Mac software developers? They made some money, and now have nearly 17,000 new customers. Each. What was wrong with the deal?

Click Here to see reader comments on this article in the Mac360 Forums.

Post your own Comment.

Classy Mac360 PhotoBy Jeffrey Mincey | I work as a PC System Administrator (Windows, Macs, Linux) for the state government in Atlanta, Georgia and have used Macs for more than 20 years. Most of it late at night.

• Email This Article  •  Follow Mac360 on Twitter
• Posted in the Forum Topics Section

Mac360 posts daily Mac updates on Twitter, too. If you Twitter, give Alexis, Bambi, or Ron a tweet and follow Mac360 on Twitter to get daily Mac tips and tricks.

Safari
Need Safari to do more for you? Add a single plugin and go crazy.
Fri Mar 12 - Full Article »
Say No To Mac
Do Mac users need all that power and flexibility? Or, just convenience?
Thu Mar 11 - Full Article »
Dock
A new way to use what you already know how to use to find files.
Wed Mar 10 - Full Article »
Email
Hidden inside a Mac is an email monster. Turn it on with a click or two.
Tue Mar 9 - Full Article »
Database
Database users rejoice. FileMaker Pro is easier and more powerful.
Tue Mar 9 - Full Article »
Docks
Love the Dock? Hate the Dock? Here's how to make the Dock better.
Mon Mar 8 - Full Article »
Walmart
Apple's market value skyrockets ahead of the iPad launch.
Mon Mar 8 - Full Article »
Predictions
Can you predict Apple success or failure as well as technology pundits?
Fri Mar 5 - View Topic »
SyncMan
Keep your contacts fully synchronized online with the SyncMac.
Fri Mar 5 - Full Article »

Off Topic Note: Need more Mac software reviews? Check out Page 2 for encore articles. Help support Mac360 by visiting the Mac360 Store (it’s really Amazon). We get a small commission on every purchase you make through the Mac360 Store (it’s really Amazon). You get discounts on Mac software such as Snow Leopard, iWork ‘09, iLife ‘09, Adobe Photoshop Elements, all MacBook and iMac models, and all iPod models.

Snow Leopard
What's in the FORUMS?
Mac360 Link Farm