Is this price increase bogus and just a marketing ploy?
Guitartricks email on price increase
I just got an email on a GuitarTricks price increase. Supposedly it's going up to $29.95/month! WTH? That's DOUBLE what I'm paying now. If that's the case I'm going bye bye. I only pay monthly and having just started, I'm not sure yet if it's worth it to buy in for a whole year. Even the yearly fee is higher, it's showing a price of $129, whereas the continuous emails I've been getting were showing a price of $99.
Is this price increase bogus and just a marketing ploy?
Is this price increase bogus and just a marketing ploy?
# 1
For the past several years $129 has been the 'regular' price whereas $99 was an often offered 'special.'
No one is happy with rising prices although increased/improved services are always in demand (see the Song Request Forum). In many (most?) instances companies eat some of their own rising costs and pass the remainder on to their customers. The partial pass-on is common because some customers will drop out due to the higher price of the product...it's a balancing act for companies to keep customers and grab new ones while still paying for their own higher costs of doing business (and maybe boosting profits some ;) ).
Three months in and you still don't know if GT is worth a year's membership..? :D
No one is happy with rising prices although increased/improved services are always in demand (see the Song Request Forum). In many (most?) instances companies eat some of their own rising costs and pass the remainder on to their customers. The partial pass-on is common because some customers will drop out due to the higher price of the product...it's a balancing act for companies to keep customers and grab new ones while still paying for their own higher costs of doing business (and maybe boosting profits some ;) ).
Three months in and you still don't know if GT is worth a year's membership..? :D
"It takes a lot of devotion and work, or maybe I should say play, because if you love it, that's what it amounts to. I haven't found any shortcuts, and I've been looking for a long time."
-- Chet Atkins
-- Chet Atkins
# 2
Hopefully, with the price increase GT will be able to bring back the Jimi Hendrix lessons since they lost the rights to produce lessons for his songs due to royalty disputes between them and Jimi's estate.
# 3
Bingo!
While I haven't seen any comments that the loss of the Hendrix songs was due to money I certainly wondered and suspected that was the cause.
For a transaction to happen, and GT song licensing should be no different, what is needed is 'a seller happy to sell at a price that a buyer is happy to pay...' When a deal fails because of price, too high of a price or too low of a price is often defined by which side of the transaction one is on.
The good thing...the fun thing... is those prices aren't static. Having lost a sale, the seller my accept a lower price at another time. Having missed out on a purchase, the buyer might come back with a higher offer.
If money was the issue, there will always be hope for the return of Hendrix songs...
While I haven't seen any comments that the loss of the Hendrix songs was due to money I certainly wondered and suspected that was the cause.
For a transaction to happen, and GT song licensing should be no different, what is needed is 'a seller happy to sell at a price that a buyer is happy to pay...' When a deal fails because of price, too high of a price or too low of a price is often defined by which side of the transaction one is on.
The good thing...the fun thing... is those prices aren't static. Having lost a sale, the seller my accept a lower price at another time. Having missed out on a purchase, the buyer might come back with a higher offer.
If money was the issue, there will always be hope for the return of Hendrix songs...
"It takes a lot of devotion and work, or maybe I should say play, because if you love it, that's what it amounts to. I haven't found any shortcuts, and I've been looking for a long time."
-- Chet Atkins
-- Chet Atkins
# 4
I don't care about hendrix stuff. I just don't think it's worth the double cost for the tutorials. Like I said, I just started here and now I'm seeing a double price increase. Who cares how long it's been, to me, it's been a couple months and now people want double the money.
# 5
I'm hoping we can get a clarification on what the increased prices are used for. Currently the "huge improvements" that are announced are very vague. I don't hope the annual prices double as well, although I'm afraid they will. For me as a student, it would mean no more GT unfortunately.
Let's wait and see, but I sure hope they can justify the price, not by only releasing "bigger songs" for example.
Could someone from the GT-staff clarify this or perhaps tell us that this information will be made available in the near future?
JJ
Let's wait and see, but I sure hope they can justify the price, not by only releasing "bigger songs" for example.
Could someone from the GT-staff clarify this or perhaps tell us that this information will be made available in the near future?
JJ
# 6
Hey everyone,
There's one thing that we tried to make clear, but we might not have done a great job: Nobody that is currently a Full Access user will have their price go up.
If you are a current member, the price you're currently paying will be locked-in even when we raise the price for new members. You won't all of a sudden be paying more for GT if you are a current member.
We're running the promo so that everyone that has been on the fence about upgrading has a chance to lock-in the current pricing before it increases.
As for the reason behind the price increase, it's a variety of things all coming together. While our price has been the same for years, our costs for all the things that make GT work have been increasing. Things like licensing, technology costs, staff and instructors, etc. Raising the price will help us keep improving GT with more songs, developing our app and releasing a version for Android, and improving other parts of the site.
I hope that makes sense.
Ben
There's one thing that we tried to make clear, but we might not have done a great job: Nobody that is currently a Full Access user will have their price go up.
If you are a current member, the price you're currently paying will be locked-in even when we raise the price for new members. You won't all of a sudden be paying more for GT if you are a current member.
We're running the promo so that everyone that has been on the fence about upgrading has a chance to lock-in the current pricing before it increases.
As for the reason behind the price increase, it's a variety of things all coming together. While our price has been the same for years, our costs for all the things that make GT work have been increasing. Things like licensing, technology costs, staff and instructors, etc. Raising the price will help us keep improving GT with more songs, developing our app and releasing a version for Android, and improving other parts of the site.
I hope that makes sense.
Ben
# 7
Question, I can not always afford a full year so sometime I have to drop to a monthly thing or in some cases drop out for a few months.. So, you are saying that if I have to drop my membership for a month or two then if I want to come back as a full membership I will have to pay more.
# 8
Thank you for your reply Ben.
It sure makes sense that the prices are increasing due to the things you mentioned. But I have one critique on the e-mail now that I've read your reply.
The e-mail mentions that there is a "big update" coming along with "huge improvements." Most people, including myself, would for example think that GT is getting a major overhaul with tons of new features and a new look/appearance of the website. But the e-mail doesn't mention any of the reasons you stated. It seems to me that, according to your reply, GT isn't getting a major overhaul but just continuous improvements as we are used to. If that were the case the e-mail is quite misleading in my opinion!
A lot of people want transparency (for example: Jon didn't tell that Neal Walter left GT, upsetting some GT-members)! This is one thing I find is missing in these e-mails and sometimes in general with GT. Now again, a forum topic has to be created with some members asking about it before we can find/get these answers.
I think it would be a good idea if big announcements are put up both on the forum and to members by e-mail that clarify these things very clearly.
Lots of people would actually appreciate completeness, honesty and transparency which would probably lead to a much bigger acceptance and understanding of these changes.
I'm not criticizing anyone, but I hope you guys would take these points to heart. Again, thank you for your reply Ben.
JJ
It sure makes sense that the prices are increasing due to the things you mentioned. But I have one critique on the e-mail now that I've read your reply.
The e-mail mentions that there is a "big update" coming along with "huge improvements." Most people, including myself, would for example think that GT is getting a major overhaul with tons of new features and a new look/appearance of the website. But the e-mail doesn't mention any of the reasons you stated. It seems to me that, according to your reply, GT isn't getting a major overhaul but just continuous improvements as we are used to. If that were the case the e-mail is quite misleading in my opinion!
A lot of people want transparency (for example: Jon didn't tell that Neal Walter left GT, upsetting some GT-members)! This is one thing I find is missing in these e-mails and sometimes in general with GT. Now again, a forum topic has to be created with some members asking about it before we can find/get these answers.
I think it would be a good idea if big announcements are put up both on the forum and to members by e-mail that clarify these things very clearly.
Lots of people would actually appreciate completeness, honesty and transparency which would probably lead to a much bigger acceptance and understanding of these changes.
I'm not criticizing anyone, but I hope you guys would take these points to heart. Again, thank you for your reply Ben.
JJ
# 9
$29.95 :eek: Is that the confirmed new price? If so I will have to seek my guitar lessons elsewhere. As of right now I am on a very limited budget and can barely afford the $15 monthly fee. Since it is iRacing season I had to let my Guitartricks subscription expire.
If the price was going up maybe 5 bucks I would consider renewing my membership, but at double the cost there is no way, no how. There is just way to much free stuff out there to justify paying $30 monthly for an online service.
It may not be as organized or to the same quality as Guitartricks, but it's all out there. I may have to wade through 2hrs. of B.S to find what I'm looking for, but I will find it.
Thank you Guitartricks for the lessons. In the short time that I've been a full member I have learned a lot. I now have a strong foundation to build upon.
If the price was going up maybe 5 bucks I would consider renewing my membership, but at double the cost there is no way, no how. There is just way to much free stuff out there to justify paying $30 monthly for an online service.
It may not be as organized or to the same quality as Guitartricks, but it's all out there. I may have to wade through 2hrs. of B.S to find what I'm looking for, but I will find it.
Thank you Guitartricks for the lessons. In the short time that I've been a full member I have learned a lot. I now have a strong foundation to build upon.
# 10
Right now we can all extend our membership a full year for a pro-rated $10.75 per month. That's not as sweet as past specials were but it's still a pretty good deal!
Seeking another guitar teaching site because of this price increase may not be a good move. First, I and most of us here think this is the top such site. Expecting to find another site equal to or better than GT is a stretch, IMO. Second, don't be silly enough to think GT's price rise (after [U]no[/U] increases the past [U]six[/U] years or more) will be done in a vacuum. Other sites have the same cost pressure and I'm sure other sites will, if they haven't already, raise prices too. That probability may be high because GT is a leader in the field, IMO...those others may follow the leader. On the other hand, lower priced sites probably offer a lesser experience...is that a price savings? Third, according to what we've been told, it's not all just a price rise...there's a promised improvement/growth in the site. In other words, some of the higher price is going to pay for a better product.
Yeah it smacks. And, yeah, GT is still a great deal.
IMO. :)
Seeking another guitar teaching site because of this price increase may not be a good move. First, I and most of us here think this is the top such site. Expecting to find another site equal to or better than GT is a stretch, IMO. Second, don't be silly enough to think GT's price rise (after [U]no[/U] increases the past [U]six[/U] years or more) will be done in a vacuum. Other sites have the same cost pressure and I'm sure other sites will, if they haven't already, raise prices too. That probability may be high because GT is a leader in the field, IMO...those others may follow the leader. On the other hand, lower priced sites probably offer a lesser experience...is that a price savings? Third, according to what we've been told, it's not all just a price rise...there's a promised improvement/growth in the site. In other words, some of the higher price is going to pay for a better product.
Yeah it smacks. And, yeah, GT is still a great deal.
IMO. :)
"It takes a lot of devotion and work, or maybe I should say play, because if you love it, that's what it amounts to. I haven't found any shortcuts, and I've been looking for a long time."
-- Chet Atkins
-- Chet Atkins
# 11
Originally Posted by: john of MTRight now we can all extend our membership a full year for a pro-rated $10.75 per month. That's not as sweet as past specials were but it's still a pretty good deal!
I should have jumped on the last $99 per year deal...oh well. I wasn't certain then that I was going to extend another year.
Still, I agree that at $129 for a full year it's still a good deal. Way cheaper than private lessons.
If the site was stagnating, I'd feel differently about the price increase. It's continuing to evelove and improve.
I do feel a little duped by the email that went out. Had I known that I'd continue to get the price I signed up for originally, I would have waited longer to decide if I wanted to sign up again.
# 12
Originally Posted by: maggior
I do feel a little duped by the email that went out. Had I known that I'd continue to get the price I signed up for originally, I would have waited longer to decide if I wanted to sign up again.
I don't feel as much duped as I do confused. Do you think it intended to say that all of us who signed up for $99 will be able to continually renew at $99?
Inquiring minds want to know. ;)
"It takes a lot of devotion and work, or maybe I should say play, because if you love it, that's what it amounts to. I haven't found any shortcuts, and I've been looking for a long time."
-- Chet Atkins
-- Chet Atkins
# 13
Hey everyone,
Your comments are fair, and I appreciate everyone chiming in here.
First of all, the price is not going up to $29/month. That would be doubling the price, which we aren't doing. We aren't ready to announce the new pricing yet but it's not that steep of an increase.
Secondly, the 'big update' we talked about in the email is true, and is on top of the other things I mentioned in my previous post. We've been working really hard on something special, but we decided not to discuss details because we are still months from being ready. You're going to like it though.
I promise we will tell everyone on the forum when the time comes though!
Ben
Your comments are fair, and I appreciate everyone chiming in here.
First of all, the price is not going up to $29/month. That would be doubling the price, which we aren't doing. We aren't ready to announce the new pricing yet but it's not that steep of an increase.
Secondly, the 'big update' we talked about in the email is true, and is on top of the other things I mentioned in my previous post. We've been working really hard on something special, but we decided not to discuss details because we are still months from being ready. You're going to like it though.
I promise we will tell everyone on the forum when the time comes though!
Ben
# 14
Originally Posted by: john of MTI don't feel as much duped as I do confused. Do you think it intended to say that all of us who signed up for $99 will be able to continually renew at $99?
Inquiring minds want to know. ;)
I would assume that's not true since that was a "special" price. That's understandable. I was concerned I wouldn't get the $129 price after the increase.
Cool to hear that there is something new and cool on top of the usual incremental improvements. Looking forward to it...
# 15
Thanks a lot for your reply Ben! It's great to hear that this "big update" is coming along with the other reasons for increasing the pricing.
Now looking back, GT never mentioned doubling the price, so the OP was probably guessing. I could live with a higher price if the experience GT is offering increases (although it is amazing as it is).
Looking forward to the announcement and details!
JJ
Now looking back, GT never mentioned doubling the price, so the OP was probably guessing. I could live with a higher price if the experience GT is offering increases (although it is amazing as it is).
Looking forward to the announcement and details!
JJ
# 16
Originally Posted by: JJ90...Now looking back, GT never mentioned doubling the price, so the OP was probably guessing...
The link which takes one to the page which talks about 'locking in' the current price no longer works for me taking me to my account page instead (I just re-up'd, I suspect that may be why the link is down for me). So I can't confirm what I firmly remember...the page showed a $29.95 monthly rate scratched out and replaced by a $14.95 rate. And I think it showed an annual rate of $179 scratched out and replaced by a 'lock it in' rate of $129. The idea that monthly rates are doubling could have come from that page's graphics.
A picture is worth a thousand words or, in this case, three or four posts on a thread. :D
"It takes a lot of devotion and work, or maybe I should say play, because if you love it, that's what it amounts to. I haven't found any shortcuts, and I've been looking for a long time."
-- Chet Atkins
-- Chet Atkins
# 17
Originally Posted by: john of MTI don't feel as much duped as I do confused. Do you think it intended to say that all of us who signed up for $99 will be able to continually renew at $99?
Inquiring minds want to know. ;)
Hi john of MT,
If you signed up at the $99/year discounted rate, you will get that same rate when your year automatically renews each year. You keep the rate you register with.
Ben
# 18
Originally Posted by: Ben MartinHi john of MT,
If you signed up at the $99/year discounted rate, you will get that same rate when your year automatically renews each year. You keep the rate you register with.
Ben
Fantastic!
"It takes a lot of devotion and work, or maybe I should say play, because if you love it, that's what it amounts to. I haven't found any shortcuts, and I've been looking for a long time."
-- Chet Atkins
-- Chet Atkins
# 19
Will the $99 specials annual rate be offered again before the new pricing goes into effect. Had I realized new pricing was coming I think I may have sprung for the $99 annual rate...?
Can you extend the $99 rate again?
Can you extend the $99 rate again?
# 20