StreetWise Philippines Dot Biz!

Since the first edition of Philippine Dreams was released in 2003 as ‘StreetWise Philippines’, times have changed. The market for information products has changed and so too the market for eBooks. While we sold thousands of copies at $29.99 average price, we have found in recent months the sales figured have taken a hit, but then so have the figures for every business in the current economic climate.

We have looked at the situation and decided to change our sales model from a ‘Membership Model’ to what we call the ‘Amazon Model’, as in selling them on Amazon.com as Kindle downloads. They are also available at Barnes&Noble and in the iTunes bookshop as well as at Smashwords.com and of course, as hard copy paperbacks at Lulu.com.

All of the books have been updated and in the case of the hard copy paperbacks, they are being released as A5 size volumes, about half the size they were before as an A4, just thicker. This is in keeping with making them more ‘book like’ and less like an information product. We have also dropped the price to be competitive, of course in doing so we no longer offer the half a dozen or so free value added items that made the $29.99 price tag such great value. Nor will we, officially, still offer online email support although I will always be here to reply to any questions  or emails and help where I can. We also used to offer free updates for the life of the title and while we will continue to do this for our ‘members’, we will no longer offer this with eBooks sold via the new model.

Basically, the updated for 2012 editions are selling for $13.99 with some locations (Amazon’s Kindle for example) offering them at just $9.99 for a limited time to generate some buzz. The hardcopy paperbacks are also re-priced with most, after 25% discount, being available for around $15 or so, plus postage and handling. For some titles for the US market this could mean free delivery depending on the promotions being run at the time of ordering by Lulu.com themselves.

We are hoping the price change and the new sales model will be a good thing for our customers. Those who bought from us in the past at the old price will still get full access and online email help as well as free updates for the life of the title and they get to keep the freebies they downloaded before. New customers get the great low price and we think a better mode of distribution and delivery of the product. Not only that it is far more widely available and easier to find. Let us know your thoughts and what you think of the new sales model.