WoodMarvels.com EPS Pricing Guide
Now that WoodMarvels.com is releasing commercial and private EPS production licenses, now is a good time to explain my reasoning behind the numbers I have used.
Design Time
As mentioned a while back, development of a model from start (nothing) to finish (PDF blueprint and assembly guide, animation with music and EPS files) can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks depending on the complexity involved. The more parts involved and their interaction with one another, the more complicated things get on almost an exponential scale. This is why after doing something very complicated like the Zulu Main Battle Tank, a level 4 design, I have to clear my head by doing a simple level 1 design of an elephant.
Zulu Main Battle Tank Animation
Elephant Animation
The nice thing about switching from different levels of complexity is that I can apply what I learned from previous designs to streamline and improve things as times goes by.
Time is Money
Coming to a fair yet very easy to use pricing system for WoodMarvels.com EPS files took some time. I had divided my models from the onset from a level 1 to four and pricing my PDF blueprint guides as a result from 1.50$ to 4.50$ as a result. EPS files are another monster though, I still have to do them in order to sell the laser cut kits so providing them to companies and individuals wasn’t a big stretch but deciding on the value they provided was. Hence, I first released my level four designs, selling the EPS files at 14.95$. I think that selling files at a low price with high potential profit margins would be the best way to grow WoodMarvels.com for increased adoption by companies.
The second group was individuals who were looking at making something for their children or other relatives, as such, I thought 9.95$ would be fair as they may have more than one child, unlimited production when its for the immediate family is fair in my opinion.
These two pricing structures make things simple for all involved with the more complicated designs at a level 3 and 4 while being able to make the blueprints and assembly guides free to download.
If you have a laser cutter, buying a personal use license makes sense as its cheaper than heading to the local big box store and buying some plastic off the shelf while commercial licenses allow people to make some extra money on the side with little work involved after materials are gathered.
Time is Money: Level 1 and 2 Designs
Now, we come to level 1 and 2 designs, the one that can take a few days to complete. Unlike the more complicated designs, I have decided to maintain the pricing currently existing for them regarding blueprints as they are relatively straight forward from blueprint to making your own personal EPS file to scale and make. The EPS files, on the other hand, don’t have the same value so I have decided to make all level 1 and 2 designs for personal use 5.95$ and commercial use a flat 7.95$, which is roughly half the price of more complicated models.
What the future holds
I really enjoy the design and animating process, as such, I am anxious to get back designing ASAP but first, I need to get my entire WoodMarvels.com site streamlined and consistent, a project I am working on for the entire month. I have a few years of different writing and layout standards that I am making uniform, and that includes the PDF guides which I will update once my upcoming book is edited and complete.
I also noticed while doing my updates that some models need to be refreshed and HD animations for them produced as well… lots of work but the end result will be a professional looking and consistent approach towards selling my kits, blueprints and now, EPS files to people and companies around the world!
The Bottom Line
Do what you love and love what you do.