Why Inkdrop is a Subscription App

Inkdrop is a notebook app for Markdown lovers. https://inkdrop.app/

Update(2020–01–28): Announcing plugin developer license — You can use it for free, forever, if you created a plugin for Inkdrop.

TL;DR

The reasons why Inkdrop’s pricing is a subscription model:

• Going cheap is poor strategy
• The most important thing is to make sure everything is sustainable
• The goal is not to catch ’em all
• If you try to please everyone, you won’t please anyone
• Trusting the value

Comparing with similar services

Inkdrop costs $49.90/year and is not freemium. Some people says Inkdrop is expensive and its subscription model is bad form.

In other hand, the Evernote is freemium. The Plus tier is priced at $34.99/year and the Premium plan costs $69.99/year. Quiver is another cheaper choice. It costs only $9.99. No subscription model. So what?

But I don’t think Inkdrop is going wrong way. I’d like to describe about Inkdrop pricing.

Going cheap is poor strategy

I don’t want to be involved in the price war because it’s a poor strategy.

I believe that you will get more productivity if you use my app. In other words, I’d offer those who’d think so.

Inkdrop will never provide any free plans because the free people makes the site slow down as TJ Holowaychuk says:

In addition, if I got many users with bargain sales I can’t support them all.

“Catch ’em all” is wrong

So, should I attract investments and form my team to support many users? My answer is no. I don’t intend to compete with Quiver, Evernote and other similar apps. Inkdrop doesn’t need to be the best of the notebook app.

I read a book written by David Heinemeier Hansson and that says every business has ‘right scale’. I think that the right scale for my business is several thousand users. With this scale, it makes enough money for my life.

The most important thing is to make sure everything is sustainable

Sustainability is important for every business. Especially, you can leverage the notebook app more as you use it. When it goes away without any plans for sustainability after getting many users, it will cause big trouble to them. No one can be happy.

A single charge, not monthly/yearly charge requires endless works for getting more users. It needs to release new major versions periodically and also needs to let users purchase them again. I would focus not getting users but improving the app.

It’s so hard to keep going to get traction, that’s not sustainable way.
The value should be accepted to keep focusing the app getting better continuously.

If you try to please everyone, you won’t please anyone

The beginning of this product is when I thought I want it.
There’s not the best answer for this type of tools and it depends on individual preference. We need all kinds of apps, after all, we’re all different. So it’s just fine that I work for those who agree with me. If I pleased everyone, Inkdrop will lose its simplicity and will become totally non-useful.

I’d say same thing about its pricing. We have all different budgets.
Some people uses free tools only. Some people are happy to pay for tools they’d use. By the way, I’m paying for Dropbox and Evernote yearly and bought OmniFocus which costs 5,000JPY. I’m a person who is happy to pay for his/her favorite apps. You know, I’m not alone.

That is, Inkdrop’s target is people like me. I’d ignore people saying “It’s expensive! It should not be a subscription app!”

Trusting myself

I trust what I’m offering to you because I love Inkdrop :) There’re already people who use it everyday.

Inkdrop is getting better & better. I hope it will become much greater so that more people can feel it’s a valid pricing. I’m working hard to achive my goal.
I appreciate all your support.🙏

Arigatou-gozaimasu!

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