Why Don't You Have Any Mention of MAS on Agilebits.com Main Site? [Answered]

mixture

Why don't you have any mention of MAS version here: [url="https://agilebits.com/products/1Password/Mac"]https://agilebits.co...s/1Password/Mac[/url] or here: [url="https://agilebits.com/store"]https://agilebits.com/store[/url]



I find this interesting since Agilebits have now complained a lot about extra admin work etc that takes time off from developing the software... and yet you don't let people know that if one is a Lion user, they should go to MAS and buy their copy from there.



I would think people who have Lion and buy the 3.8 version from Agilebits Store are pretty disappointed when they notice that it is also available on MAS and that actually they should have bought it from there if they wanted 3.9 and 4.0 in the future. Of course - when and if they notice that within the 30 days window - they can request a refund from Agilebits and then buy it from MAS, but isn't that that unnecessary admin work...?



But no, surprise surprise, you don't seem to have thought this through. Like you didn't think through how to manage the sale price of 1Password 3.9 on MAS, which would have included emailing your current customer base about the sale and the future of 1P on MAS.



No, you didn't do that, and then you increased the price, and still haven't emailed the people who use your products.





All of this combined it just looks so, so ridiculous. Who actually makes these decisions over at Agilebits and on what basis he or she makes these decisions to go through with new, unprecedented things (like 1P going to MAS and having a sale there, or not having information of MAS version on agilebits.com), without making sure of all these little things I mentioned and keeping the customers happy.



Ok, as we all know, all we're going to get as a reply to this thread is some sorry excuses... if only Agilebits would act on these mishaps and correct them instead of writing here on the forums one excuse after another.



Thank you.

kallemia

Exactly.

MartyS

I wish it were as simple as waving a wand and that all our customers — current and potential — were all happily on Lion and could buy or upgrade to 1Password 3.9 through the Mac App Store. <img src='http://forum.agilebits.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/emoticon-0137-clapping.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='(clap)' /> We know that's too much to expect at this time, and we really don't want to take the current AgileBits web site and make it devoid of options for Snow Leopard, or even Leopard customers. We can draw the line on Tiger, although we still provide a download for that as well for cases where it's what a customer needs. So our web site remains the way it did before we made it through the Mac App Store approval process. That will likely change, but we have been concentrating on the product, not the web site (they are two distinct mental resources). As you mentioned, we can take care of everything else in those cases where someone does end up with buying from both our store and from the Mac App Store. If you were impacted by this and haven't already contacted us then please do so.



We're not here making excuses, but sometimes providing the reasons behind something can sound a lot like an excuse: different viewpoints do exist.



I know that some customers would have loved more notice, or specific emails about the upcoming changes. A funny thing happens when we pre-announce something and then something does [b]not[/b] go according to plan — usually we hear about it in spades through all avenues: "How could you delay? In your email you [i]promised[/i]!" The truth is that when a submission to the Mac App Store is made that there is no way the developer can have [b]any[/b] assurance of when it might "appear" on the other side. There simply isn't a good way to bring a mass-mailing to bear quickly when a release comes out like this. The same is true for price changes. Like most indie developers, we do not pre-announce price changes — either up or down. Just as we said we would here in the forums, we did communicate via some of our mass-media outlets (Twitter for certain) when the price of the Mac App Store version of 1Password was about to go up. Discovering that you have an email message in your mailbox a day or two later after the fact simply doesn't help anyone. So we think we're using technology the way that most customers expect. And we're using our blog to communicate discoveries or announcements that need a larger context than an email can provide.



So, you now have some additional background on why our web site hasn't undergone a push to the Mac App Store and for why communicating via email simply didn't fit into the timing this go around. We don't see these decisions as "mistakes" at all.



We want our customers to be informed, and we're here (and in the blog) every day to try and do that. If there is anything else we can help you with, please let us know!

kallemia

Sorry, but if you've had the time to indicate a price rise on the website, you've also had the time to put a notice on the 1Password page to inform potential buyers who have Lion already, that the MAS version is out there and is the only one that will lead to 4.0 and beyond.



Kalle

Carl

[quote="MartyS"]



I know that some customers would have loved more notice, or specific emails about the upcoming changes. A funny thing happens when we pre-announce something and then something does [b]not[/b] go according to plan — usually we hear about it in spades through all avenues: "How could you delay? In your email you [i]promised[/i]!" The truth is that when a submission to the Mac App Store is made that there is no way the developer can have [b]any[/b] assurance of when it might "appear" on the other side. There simply isn't a good way to bring a mass-mailing to bear quickly when a release comes out like this. The same is true for price changes. Like most indie developers, we do not pre-announce price changes — either up or down. Just as we said we would here in the forums, we did communicate via some of our mass-media outlets (Twitter for certain) when the price of the Mac App Store version of 1Password was about to go up. Discovering that you have an email message in your mailbox a day or two later after the fact simply doesn't help anyone. So we think we're using technology the way that most customers expect. And we're using our blog to communicate discoveries or announcements that need a larger context than an email can provide.



So, you now have some additional background on why our web site hasn't undergone a push to the Mac App Store and for why communicating via email simply didn't fit into the timing this go around. We don't see these decisions as "mistakes" at all.



[/quote]





While I respect your attempt to try to put some additional perspective on this issue, I don't feel the argument has much weight to it. No one has has said that promises had to be made or dates had to be given in any such e-mail.



You could have sent a newsletter a couple of months ago that went a little something like this:



"Dear 1Password users,



We've come to believe that the Mac App Store is the future of software distribution and as such we are beginning the process to transition 1P to MAS. We're not sure how long this will take, when we will be able to get 1P into the MAS, and we're still working through the technical changes that are required to make this a reality.



yada yada yada (i.e. Lion only, MAS upgrade limitations for existing customers, etc.)



We hope you will support our efforts during this upcoming transition and welcome any comments on the matter.[font=Helvetica Neue]"[/font]



You know...the whole under-promise over-deliver thingy



Also, quick locking threads!

mixture

Yep, what the heck is going on, why the moderators lock threads so quickly?



Oh yeah, we all know why...

asfrank16

I think that agilebits is confusing two concepts. One, announcing the availability of 1Password on the MAS. I agree with them on that. Sending out an email prior to it being accepted would be folly, as they stated. The second is informing current clients AFTER the change has occurred. This they have not responded to as of yet. Why did you not, and why have you still not, informed your current clients that you are now MAS only, and that if they want the upgrade discount that they have come to expect from ALL companies, they need to buy 1Password now from the MAS. This was and continues to be a mistake.



Personally, all I want to see is that they own up to this mistake and try to rectify it now, and in the future. It is easy to do. Send out an email today informing current clients of the change. Thats it. Do that, I will certainly stop complaining. Although I missed the bargin of the $19.95 price because this was not done, the $24 price is fine and I can live with that. What I cannot live with is a company that will not admit when it made a mistake and will not try to fix it.



No problem with the program or the business model, just give me some assurance that in the future I will not find myself in the same dilemma, as I can tell you I will not be following these forms or your twitter feed in the future.

asfrank16

At this point I will just assume that no one from Agile will be responding to the above. Sad, but oh well. My 10 year old daughter also has problems admitting her mistakes <img src='http://forum.agilebits.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/emoticon-0136-giggle.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='(giggle)' /> If you all are not going to respond I am not sure why you are keeping this thread open. Might as well lock it.

Ben

We made the decision to not advertise the MAS version on our own site yet. There are many reasons, most of which Marty addressed above.