Several readers emailed me to express shock about the lack of digital sales we drummed up for February 09 Apex Magazine. This month doesn’t show any signs of being any better. So far, we’ve sold seven digital copies and zero subscriptions.
Take this less as a complaint and more as a simple sharing of information. As I said before, I view any purchases of Apex Magazine digital copies as a donation more than a ‘sales’ transaction. And the $14 earned from those seven sales are $9 more than we earned in actual donations this whole year.
We do make $25-$50 a month on web banner sales.
The original intent of Apex Magazine was to serve as a loss leader for the book side of the company. I never expected the traffic from the magazine to generate much revenue, but I was hoping for an extra 25 or so book sales a month. Yet, that hasn’t happened. In fact, I see zero increase in book sales when a new issue comes out.
Each issue of Apex Magazine brings about 3,500 unique visitors. Not all of them read every article. Some will only drop in and read the new fiction, or perhaps Alethea’s latest essay and they’re done. But for the 3,500 people to not buy anything is rather…well, that depresses me.
Our most popular single post last month was Lavie Tidhar’s story “Dark Planet.” Between unique website visits and RSS feed readings, he got 1,000 or so hits. His book sales (HebrewPunk) remained at the same level as the previous month when we didn’t have a Tidhar story.
As I grow more wizened in the realities of online marketing and sales, I’m constantly amazed that so few people are willing to dish out a few bucks for stuff they enjoy reading for free. The internet is a weird beast where free is free and anything more is not of interest.
With the downturn of the economy, free is free definitely has a reaching appeal. The sad fact is that unless the free short fiction starts bringing in more “loss leader” type of revenue, it’ll soon be a thing of the past. One less professional-level market in a shrinking field of play.
So this is my latest money making plan. At the bottom of every story will be an image of an Apex editor head with a noose around his/her neck. For every dollar you donate, you’ll get a limb. Just like Hangman. Want to see Mari Adkins hanging from the galley, well…five bucks and it happens!
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Faith. So much of our reality is determined by what we believe, and it can so easily be... undone. 
But — I *like* Mari.
Well…there are other Apex editors you can hang. I was just using Mari as an example since she’s the Apex rejection queen.
“As I grow more wizened in the realities of online marketing and sales, I’m constantly amazed that so few people are willing to dish out a few bucks for stuff they enjoy reading for free.”
That was the problem Helix ran into with their donations model as well.
I was hoping to circumvent that problem with the creating of the mobile versions of the digital zine. Maybe it’ll catch on, but so far, not so much…
You could always post half a story and solicit payment for the other half, I suppose. “Or you could subscribe and get it all at once!” Ha.
Well, fluffy…websites like Espn.com do that…maybe there’s something to that.
“she’s the Apex rejection queen” Yup. It’s true. ;) FluffyCat, you should know that Jason just likes giving me a hard time. It’s how we roll. lol
I’ve been giving Mari a hard time in my blogs since 2006. It’s a time-honed tradition.
I DON’T WANNA DIE PEOPLE!
Also, on a less hysterical side note: I know Jim Baen’s Universe and Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine show both put up a teaser (or 1/2) a story, and then require a small fee to read the rest.
I always did love a good game of Hangman. Don’t worry, Maggie, I don’t think you’ll be the first in line for hanging. ;)
I bought the February and March issue individually instead of a subscription because you’ll get more money out of me that way. See, I’m thinking of you.
Okay, MAGGIE will be up first, not Mari. HANGMAN TIME! :)
Hey Michele, thank you…I was going to email and suggest you subscribe, but hey, I’m not going to argue about getting an extra buck.