Hi Guys

I'm curious, how much would you pay for a DVD or a book on adventure bike travel. Do you bother about cost or more interested in the content?

I've seen some really good books fairly cheap and DVD's in same boat. Others look rather expensive ... maybe this is me market research for the next one to be honest but following a DVD sales thing I was surprised at how tight some people can be and how generous others are. I hope this doesnt upset anyone, as Im not questioning anything about others prices, merely curious as to peoples expectations.

Is £20 too expensive for a single DVD? fair? Is £10 too cheap? What about a good book?

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Steven
Perth to Perth 2012

Steven
The problem with DVD's is that not everyone watches them. The wonders of the web mean that people can find nearly everything they want online for free. That doesn't mean DVD's have no use because they do. There are still many people who want to sit down in front of the telly and watch a good show. The content is what matters. It doesn't matter if you're giving it away, if it ain't good then no-one will want it. If I was buying a single DVD I wouldn't pay any more than £10 or so. But that's just me, others may think differently.
As for a book? I suppose all of the above applies as well. The common denominator is that either product has to be exceptionally well made or have a brilliant story to it. A combination of the two would do nicely!

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"Life is too short to drink cheap wine!"

£10-15 is as much as I would pay for a single DVD adventure travel film.

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www.AdventureVagabond.com Mongolia & Siberia 2012: Adventure Moto Madness

why not do a sample run of others pricing on DVD's & mean(average) from there.


I believe a lot of book authors are now going down the downloadable route- it might be cheaper to do a run & therefore less to charge out?


Are you now back in Aus?- if not...a good place to assess might be the June HU meet..or when it comes to Aus?


Hows that new camera...I see fantastic reviews about it!

This seems a fair amount. Baring in mind that many aren't much over an hour, £18 seems a little steep!

I forget how much I paid for Perth to Perth, but I did enjoy it! The KTM didn't fair well!

Taking everything into consideration, I think content (quality) would be the deciding factor.

Now, where's Oisin Hughes' DVD?!

I'm a voracious reader and if I bought every book I read then I'd have no money left for petrol.
I get all my books out of the library - or if I'm on the road, at a book exchange.

I now get most of my books as audiobooks from the library and download them onto my hard drive to listen to them at my leisure.

I rarely, if ever, get ebooks as I'm old-school and like to hold paper.

I rarely, if ever, buy DVDs as I only watch them once and then they become dust collectors. I would pay $3-4 to watch them online but there is so much free stuff nowadays, I'd never get time to ride if I tried to watch it all.

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Postie Notes - "you're not seriously going around Australia on a postie bike??"

ADV/Travel market appears well flooded with content ATM. The Internet's made every "Johnny Adventure" an expert, giving them a stage upon which to perform. With no vetting, the internet creates "The Cult Of The Amateur", and anyone can put up a story or film ... may even make money at it.

But most ride reports/vids are well intentioned amateur efforts.
"A for Effort" does not sell the book or film.

Selling price? Not the right question to ask at this point. First, have something worth seeing/reading ... get good reviews and distribution. Let's see a trailer!


That said, real talent will always rise to the top ... and get noticed. Eventually. How much time you got? But not everyone can write lyrically, tell an original story with a twist or capture a reader.
Film making, IMO is even tougher to do well.

Distribution is another worry. Unless a writer or film maker has a powerful resume of work, he/she may run into some bumps in the road. Baby steps to get there.

Ted Simon hit a home run first time out with Jupiter's Travels ... but had a decade writing at the news paper and was "pre internet". Lois Pryce's Lois On The Loose came 30 years later ... it was cheery and funny .. Lois had worked at BBC doing media, she's witty and just plain smart. No idea if her Beeb connections helped get her book on the shelves worldwide? :confused1: (couldn't hurt)

Austin Vince's Mondo Enduro and Terra Circa now look like charming "old school" semi pro efforts ... but somehow deliver(ed) the goods. Funky but fun to watch. Not much else like them back in the 90's. All the key elements of a good documentary were adhered to. (mostly!)

Long Way Round worked due to celebrity appeal and corporate backing/distribution ... and good editing! Most haven't a clue just how important editing is. I was in film school 4 years ... never got close to being good at it. You either CAN or your CANNOT edit. Can't be taught. (unless you're cutting news or "reality show" horseshite, which doesn't count! ) A good script and a smart cameraman make a BIG difference.

So as said above: content is everything. And quality. And intelligence. And excellent camera work, sound, music ... and editing!

Price? If it's good ... then "whatever the traffic will bear".
Go for it!

From my dabblings in this area I'd suggest you'd need to look at other things first rather than the price. With DVDs in particular production quality is king and there's so much professionally produced content around these days that anything falling below that level is going to amateurish at best.

A kind of "Wot I did on my holidays" production made by nailing various bits of action cam footage together in iMovie and covering up the wind noise with a guitar rif "borrowed" from the internet isn't going to be good enough.

I'm not implying or suggesting that's what your going to do but merely saying that if you're going to produce something for sale it really has to be done well. Stuff that falls below an acceptable std is just embarrassing to watch and anyone buying it with their own money is likely to negatively review it to the point where sales vanish. For me, Mondo Enduro falls below that standard and I find it very hard to watch.

Your sale price is going to come from working out what it costs to shoot decent footage, what it costs to edit it to a professional standard, what it costs to manufacture and promote it and dividing all of that by your likely sales. If it's a niche product that last bit may be lower than you think. Film production is the only area apart from motor racing where the old quip "how do I make a small fortune? Start with a large one and make a film" isn't meant as a joke.

Books, on the other hand, are a different matter. I'd be much more likely to take a chance on a book than a DVD. With the advent of DIY publishing - either completely DIY via CreateSpace for example or cheap "You pay, We print" deals (Lulu etc) you can bypass the previous hawking the manuscript round traditional publishers route. I've done three books like this in the past few years. It great fun and cost virtually nothing - I doubt I've spent more than £50 in getting all three into print.

If you can write reasonably well, have a passible knowledge of grammar (or know someone who does), have the discipline to edit the thing endlessly after you've finished and like the thought of manning market stalls, talking to the W.I., pestering bookshop owners, producing a website and dealing with internet sales then go for it. Even in a crowded market, if you've got an interesting tale to tell or a manual with information people want / need it'll sell if you push it hard enough.

You're far more likely to sell a book with loads of colour pictures to illustrate the text, but that's going to cost a lot more to DIY produce than something which is text only. Price wise, there would have to be a good reason for me to pay more than £10 for a printed book - but that's my cheapskate nature. If you can get it on the market for that and make a profit (quite possible) it's an interesting thing to do. Don't expect to make a fortune though - a friend of mine DIY produced a very good book a few years ago (he's related to a very high end "serious" novelist so had a bit of help), hawked it round everywhere and had just managed to sell his 400 copy print run in two years.

Here's a couple I did earlier (haven't got a pic of the third to hand) -

Mollydog!-what a well reasoned reply!

What would you pay for DVD or a Book on adventure bike travel?

Not a cent!

I read the HU forum among others, follow threads and blogs on the net and watch TV documentaries on far flung places when I have the time. Save the cash for travel ;-)

I could easily pay 50£ for good book (or DVD), but I will not pay at all for a bad book.

As many of you possibly know my last little adventure is on DVD. I've learned a lot and will be using that knowledge on the next one. Its good to hear how others think.

I've remastered a lot and now have two free episodes online. To see the other 4 you will have to buy the DVD. I do wish I got the money, all profits to several charities. In fact its no where near enough considering the time I put into it, not complaining its just very very time consuming but rewarding.

Please go buy one. Mention torrents and I'll have to kill you.

If you are too tight arsed, I'll send my wife round with a tin of WD40 but that costs extra!
Episodes 1 and 2 here

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Steven
Perth to Perth 2012

Torrents??? What are they? Tell us more!!

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"Life is too short to drink cheap wine!"

Dvd? Nothing. A paper book I might buy if the info were good and about an area I'm interested in.

The fact is that there is now so much info and video available for free through the internet. A book would have to be very good to compete. And DVD. The only DVD player I have now is my old laptop, and it's been months since I've watched a DVD. EVERYTHING is streaming or download now.

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Bruce Clarke - 2020 Yamaha XV250

phuck off

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Steven
Perth to Perth 2012