I need some advice for a refund policy for a tutorial book

[kitinseattle]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington

Hi All,

Brand new here, and am grateful for the opportunity to ask this question.

I am getting ready to sell a tutorial for people who would like to optimize their Web content (websites and videos) for Google search, Yahoo search, etc. The Guide, as I call it, is 100% clean, and uses strategies that are considered by search engines to be "best practices". It works.

My dilemma is whether or not to offer a refund.

1. Do I not offer a refund and risk losing sales? It's only $97, but many people won't buy anything without a refund available.
2. Do I offer a refund and risk that people will use my strategies even after a refund is granted?

So that's my main challenge - if this were a tangible item (such as unopened or unactivated software) then of course I'd offer a refund. But this is pure information, easily downloaded and easily kept on a computer, and I'm wondering how to protect it.

Another question - if I grant a refund, does that mean that they no longer have to abide by the "you will not copy, give, or transfer any part of the Guide to others" clause? Or is my product wide-open to abuse?

My temptation is to simply not offer a refund as it is in the same category as, for instance, an e-book. But I've invested a lot of time in this, and I'd like it to sell!

Sorry this is turning into a long post...

1. Any ideas as to my options?
2. Is this something that falls into the intellectual property realm?
3. If you were the owner of a small business would you buy something that doesn't have a money-back guarantee?

I do have one very foggy thought that I'm really unclear on - I suppose I could turn the Guide into an .exe file and then send an activation code after they make their purchase and download, but I have no idea of how it works, what it would cost to implement, etc. I did a search for "refund policies for software"

So, any thoughts would be very much appreciated, and thanks again!!!

Kit in Seattle

 

[mmmagique]

I would not offer a refund.

I have purchased something similar; a video tutorial on SEO through XxxxxSoftware. It can only be accessed by inputting a user name and password, although I have unlimited uses. I believe it also checks my IP address as well. I suppose if I REALLY wanted to cheat them, I could videotape the course, and send it to my associates, but if I think they need to learn something that badly, I will pay for them to have their own subscription.

Instead of offering a refund, you might want to consider giving it (or selling it very inexpensively) to people who are interested in this type of product in exchange for an honest review. Then you can have the (honest) reviews up on your website, for people to make up their own minds. (I know several webmasters who might be interested in reviewing it for you, depending on the price.)

You might want to have something that says something like, "Due to the nature of this product, we cannot offer refunds at this time. If you have a problem or complaint, please contact us at blah blah blah, and we will do our very best to resolve your issue."

Another thing you might consider is to include some "sample pages" (similar to what Amazon does) so people can get a feel for whether your information is too advanced, too elementary, or just right for their needs.

Good luck!