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Red-Gate Sql Refactor is great! Pricing - not so much.

I installed Red-Gate’s Sql Refactor addin when the beta first came out and instantly loved it!  The features were perfect; the automatic code-formatting, smart renaming, configurable sql coding style preferences, not to mention all of the DDL refactoring tools.

It finally made Microsoft’s Sql Server Management Studio [almost] everything it SHOULD have been.   A while back, I noticed that my install had quit working, so I visited their website today to check for an update.  Sweet! The product is no longer in beta.

In fact, it now has a great new price of $295!!!

Well, I mean “Great” as-in;

  • This is the greatest marketing mistake I have seen in a while.
  • There will be “great” demand for this download on BitTorrent.
  • Great product, not-so-great price.
  • Wow!  Red-gate will now make thousands of $$ instead of millions! Great idea!
  • My desire to laugh is greater than my desire to buy.

Come on guys!  As great the features are in Sql Refactor, it’s still a freakin add-in.   Furthermore, its an add-in for a 3rd rate (being generous) Sql query tool.   This is Marketing 101 – price high, sell few; price low, sell many.  

The product has a potentially large target market, including every single Sql Server 2005 DBA and developer, so it could succeed if marketed with pricing that matches this potential volume.  The good news is that Red-Gate produced an excellent tool, and realizes its value to developers and DBA alike.  The bad news is that they seem to have seen the $$ and got greedy. 

So, a tip-of-the-hat to the  Red-Gate developers, but a wag-of-the-finger to  Red-Gate marketeers.

  

Published with blogmailr

Posted: Nov 07 2006, 10:39 AM by CodeSniper | with 7 comment(s)
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Comments

The Other Steve said:

I'd like something like this redgate tool, but $295 is steep. If it was $49.95, I'd buy it. At $295, I'm more tempted to write my own and give it away for free.
# November 7, 2006 12:14 PM

CumpsD said:

The thought of using it fades from my mind instantly when I saw the price.

The features make me drool, the price makes me hit ALT-F4.

# November 7, 2006 1:44 PM

Andras Belokosztolszki said:

Hi Phil, I'm very pleased you like our tool. On the pricing - we think we are very competitively priced compared to a lot of SQL tools. Most of Red Gate's software costs between $195 and $295. Other vendors are happy to charge $1000 or more for SQL tools. We think this is pretty reasonably considering the way we make software. SQL Refactor took 6 months to develop and required two developers, two testers, a usability engineer and a technical author to do, and I think this is reflected in the quality of the tool. At least with Red Gate you are paying for quality engineering, and not a big sales force on top. $295 isn't too much for a piece of software you might use everyday (if it saves you a couple of hours a month, then it's already paying for itself within weeks?). Also, in December we will be doing a bundle of three tools - SQL Refactor, SQL Prompt and SQL Doc for $495.... etc. Andras (Red Gate Software)
# November 8, 2006 6:27 AM

SBC said:

They should have started with an introductory pricing of ~$99 and then after a few months move the price up.. Greed is good - Gordon Gecko in 'Wall Street' ;-)
# November 8, 2006 10:02 AM

bonder said:

Yeah, seriously, if you can't rationalize this purchase then you really don't do that much SQL database engineering. Get a client and after a day you'll have enough money to license this great tool.
# November 9, 2006 3:25 AM

Lance's Whiteboard said:

Someone sent me a link to the latest Red-Gate beta-ware, Sql Doc. This looks like it will become an essential

# November 14, 2006 11:56 AM

Bodhi Densmore said:

SQL Refactor has a few blemishes but I WANT IT.  At least I want the functionality it offers.  The price is a little steep for a 1.0 release.  Are there any competitive tools?  If not, I will buy from Red-Gate.

# December 1, 2006 5:00 PM