On itch.io any item that can accept money is automatically “pay what you want” or “pay any amount above the minimum”, yet there are many more options to let you set the right pricing for your content.
If you're giving your content away for free downloaders will still have the opportunity to send you money before they download. If set a minimum price on your content then buyers can pay that amount, or anything above.
In concept it sounds like a nice idea and in practice it proves to be a great idea.
30% of all money spent on itch.io is “extra” money that is paid above the minimum. The average purchase on itch.io is about 1.50 more than the minimum.
— Running an Indie Game Store 2015, itch.io blog
Just by having this feature, itch.io is giving developers a significant boost in profits!
A good way to encourage someone to spend more on your content is to add additional content priced above the minimum.
itch.io lets you set minimum prices on individual files. For example, if you're selling a game for $1 you could offer the option to get access to the soundtrack when paying $2 or more.
You can even added priced files when your project is normally free. Encourage a donation by offering additional content like levels or music. For example, you could offer a level pack for $2 with an otherwise free game.
Discounts are another effective way to drive more purchases to your project. Instead of manipulating the price directly, simply create a sale — you can decide when it starts and ends, how deep the discount is, which of your projects are included, and even set a bundle price.
itch.io also lets you team up with other content creators and organize a bundle of your respective wares entirely from the comfort of your dashboard.
You can easily implement an Early access model using itch.io. Simply set the release status to In development in the project’s edit page, upload the current version of your project, set a minimum price, and you're all set.
Once someone buys your early access project, they will have access to all future updates. You can even let them know by e-mail when a new version is out, or encourage them to follow you on itch.io so that they see all your activity in their feed.
Learn about interacting with your fans
A project is a pre-order if all its public uploads have the This file is a pre-order placeholder checkbox ticked. It will allow buyers to purchase before uploads are made available.
You can set a goal on any sale. This enables a banner on the project page, displaying how much has been collected, and the progress made towards the current goal.
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