I've started something of an experiment over on my site. Whether or not it will work, only time will tell. Essentially, 90% of my PDFs are now free to order. All you have to do is email me, tell me what PDF(s) you want, and I will send them to you. No money changes hands, and there are no PayPal buttons on the product pages. Then, once you've had a chance to read the PDF, you can donate whatever fee you think the PDF is worth and how much you have learned from it. Sort of 'try before you buy', but with the price not being fixed. There is a 'recommended donation' figure attached to each product, but if you think it was worth $1, you just pay $1. If you think it was a $1000, by all means please donate $1000! Likewise, if you didn't like the PDF at all, then you don't pay. Simple as that.

I'm hoping it won't be taken advantage of, that people won't just order everything I've ever produced and then decide not to donate. I guess it's a kind of honor system. Whether I'm being a fool or not remains to be seen! But I thought it would make an interesting experiment if nothing else.

I really hope it works, and that perhaps this will be the start of how I will work from now on.

So, the system is up and running right now over at http://www.readerofminds.co.uk . Go get some free PDFs, but remember to keep your honor in place!

Thanks, Voodini! WOW! Talk about magicians helping magicians!! I hope the honor system pays off for you.

I just had some guy tell me that he tried this. Had 50+ downloads, and only 1 donation. That won't happen to me, will it?

First donations starting to come in - faith in humanity reaffirmed!

Done!

That's an amazing offer, although I don't think I could afford what I think your work is actually worth!

Hope this works out for you Paul. Love your palm reading for magicians DVD by the way
Regards
Dave

Thanks guys, appreciate it. This offer is on-going - so far, so good. There've been some donations at least!

Paul,

My kind of performing and your style are completely different, which is why I have never purchased anything of yours. However, because of your generosity, I am very likely to purchase something. So, while others might be siphoning off your goodwill gesture, you have made a sale because of it. I will have to take some time and see what would best suit my performing style.

Thanks.

Bobby

Trying new things and thinking out of the box is a formula for success. I hope this experiment works. As soon as I get a chance I'll browse your site and see what I think will work for me. Thanks for your trust and I hope this pays off and perhaps others will follow.
Steve

Thanks guys. It's a fun experiment that seems to be working thus far. Fingers crossed that it pans out. I like the idea of putting the power in the hands of the consumer.

I voluntarily paid full price for an interesting PDF. That was the deal. Pay what it is worth for you. I thought it was worth the price it was listed for.

I wish you good and honest business, Paul.

(Dutch) Frank

Thank you Frank, you're a gentleman. I shall report back over the next few days to let you know how the response has been going. It will make, I think, fascinating reading.

Just a very gentle reminder to the people who received PDFs from me on a donation basis that donations can be made to the PayPal address shown on my website http://www.readerofminds.co.uk - the donation rate is currently around 20% but I am sure that this is purely down to people having lives to lead, and that donations will be coming before too long.

Need con confess, I have and like most of Paul`s stuff. Also he is a good person.
Since the beginning, I liked his material.
Actually I did the first review from his first publication and both were ridiculed at the Café, but I did not care. I know his thinking and publications are great. And now who can ridicule him?
Paul thank you for share your knowledge and to help us to be better performers.
Regards!

Paul, I met you at doomsday, and you are a true gentleman, as such could I suggest that you limit the downloads to one at a time, then if someone repeatedly does not donate you could block them, I fear you are going to have your material 'raped' and you are too nice a guy for that!

hope it works out good for you!
Rob

Thanks guys. Yes, I fear you may be right (although I hope not). One or two people did put in a 'shipping' order for a lot of PDFs and haven't donated yet. However perhaps they will in a little while, once they've read them all (!). To be honest, unless donations really pick up, I will have to go back to the more traditional selling method, which is a shame. Still, I have faith that most people will donate at least *something*. I had reckoned on as much as 50% not donating. I would be hugely disappointed if it turned out as high as 80%. The next week or two will, I guess, tell.

So you may be interested with an update of the percentage of people who are actually donating after receiving PDFs. At the moment it seems that around 40% of people donate at least something (usually it is the recommended donation, sometimes less, very occasionally more). I see 40% as being bad news/good news. It's good because, well, it could be worse! And it's bad because a whopping 60% of people were either just there for a free lunch or really hated my work!

It is, however, a LOT better than I experienced on the other side of my work coin. I brought out a physical book and a PDF novel called The Erotic Adventures of the Vampire Kate. As a marketing tool I gave the PDF away free (mainly via Facebook, I think I may have mentioned it on the Café). The idea was that if you received the PDF and liked it, you either donated £1 (yes, one little pound, or $1.50) or you purchased the physical book. I sent out 200 freebies. Out of the 200, 2 people donated £1, 2 people donated a little more, and one person bought the physical book. That, I must tell you, has proven to be most disheartening.

Anyway, the donation scheme is still running for my mentalism PDFs over at http://www.readerofminds.co.uk for anyone interested.

Well...
I don't need an update of your finance...if you are not happy...
Just stop what you are doing and sell your books, that's all.
Hopefully I'm not the only one who thinks this way.

It looks like your figures are of the percentage of people who donate after getting the free books. Are they donating the suggested amounts, more, or less?

I love the idea. I also wonder what effect "pay what you will" would have on piracy of magic ebooks.