Well, i have some critique about your website and policy. This may seem like a rant, and it totally is, however, i will still try to explain my points and hope you will understand.
Also this will be quite long, but i have the time now, thanks to your download policy, which i will come to talk about too. (guess its only half my fault for all that
)First of all, i see three ways, people can find your mod:
1. Youtube/Twitch
2. Recommendations from friends/clan-members etc.
3. Random references in other mods/blog/forum posts
For me, i found you by the last two points. But for the sake of argument, i will explain from a view of someone who found you "randomly".
I searched "promod for ets2" in google and came here. Positive: very nice looking and clean web presentation.
I couldn't find a "Downloads" button and knew: okay i probably will need too register. (Understandable for me, but some ppl might drop out here because they are more concerned about their data)
After Registration i began too think: What am i about to download, is this worth the hustle?
This is a big problem on this website: You try to sell a product to a costumer (yes you do by charging money, which i can totally understand and respect, but the way you do it is problematic from my point as: "random user")
There is no easy accessible thread on this forum explaining to me what your mod does and giving me a motivation to download your mod manually (without the ease of use from the Steam Workshop) and also to pay money for it. So i basically have to buy the cat in the box, without spending either 30-60 min additional researching or even more to get a free download where we come to the next problem:
I am a chrome user, after the first download i get smacked on the head by i quite disrespectful message "dayum girl" (you are trying to sell a product, although i haven't payed yet, but you probably lost someone who might would have)
Most new people probably dropped at this point.
I activated my VPN and got to download the other parts anyway, but its quite anoying. (why make it harder for someone to play your mod?)
Also, where is your donate button? Or Patreon?
I don't complain about you wanting something back for your hard work, i totally understand that. But this is not how it works.
You need an easy access to your product with as little hindrance as possible and a good explanation why your mod is fucking awesome and how many hours you have put into it.
Then when people play it and see: god dam this is nice, some even come back and want to pay you back with 50 bucks via paypal or patreon or what not.
Maybe some will even pay to get a patch a week early (e.g. CEMU emulator has a policy i think is totally fine)
inb4:
- We don't have the resources to give unlimited download: Well, with an easier access to your mod, more people can play it and more can give you something in return -> you can get the resources
also, other modding sites can manage too -> subsim, rallysim, racedepartment.
- We don't want to sellout with donate and patreon: Where is that a sellout? You have put allot of work into that mod, to give people an opportunity to give something back is no sellout, especially when you give an easy access and fast download.
- You are just a rare case/ Why you use Chrome?!/ "We can't handle critique": Yeah that's fine, if you only focus on your already established user group you surely will make progress.
Well that is my 3 cents, i am open for a discussion if that is necesary.
best regrads
