How to sell fee-based support.

When Apple's Claris division closed its most recent fiscal year, it booked a hefty $916,000 from fee-based support--"double what I thought we'd do," says tech support senior director Dave Aune. One of the most interesting sources of this new-found support revenue is an innovative debit card that lets users buy prepaid units of support (typically ten minutes for $19.95). Claris has been selling debit cards on a limited scale for about four months, and Aune says he hopes to open up additional distribution channels that will make the card an even larger source of support revenue.

Aune points out that Claris titles sell at mass-market price points, so it's not easy to convince customers they should pay premium prices for tech support. But he remains convinced that imaginative service products (like the debit card) and well-targeted marketing tactics will win users over to the idea of fee-based support. His advice:

* Give Users plenty of warning: Claris moved to free-based support at an almost snail-like pace, says Aune. In 1993, the company quietly removed "any mention of free or unbounded service" from its manuals and help screens. Then Claris announced a new policy that limited users to just 90 days of free support--but waited nine months before actually charging customers for post-warranty service. "By then, everybody was used to the idea that they would have to pay for extended support, and there were almost no complaints."

* Keep the plan simple: Initially, Claris offered three different support plans--a $129 individual contract, a $499 "professional" plan that provided additional software and tools, and a $3,999 multi-user help desk package. But customers virtually ignored the higher-priced plans; 80% of support revenues ended up coming from the $129 contract. ("We didn't sell a single one of the help desk plans," Aune says, "though the sales force gave away several.") The message was clear: Customers want simple, low-cost access to phone support, and they don't see much value in extra bells and whistles.

* Use free support to pre-qualify fee-based prospects: Claris also learned that users are most likely to buy fee-based support if they've just had a positive experience with free warranty support. (Claris follows up on support plan leads with the help of an outside telemarketing group, Aune says.) Claris also found that some customer segments are much hotter support contract prospects than others. "Filemaker Pro users at business addresses produce the bulk of our support revenues," he says. "But we don't even bother calling ClarisWorks users any more."

* Offer free alternatives: To make sure customers don't feel they're being forced to buy a service that was once free, Claris always offers alternatives to fee-based support programs, such as free on-line, fax, and automated voice options. These services aren't as personal as dealing with a live technician, Aune admits, but lots of users nevertheless seem satisfied with the quality of Claris's free services. "In fact, 41% of our customer transactions are currently delivered on-line."

David Aune, senior director of customer support services, Claris Corp., 5201 Patrick Henry Drive, Santa Clara, Calif. 95052; 408/987-3970.