People buy templates, not software.
· Avery NXR
Our AppSumo launch is coming. When we started planning it, we thought about it as an AppSumo launch of our product.
Then we watched what actually sold on AppSumo.
The pattern was clear: customers weren't buying software. They were buying templates.
What we noticed
Look at the top-converting AppSumo deals of the last 12 months in AI/automation:
- One tool shipped with 200+ workflow templates. Deal hit $600K+.
- One tool shipped with 50 templates. Deal did $80K.
- One tool shipped with "and templates coming soon." Deal did $22K.
The pattern isn't ambiguous. Templates are the accelerant. Without them, the deal underperforms.
Why? Because the AppSumo buyer's mental model is:
"I'm buying this because I have a specific problem to solve. I don't want to figure out how to build a solution. I want to buy the solution."
Software gives them capability. Templates give them solutions.
Our first draft was wrong
We were planning to launch Avery on AppSumo with 7 templates (Anna, Sophia, Marcus, Priya, Carlos, Yuki, Liam).
Seven wasn't nothing. But seven wasn't enough.
At 7 templates:
- The buyer sees a demo of one
- Thinks "cool, but what if I need something different"
- Buys or doesn't based on how confident they are they can build for their specific case
- Confident buyer converts, uncertain buyer doesn't
At 50+ templates:
- The buyer scrolls the template gallery
- Finds 3-5 templates that match their exact workflow
- Buys because the specific solution is visible
- Converts confidence goes way up
What we're building
Between now and AppSumo launch (Week 12), we're shipping to 30+ high-quality templates:
Marketing (6):
- SEO keyword research automator
- LinkedIn post generator (in your voice)
- Blog outline drafter from customer conversations
- Newsletter draft from RSS feeds
- Content calendar generator from theme prompts
- Social media response drafter
Sales (6):
- Cold email personalizer with company research
- CRM update automation
- Lead qualification scorer
- Deal risk flag (from CRM activity)
- Follow-up cadence orchestrator
- Sales call summary + action items
Operations (6):
- Invoice chaser (Iris)
- Meeting follow-up drafter (Sophia)
- Support ticket triage (Priya)
- Competitor monitoring (Yuki)
- Server health digest (Liam)
- Vendor renewal alerter
People + HR (4):
- Resume screening + rubric scorer (Marcus)
- Interview note synthesizer
- New hire onboarding checklist generator
- Weekly team status roundup
Founder / Solo (4):
- Weekly KPI reporter
- Investor update draft generator
- Personal knowledge base indexer
- Deep work scheduler
Support + Community (4):
- FAQ generator from ticket patterns
- Community moderator (Discord + Slack)
- Documentation gap identifier
- Customer feedback categorizer
That's 30 templates. Real ones, tested with real data, documented, video-tutorial'd.
Why we're not doing 100
Some AppSumo playbooks suggest launching with 100+ templates.
We considered it. Then we did the math.
100 quality templates require:
- 30-40 hours of building per template (spec, integration, testing, documentation)
- 3,000-4,000 hours of total work
- Full-time dedicated resource for 3-4 months
We don't have that resource. And most 100+ template libraries include padding — templates that exist to hit the count but nobody uses.
We'd rather ship 30 templates that work than 100 that half-work. Templates that don't work generate refund pressure. Refund pressure on AppSumo hurts more than a shorter template list.
The compounding play
The launch templates are the seed. What matters is what happens next.
We're building a template marketplace where every Avery customer can publish their own templates for others to use. Some templates will be free. Some will be paid (creator sets the price, we take 15%).
30 launch templates + user-generated templates = the actual template library. 6 months from now, the library should be 200+. 12 months from now, 1000+.
The AppSumo launch is where the marketplace starts. Every LTD buyer becomes a potential creator. Some will publish templates. Those templates attract more customers. Those customers publish more templates.
The flywheel compounds. That's the real bet.
For founders considering the "software vs templates" question
Ask yourself: what does your buyer buy?
If they buy a general-purpose tool and configure it themselves — you're selling software.
If they buy a specific solution to a specific problem — you're selling templates.
AppSumo audiences buy templates. So do most SMB audiences. So do most non-engineer audiences.
If your product ships without solution-shaped templates, your funnel converts on capability. Slow. Uncertain. Refund-prone.
If your product ships with solution-shaped templates, your funnel converts on solutions. Fast. Confident. Sticky.
What comes next
30 templates by Week 10. Marketplace v1 by Week 12 (launch day). Community contribution rewards by Week 14. 200+ template library by Month 6.
The AppSumo launch is where we go from "software that can do things" to "solutions people can buy."
That's the transition. That's the whole point.
→ avery.software — template library live in Q3.