In my quest to find web software (CRM's, CMS's, Analytics packages), I have seen a lot of things vendors do that are not only bad marketing practice, but could very eaisly be costing vendors millions in sales each year. These practices are normally not done from lapse of judgement or unqualified marketers, but for other reasons, such as security and privacy. This is a perfect example of where good intentions create actions that work in adverse ways. For that reason, i've comprised a list of things vendors may be currently doing that are in fact bad marketing.

1) No Screenshots  - Okay, this is pretty simple here. You have software you want to sell. You describe it in detail on your site, but you don't offer screen shots of the software. Why? Why on earth would you forego screen shots? Would you create a product to sell in stores and then not photgraph it? Better yet, would you create a product to sell in stores, not show the product itself in advertising, and not stock the shelves with it; just having a sticker that says "Product must be packaged in back. Ask sales associate for pricing info"? I don't think so. 

Screenshots don't cost anything, and people may be turned on by your screen shots and turned off of your lack there of. No screen shots of your software is just something that users won't tolerate.

The major reason for a lack of screen shots is security. These companies don't want to have their competitors see what they are doing, thus hiding it from the rest of us. They want you to contact them, setup a demo, and they control who see's it. They also feel users are more likely to buy if a sales rep can talk the user through the software. Newsflash: If a rep needs to tell me how to use something, then i'm sure as hell not going to buy it. This selling model doesn't work unless your software costs 5 figures + in which case, I must say that you need to re-evaluate your business model, because in a few years you won't be around anymore. Your web software is probably being developed and distributed for free or at a fraction of the cost somewhere else and it's probably also better than yours; and guess what, they have screen shots too.

2) No online Demo  - This goes hand-in-hand with the no screenshots. Your software can be installed on a server, it has an administrator area that's web accessable, why can't i see the demo? I would much rather buy software that I can see first and try out without a scheduled phone interview. If i see it and like it, we'll talk. This is like buying a car. I want to walk the lot on Sunday when the dealer is closed instead of having a sales guy around when I am just browsing. 

 3) Scheduled Demos - In case you were blind while reading 1 and 2, I hate setting up demos. I want to window shop, and lots of studies show that so do most people in America. I don't want to be hassled the first time out of the gate. Neither will your potential customers. In fact, the internet that works survives on one principle; anonymity. I don't want to talk to you, ever! I want to see your product, see your competitiors product, decide for myself what I like, buy it online, and have it so simple to use, I never ever have to talk to you via phone or email. That is what we should all strive for with e-commerce.  If you can create a site and product so simple that you never get one call for support or one call for sales, you will make millions.

4) No Posted Pricing - In some cases this is alright. If you sell software that is re-purposed or re-sold, you don't want end-users to know what your clients pay for it or what their mark-up is. However in the large majority, this is a bogus practice. Not disclosing your prices yells one thing to most people, you are WAY over priced and you feel the only way to sell is to talk to prospects first, reel them in, then slap them with the cost. News flash, your sticker is still shocking even after a 2 hour phone/web demo. But guess what, after 2 hours i'm still not buying and I'm just pissed I wasted 2 hours of my day. In fact, you wasted 2 hours of your day too.

Okay, so this was a partial rant, I know. But if this upsets me, it must upset others. If you take away one thing from this thread it's this: design your site so that no one ever needs to contact you for anything. Post screen shots, post working demos, and post prices. Then, if someone is really interested, setup a way for them to buy online. If they need to call you then for even more information, it's acceptable, but then your salesman's job just got a lot eaiser, because the caller knows the features, knows if they like it, and knows the price.