The “BIGGEST SALE EVER” Problem in Audio Plugin Sales

Plugin sales are starting to feel a bit like walking past one of those car dealerships with giant inflatable balloons.

Everything is always:
“LAST DAY.”
“BIGGEST SALE EVER.”
“FINAL HOURS.”

…followed by another “final” sale three days later 😅

We’re not against discounts at all — everyone loves finding a good deal. But sometimes the endless sale cycle makes it easy to forget that a lot of plugins are built by tiny indie teams (or one sleep-deprived person with too many synths and a vision).

And fun fact: in software and gaming, researchers have found that constant discounts actually train people to wait for sales instead of buying things when they truly want or need them. Which honestly makes sense — most of us have a plugin folder full of “great deals” we forgot to open.

We’ve always liked the idea of keeping things a little more relaxed. Less pressure, less noise, fewer flashing countdown timers trying to convince you your life changes in the next 14 minutes.

And when there are discounts on HIRO, all of them are planned together with the developers themselves — not random race-to-the-bottom pricing. We want sales to feel fair, not exhausting.

Just thoughtfully made tools from developers we genuinely like.

Ironically, buying fewer plugins more intentionally usually leads to making more music anyway.

Thanks for being here.

— HIRO