Sizing a free trial to the time retained customers need
The Pricing work group on trial length, when the clock starts, reverse trials and sales-assisted evaluations.
Updated
Measure how long retained customers take to reach the paid value, treat 14 days as a starting test for simple self-serve products, and compare lengths on revenue and retention at the same cohort age.
- Time it to the paid value. Ben Williams would count the days retained accounts take to reach a team-level milestone, including setup and inviting colleagues. Snyk's activation metric used a 30-day window, which he calls a measurement choice that doesn't prescribe a 30-day trial.
- Start at 14 days and test 30. Elena Verna would start a simple self-serve product at 14 days as a hypothesis. Kyle Poyar found trials often convert at 2 to 3 times the freemium rate. He would compare 14 and 30 days on revenue per signup at a fixed cohort age, because conversion on the expiry date favors the shorter trial.
- Choose when the clock starts. Elena would start access at signup if the paid feature helps during onboarding, or let users opt in once they have a workflow. For a collaborative product, Lauryn Motamedi would start premium access when the creator invites the first teammate and test 14 days from there.
- Plan for teams and slow calendars. Japna Sethi would track self-serve trials apart from sales-assisted evaluations and let sales extend one that is progressing. Ben suggests a usage limit or a reverse trial when a fixed clock could run out before a colleague reviews the work, but says a reverse trial fits poorly without a useful free plan.
Ask a follow-up
Pricing
Frequently Asked Questions
How should a consultant or agency price its services?
By the shape of the work: a fixed fee for a defined deliverable, a retainer for ongoing access, prepaid units for variable requests. Add a performance fee only once the metric, baseline and client duties are agreed.
How does a young startup or community choose a business model?
Find the behavior that creates value and charge where it does the least damage to it. Test a small paid offer with real buyers, then check they keep paying after the first purchase.
Should a transaction fee be flat or a percentage?
Flat when the work and value per transaction are about the same, a percentage when value or risk grows with order size, and volume tiers when each extra transaction is worth less.
How do you present a pricing change to executives?
Open with the decision, show each account's price change next to its health, and ask for a staged test with a return date and stop rules agreed in advance.
How many pricing tiers should a SaaS product have?
Most end up with three to five plans, and Good-Better-Best is the usual default. Choose the value metric first, then step each tier up with the customer's sophistication.
How do you break down a competitor's pricing?
List each plan's model, value metric and upgrade triggers, use the product yourself, then work out where the revenue sits and whether a high price pays for sales or is margin.
How should AI features and agents be priced?
Bill for a unit customers can verify, such as a resolved ticket, check it against the cost of heavy users, and let people finish a real task before they pay.
How do you move existing customers to a new pricing model?
Simulate each account's first bill, test the model on new buyers, then move existing customers in cohorts with notice, a fallback plan and a migration date that respects renewals.
What makes people pay at a paywall?
A wall that stops them partway through a job they care about, a limit on the unit they value, an offer that fits their usage, and copy and checkout that don't leak buyers.
