The Power of Free Trials
Sunday, February 28, 2010
This week I was surfing the web looking at different types of offers and couldn't help but think about all of the different approaches to getting prospects further along in the purchase decision funnel. This is one of the most important areas that we, as marketers, can focus on.
One type of sales/marketing promotion that I'm seeing quite a bit of is the free trial. Online, the way this generally works is to offer a 7 day or 30 day free trial. When signing up for the offer, you are asked to enter your credit card information. Upon trial expiration, you're charged the full amount for your product or service.
Many services are subscription based too, charging your credit card a recurring fee. Subscription sites are a great way deliver information and provide a great deal of value. These sites, and others like them, are using free trials to allow you to experience the product or offering. Those who continue on with the product or service are more loyal and better informed about what they are buying.
I know a number of Internet marketers who offer subscription based services and they claim a much higher level of engagement among customers and higher degree of satisfaction. The question I have to ask myself as a marketer is how I can apply this methodology (free trial) to my own products and services?
This week, think about the products you're marketing or selling. Is there a way to give your prospect a sample of what you offer? If you are offering an informational product, can you share the first chapter or first couple of pages (..as I have with my book, SEO Made Simple)? Can you offer a small sample of your physical product? If you are a retail store, can you construct product samples that would allow prospective customers to take something home and try it out for a short period - charging them if the item is not returned or returned late?
I realize that free trials aren't ideal for everyone or every product. None-the-less, they force us rethink how we expose our prospects and services to our target market. If free trials aren't viable for your business perhaps they can encourage you to rethink the payment model for your products or services. Can users buy a basic service (sample) and then pay for the standard or platinum service? What type of upgrades can you offer - adding features beyond an initial purchase.
By rethinking the value of a trial you can take your marketing to the next level. The key is to experiment with different offers. Measure how many prospects take you up on the initial offer and then the upsell or ongoing subscription. It's important to focus on life time customer value, not just the initial purchase price.
Marketing Blog founder and top-selling author Michael Fleischner has been featured on The TODAY Show, ABC World News, and Bloomerg Radio. 
6 comments :
Hi Michael, I was thinking of how to increase the number of survey participants. Any idea??
Offering free trials and subscription is a great way to gain customer trust. I myself have purchased a few items after free trials. It is a very nice way of finding things that meet all your requirements before you actually spend on a particular item.
I think that the free trials is a great idea for companies today...especially with comapnies dealing with online subscriptions...I know that I used the free trial for Netflix and I am OFFICALLY HOOKED to it. I cant see my life without it now! When companies allow people to use free trials consumers are way more likely to pay for the subscription after! :) great post!
I have not used a free trial before but have been interested. The article is interesting because as a marketer your taking your marketing further by intiating value with the free trial and creating possible brand loyalty and awarness. Great point to rethink could lead to potential customers. Great article
I strongly agree. I am in favor of free trials as a professional and as a consumer. For instance, I was so biased against Netflix as I was a huge blockbuster.com fan; but after a free trial period I was in love with Netflix.
Internet marketing is not about having an advertisement on the Internet for your products. Having it in the right way and in the right place over the Internet is what makes it effective. Very few companies in the world can lay claim to the fact that they can deliver what they offer. Campaigns over the Internet will vary according to the budget specified by the marketing company.
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