Free Trials - How Software Providers can get the best from customers

I am sure all of us at one time or the other have signed up to use some software or an app, many of which offer free trials, but sometimes it's the free trial of the premium version which is offered first at the point of sign up, giving you the full package and benefits to try out.

This is really great if you already understand how to use the software/app to a great extent, or you are ready to go through all the training videos to quickly learn how to use it so you can try out the premium features.

It's also super cool if you or your organization is sufficiently big or developed enough to actually need the premium features.

What is not so cool though is when you sign up and have no idea that you have just started a 30-day free trial of premium features that you don't yet need for software you don't yet understand how to use. 3 days to the end of the trial you get a message telling you your trial has almost ended, please include payment details so you can continue to enjoy the premium features.

What premium features? I haven't even understood how to use the basic features yet!

Another thing these service providers do is get you to sign up for a free version with your credit card. Now we know that you can cancel the subscription at any time, but we also know that most of us usually forget to, and of course your credit card is hit with the renewal payment immediately the subscription expires.

Both scenarios above have happened to me a couple of times, and personally I would rather these apps and software providers simply sign people onto the basic version first or the "forever free" packages and allow users to play around to get a basic understanding of how to use them.

Chances are that as you gain understanding and use of the software/app, you will want to do more with it and naturally you will look for more features that can meet your needs. Only then will it make sense to sign up for the free trial of premium features which you can now maximize. If the features meet your needs, then obviously you will want to pay for a premium subscription.

So, software and app providers, you may want to consider this when offering your customers a free trial of the premium version of your products.

What is your take on this?

Has this happened to you?

Have you ever signed up to use an app/software and never realized that as you signed up it was for a free trial of premium features?

Do you always get to fully exploit and use the features during the trial version?

How effective do you think trial versions are?

Please share your experience with us in the comments section

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Written by Lady Shayo Imologome

Business Growth Strategist, Management Consultant, and Keynote Speaker

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