You know how people don't usually ask for free bites of food at restaurants? But when it comes to apps or online stuff, even if it's $9 a month, everyone wants a free trial. Why is that? Is it because we can't see or touch digital things like we can with food? Maybe they don't realize that it's expensive for companies to run and maintain software. Or do we just expect more freebies on the internet these days? It's kinda weird when you think about it.
Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
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Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#2The same reason why you test drive a car before you buy it. I would pose it’s only weird from a business point of view.
A restaurant visit is not a long term commitment. The subscription transaction is.
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#3I do not want to hand over early my payment and other sensitive details to a counterparty that I do not know or trust (yet).
(I built a whole business around helping other people avoid this too.)
Yes, freebies are nice, but so is privacy and not having to fight bad card charges.
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#4Your argument is similar to the “it costs less than a cup of coffee” subscription defence, and just as flawed. Not everyone drinks coffee or goes to restaurants, and the prices and experience of restaurants and coffee aren’t the same around the world. Don’t try to make comparisons between digital and physical purchases with no analogue.
If I go to a restaurant I can pay cash or do it securely with a card. If I don’t like it, I’m free to never return and not think about it again. When I pay for a subscription, unless it’s via the App Store’s in-app purchases I’m giving you a name and credit card number, and have to remember to cancel it if I don’t like it, but even if I do I have to trust you with the information I already gave, or send an erasure request then trust you’ll honour it, and, and, and.
It’s a fundamentally different experience. No, you don’t go to a restaurant and ask for free bites, but after visiting a restaurant you don’t have to spend months fighting them to stop sending spam, or worrying that they charge you again even if you didn’t eat there, or worry they’re selling your data to other unscrupulous companies, or, or, or.
It’s not about the cost. Your subscription could be $0.01 a year and it would still demand more trust than a restaurant.
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#5Because you can expect the food to taste a certain way.
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#6[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#7It's kinda weird that YOU think this way. What company do you run so I can avoid it?
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#8Question that answers your question:
Why should I pay $9 to try it for 5-10 minutes and never use it again? I realised i never intended to use it at all.
It then becomes the $9 can be easily refunded.
On that basis its even easier to commit to a free trial.
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#9> But when it comes to apps or online stuff, even if it's $9 a month, everyone wants a free trial. Why is that?
Because offers of apps and online stuff regularly prove themselves less trustworthy than offers of food?
Re: Ask HN: Why do people expect free trial on a $9/mo subscription
#10Question that answers your question: Why should I pay $9 to try it for 5-10 minutes and never use it again? I realised i never intended to use it at all. It then becomes the $9 can be easily refunded. On that basis its even easier to commit to a free trial.
This is my POV.
I want to know if I can use the service, if it is performant, if it's worth $9.
I work in £, but that's over £5 pcm.
Some people balk at that. It's a pint of beer, yes. That's in #firstworld land. For some people, and there will be some in your market, or target demographic who fit this; that £5 is genuinely important every month.