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Brilliant Marketing Use of A Free Trial

by Ken Leatherman
15 replies
I just left a site with a "Free Trial" of their software and I believe we could all take a marketing lesson away from it.

It actually gives you a 14 day free trial, without the use of a credit card or any other form of payment. Sorry, you do have to type your e-mail address in. This only to get your login information to use the software and of course add you to their marketing list.

First Marketing Lesson: Talk about creating software that was easy to use. Man even an "Old Geezer" like me, that is all thumbs when it comes to using software, was able to follow the users guide to the T and actually created my first project with it.

2nd Marketing Lesson: Then the "Free Trial" allowed me to use every feature on the software, where I could build my confidence in how easy it was to use.

3rd Marketing Lesson: Then viewing the finished project and giving me the ability to edit it gave me the "Power Rush" of being in control.

4th Marketing Lessons: Not only gave a picture of the benefits, but painted a picture of me using the benefits and benefiting from them.

5th Marketing Lesson: Hitting all the emotional buttons to drive me towards the buy button.

6th Marketing Lesson: Allowing completion of the project, letting me review it and then...

7th Marketing Lesson: Taking it away from me. Which in turn made me want to click on the pay button so I could take full advantage of what I had just created.

To me the way this software was developed and then used it to market, capture my interest and desire to own it was brilliant. Now it may be I'm a push over for a good sales pitch, but in this case the whole marketing approach blew me away.

The thing is these tactics have been around since fire was discovered and the guy who invented it and made a fortune selling it. Now I'm going to try and remember these lessons, every time I reach out to my market.

Ken
The Old Geezer
#brilliant #free #marketing #trial
  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    Ken, you had me right up to the 7th lesson, unless the takeaway was disclosed up front.

    Had I gotten all the way to completing a project, only to find it held hostage, I would have felt duped. They would have had me wondering what other gotchas were waiting for me.

    Of course, that's the result using a test sample of 1 - hardly statistically significant.
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    • Profile picture of the author Ken Leatherman
      You know John my first reaction was almost the same as yours, but then I started thinking about it.

      I had used it, I created now why don't I put it to use. It very nearly pushed me to use the buy button so I could take advantage of what I had done.

      So I got over feeling duped pretty quickly.

      Ken
      The Old Geezer
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  • Profile picture of the author John Cabral
    Yeah I have seen that one used before with other softwares that let you do everything but then you can't save. LOL

    I did something like that long time ago with something I created. You could use the software and all its features and see how it worked but you could not save your work until you paid for it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Michael Oksa
    Why not let the user actually use it 100% for 7 days. Completely. Allowing it to be saved, etc.

    Really give the user a sense of ownership and how great it is.

    I do like the fact that it wasn't a stripped down trial version, those drive me nuts. How do I know how well the inaccessible parts work? Am I supposed to guess?

    Anyway, even your example is a step up, and one I would like to see more programmers adopt.

    All the best,
    Michael
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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      Originally Posted by Michael Oksa View Post

      Why not let the user actually use it 100% for 7 days. Completely. Allowing it to be saved, etc.
      I remember one that let you use it for 30 days on a free trial, and let you save your work and everything.

      I think I ended up buying it the same weekend I downloaded the trial...
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      • Profile picture of the author Ken Leatherman
        Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

        [/B]

        You're missing the double negative: "have not" "NOT bought" - i.e. he always buys trial software.
        I'm an "Old Geezer" and if there is more than one negative, my brain has to go into overload. When that happens I crash and burn. :p

        Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert View Post

        I remember one that let you use it for 30 days on a free trial, and let you save your work and everything.

        I think I ended up buying it the same weekend I downloaded the trial...
        Dan you just took the words right out of my mouth. I have gone back and used my free trial several times. And have come up with a solid business plan to add another income stream to my arsenal.

        So I'm going to purchase the professional version of the software and put it to work creating another product for my list.

        As you can tell the software developer's marketing plan worked on me.

        Ken Leatherman

        The Old Geezer
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  • Profile picture of the author Chris W. Sutton
    That is great info Ken. It is a good marketing plan and the limited use provides a sense of pressure to buy. If you find the product does what you want it to do, you would just about have to buy.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Cabral
    another method I have used is to let them use it 100% but have a nagging screen or make them wait X amount of time before being able to use it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jay Jennings
    I have a "Lite" version of Article Architect that keeps three of the main features locked, but allows you to use all the others. But I just recently decided to do a 30-day (maybe only 14-day, haven't decided yet) 100% feature complete version and will see how that works.

    After the trial period it will automatically turn into the Lite version -- so people will still be able to use it, just not all of the cooler features. My hope is by that time they will be so used to those features that they'll fork over the money. =

    Jay Jennings
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  • Profile picture of the author Frank Bruno
    Sweet Ken thanks for sharing!

    If you like that software and the way they marketed that software to you.

    Tell me what you think of this software here which is marketed almost exacly as you described with a free fully functional 7 day trial with only an e-mail address required to try it out.

    Systemizer mind mapping software

    Frank Bruno
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    • Profile picture of the author Ken Leatherman
      Originally Posted by Michael Oksa View Post

      Why not let the user actually use it 100% for 7 days. Completely. Allowing it to be saved, etc.

      Really give the user a sense of ownership and how great it is.

      Anyway, even your example is a step up, and one I would like to see more programmers adopt.

      All the best,
      Michael
      Michael you make a good point about the sense of ownership. But I have to tell you when using it to create my little project, I had a sense of ownership.

      Originally Posted by Chris W. Sutton View Post

      That is great info Ken. It is a good marketing plan and the limited use provides a sense of pressure to buy. If you find the product does what you want it to do, you would just about have to buy.
      Chris that is exactly how I felt. The pressure was there and when the box to update too the pro version popped up, there was no question about the action to take. Not subtle but you understood it.

      Originally Posted by John Cabral View Post

      another method I have used is to let them use it 100% but have a nagging screen or make them wait X amount of time before being able to use it.
      John Cabral, that's not a bad tip at all. Kind of like my wife nags me until I get done what she wants me to do.

      Originally Posted by John Waits View Post

      I love free trials of software.

      I thus far, have not NOT bought a software that I have
      had got a free trial of.

      Double note:
      Join freetrial software programs, if you can find them.

      Cheers.
      John Waits not so good for the programmer but I guess for you it's been o.k. If you don't mind me asking, are you saying you haven't found any free trial software that was worth buying or you use it until something else comes along that is free?

      Originally Posted by Jay Jennings View Post

      I have a "Lite" version of Article Architect that keeps three of the main features locked, but allows you to use all the others. But I just recently decided to do a 30-day (maybe only 14-day, haven't decided yet) 100% feature complete version and will see how that works.

      After the trial period it will automatically turn into the Lite version -- so people will still be able to use it, just not all of the cooler features. My hope is by that time they will be so used to those features that they'll fork over the money. =

      Jay Jennings
      Jay it sounds like you have a workable plan and will be able to create the needed sense of ownership and the desire for the full features.

      Originally Posted by Frank Bruno View Post

      Sweet Ken thanks for sharing!

      If you like that software and the way they marketed that software to you.

      Tell me what you think of this software here which is marketed almost exacly as you described with a free fully functional 7 day trial with only an e-mail address required to try it out.

      Systemizer mind mapping software

      Frank Bruno
      Holy Smokes Frank there are so many mind maps in there, I can't find the space in my pea pickin size brain to put them all. Where's the one called "Old Geezer's" map to the bathroom.

      So I guess the verdict on using the free limited version is still out. Or is it just that I'm out of it.


      Ken Leatherman
      The Old Geezer
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      • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
        Originally Posted by Ken Leatherman View Post

        John Waits not so good for the programmer but I guess for you it's been o.k.


        You're missing the double negative: "have not" "NOT bought" - i.e. he always buys trial software.
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      • Profile picture of the author Frank Bruno
        Originally Posted by Ken Leatherman View Post


        Holy Smokes Frank there are so many mind maps in there, I can't find the space in my pea pickin size brain to put them all. Where's the one called "Old Geezer's" map to the bathroom.
        LOL you must be referring to the screenshot on the download page...

        Systemizer mind mapping software

        I just took a bunch of screenshots of several systems and maps that I had created using the software and made an image callage to show marketers what kind of systems and maps they can create using the software.

        Frank Bruno
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        • Profile picture of the author Intrepreneur
          I think it's perfectly executed. They have you where they want you. Excited and interested and make sure they get you for the sale while you are still connected to the initial reason you wanted the software. Any longer and it could mean you lose interest.

          Makes me agree that you have indeed found a great way to market something like software.. effectively.
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