Trial Subscription Analysis

[Barefootsies]

I snagged this interesting tidbit off of another forum, so I can't link to it, but I will thank KatieAnn & SC for making it available!

Finally got a large enough sample to do a real analysis of the impact of offering trial subscriptions to my site, so I thought I would share. I know some people like to promote sites with trials, some people hate it . . . but my conclusion is that on the whole they are good!

I started by looking at 2 different 4-month periods with no anomalies in traffic, no major marketing pushes, and no major site changes. The only difference that should have seriously impacted signups was the pricing (below):

Period 1 - $19.95/mo recurring ("monthly recurring")
Period 2 - $3.95 3-day trial, rebills at $24.95/mo ("trial")
$24.95/mo recurring ("monthly recurring")
$64.95 3-month non-recurring ("one-time")

Net, I increased the price of the membership and added a 3-day trial option. I did get a handful of "one-time" signups, but not enough to be a significant portion of my analysis.

The results:
- between period 1 and period 2 I saw a 10% drop in "monthly recurring" signups
- trial signups brought period 2 up to a 100% increase in total signups
- trial signups only rebill at 50% of the "monthly recurring" rebill rate (this one surprised me!)
- the clincher: "monthly recurring" signups plus *trial rebills* resulted in a total 10% *increase* in first-month month-long members for period 2!

The conclusions:
- offering a trial option cannibalizes <10% of "monthly recurring" signups (remember, I increased the monthly price as well)
- a trial option can result in doubling total membership, but trial purchasers are pretty good about remembering to cancel during the trial period
- offering a trial still results in increased income, no matter how you slice it (assuming you offer decent content).

Obviously this represents a cross-section of all traffic I get. I'm certain signups and conversions by signup type vary by traffic type . . . but I'm pretty convinced at this point that it's worthwhile to offer a trial option on the whole.

Thoughts or comments?

This is verified for me what I would have thought, and why I have never offered trials for any of our sites.

Your experience?

[Atticus]

I'm not following. From what I read this person's experience was trials increased their income overall and that they were "a good option".

Then if I understood you correctly you said this is what you would have thought and why you dont offer trials?

[EscortBiz]

trials = money loss

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by Atticus

I'm not following. From what I read this person's experience was trials increased their income overall and that they were "a good option".

Then if I understood you correctly you said this is what you would have thought and why you dont offer trials?

Well, she had a positive experience. But she talks about how it cannibalizes some of her other sales. Which is something others have said that they experienced (over the years) when they offered trials.

I could write at length on this issue, including the auto download programs people use on trials if you do not limit material and do upsells, or have something like strongbox in place to stop the leechers. Honestly, I am just too lazy to type it all out.

There are good and bad to both. For me, I specifically looked at certain lines that hit home more over for me. Including, how our sites are set up, versus some of the precauctions other WM's use, including the limited content/upsell option from trial to full.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by EscortBiz

trials = money loss

My thoughts pretty much.

I suppose it depends on a number of factors, to me.

1. You buy or produce your content (scarcity).
2. Niche content or some overabundant general theme.
3. How your site is set up, and the limited/upsell option.

I mean, these surfers/freeloaders/potential patrons are already getting 5+ years (in my case) of content for $30.00 as is. For some of the other websites, 10+. At some point, you have to weight out the 'value' to the consumer, and you.

We are already thinking of rolling content off into a second 'archive' after a year, among some other ideas on the table.

We are Macy's, not KMart.

[CarlosTheGaucho]

My experience is that most of the trial cancellations are canceled within a couple hours after the purchase. So as it seems, there's pretty much surfers who just want to take a peak, or better said are dedicated to cancel the trial (as far as they can'e explore anything within 2 - 3 hours after the purchase).

Didn't try a no trial option yet to compare and the rebill has same prcing as monthly.

Also never tried limited member areas or any advanced upgrade techniques.

One recent experience - mainstream traffic (generic that came after a mainstream online magazine articles) converts trials to full memberships better than targeted porn traffic (could have been expected because of the "experienced" surfers).

[woj]

Which site(s) was this test done on?