Startups For the Rest of Us

Episode 758 | Do Free Trials Suck?, What Moves the Needle, and More Listener Questions (with Derrick Reimer)


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In episode 758, Rob Walling is joined by Derrick Reimer to tackle a variety of listener questions. They discuss strategies for entering a market with established competitors, including how to position your product without directly attacking rivals. They also reflect on the challenges of free trials, weighing the pros and cons of extending trial periods versus incentivizing onboarding.

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And Eunice Koo of Less Annoying CRM said that their “first A/B test with Conversion Factory, delivered a 20% increase in visitor to trial conversions within the first two months.”

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Topics we cover: 
  • (1:18) – How to launch a SaaS product in a market with an established competitor
  • (6:21) – Do I call out competitors by name?
  • (14:24) – How do you really identify what moves the needle in your Saas?
  • (19:59) – Breaking down the “one thing”
  • (23:32) – Selling and marketing SaaS before building
  • (30:36) – What is the goal of your free trial?
  • (39:10) – On the fence between B2B, B2C
  • Links from the Show: 
    • TInySeed Applications are open until Feb 23rd
    • Derrick Reimer (@derrickreimer) | X
    • Derrick Reimer (@derrickreimer.com) | Bluesky
    • SavvyCal
    • 757 | TinySeed Tales s4e5: Founder Breakups, Crushing Failures, and the Future
    • TinySeed
    • MicroConf Connect
    • SaaS Institute
    • Start Marketing The Day You Start Coding by Rob Walling
    • Start Small Stay Small by Rob Walling
    • If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

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      Startups For the Rest of UsBy Rob Walling

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