Can I offer a free trial for My Membership Site? | Member

Sep 16, 2022

Can I offer a Free Trial for My Membership Site?

Trials for membership sites are an effective marketing strategy that has been used by many others before your. It is a good idea to definitely consider using free trials to help your advertising campaign. This could make money for you. But, it is essential, obviously, that you use it the right way.

Trial offers have proven to be effective for numerous subscription-based businesses--offline and online.

Amazon, Netflix, Spotify, Hulu, YouTube Premium, Audible, PlayStation, and LinkedIn Premium are a few of the most well-known subscription-based businesses that offer a free trial of their services.

Here's the catch; trials for free offer are not suitable for all. Like all other strategies for marketing however, it's not foolproof, and has certain pros and cons.

For you to decide whether or not providing trials is the best method for your website The following are the topics we'll discuss in this piece:

Do Trials of Membership Sites a Good Idea?

trial for membership site

Yes. For many membership sites trial offers are an excellent option to utilize. We have already established that.

It's a highly efficient and incredibly profitable way for your subscription-based product or website to increase revenue. Not to mention how it lowers your customer cost of acquisition.

However, is it the best option for you?

The decision to make is completely on your personal preference the budget you have and your marketing strategies.

The trial period gives you to SHOW your potential customers what you can offer instead of TELLING them.

Instead of spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on advertisements, just offer them a live demonstration or a demo of your service.

Place yourself in your customer in their shoes. Do you purchase something because the salesperson tells you it's amazing? Or would you rather see it yourself?

Do you want to buy a vehicle without a trial drive? Or clothes without fitting them?

Similar to subscription-based companies. Customers will view your product or service in the same way as investments.

That is why almost everyone will want to test the experience for themselves.

Almost every membership site owner will agree that offering an opportunity for trial periods can increase leads and convert more sales more quickly and at a higher percentage. It also improves customer satisfaction.

But not all trials are created equal. exact same. Take a look at the different types of trial offer , and see how they differ from one another.

The various types of Trials for membership sites

Here are a few examples of the trials that you can try:

  • A limited-time trial offer
  • Limited access trial deal
  • Trial-free deal
  • Discounted-rate trial offer
  • A service-based trial offer.

The best part is, there is no need choose just one of these. It is possible to try a mix of two or many.

           Limited-Time Trial Deal          

With this type of trial offer, you can give the potential clients access to everything on your site that is a member for a short period of time.

You can offer a one-week time period, two weeks, or an opportunity to trial for 30 days to let them try your product or services for no cost.

In addition to that, you can also make a limited-time trial offer at a discounted rate. You can also give them free services during the trial period, if they decide to buying an annual membership.

           Access Trial Offer Limited Access Trial Offer          

As with the limited-time trial, you can also avail limited access with other offers.

As an example, if you're offering an online class You can permit users to try out some lessons.

Or, if you're offering an opportunity for a test of your product or service You can grant users access to just a few of the most fundamental features.

Pro Tip: you can use CourseCure to create an easy-to-create custom online course that is fully customizable.

           Free Trial Deal          

free trial for membership sites

It's one of the most popular trials that we encounter today. This is usually used as a complement to limited-time or limited-access offers.

As the name suggests, free trials are--well... free.

           Reduced Rate Trial Discount Offer          

discounted rate trial for membership site

The trial offer you provide doesn't necessarily require it to be free. You can also offer it for a discount.

           Service-Based Trial Service-Based Trial of HTML0          

free service trial for membership site

Finally, you can avail trials that are based on services where you offer your clients access to your service on a free basis or at a discount for a limited time.

Naturally, you would want them to sign up to join your website at the end of your trial, therefore make sure that the service that you offer is appealing enough that they stay interested.

Also, make sure you are able to overdeliver after they join.

Advantages as well as Cons Trials on Membership Sites

As with all types of advertising, tests for membership sites have their positives and negatives. Let's take a look at some of these.

           Pros of Trials for Membership Sites          

           Reduce the cost of customer Acquisition          

customer cost per acquisition

If someone chooses to sign up to a trial, their feet are already half-way through the gate. Now it is the responsibility of you to make sure you will deliver on what you pledged to do to bring you all the way through.

Most often it is possible to allow your service or product to be sold by itself in the period of trial.

There's good news that, once they're inside the trial period that it can save you hundreds of dollars as it's not necessary to do any additional marketing. Of course, that is when your offer will convince them enough to let them become a full-fledged member.

           Higher Satisfaction of Customers          

customer satisfaction

Few people who take advantage of a no-cost trial will be dissatisfied after making the switch because they know exactly the kind of experience they should expect based on the trial they had.

This level of transparency allows you to provide your clients with more transparency and prevents the customers from having unrealistic expectations. That also means fewer claims and cancellations.

           Reducing their Aversion to Commitment          

letting go of fear of commitment

Memberships are a commitment. In the majority of cases clients have an anxiety about committing to a yearly or monthly installment.

With a no-cost or trial at no cost that allows your audience to discover the things they're not seeing and lessen their anxiety about committing by showing what they're not being left out of.

           Collect Feedback          

gathering reviews

Trials for membership sites are great for collecting opinions about your services as well as your products.

It's the perfect opportunity to gather market opinions and insights so that you're able to make better and more informed business decisions.

           Better Leads to Your Email List          

building email lists

A further benefit is the fact that you will get more valuable leads. They are already taking the time to view the product you offer and try the product for themselves.

This means that they have already met you and will likely feel more inclined to become members after the trial period or later nearer the time.

           Pros and Cons of Trials for Membership Sites          

Even though the risk is small when you offer trials however, there are certain risks that are worth considering.

           Potential Loss of Time, Money, and Resources          

If you are considering offering a trial on your site's membership, make certain to determine whether your budget will allow the cost.

It is also worth considering the people who just want to join the free trial , but aren't planning on joining to become a member.

You can try to reduce these risk by doing some or some combination of these suggestions:

  • Give a discount on the trial - that means that you'll still earn an amount of revenue as a reward for access.
  • You can filter who is included within the trial period You can ask your clients to complete a questionnaire or take a test so that it is possible to filter out who will be able to participate in the trial.
  • Set a time limit for trial This requires a great deal of tests and testing, but if you manage to discover the right duration to aid your customers in making an informed choice, it will be extremely beneficial to you.

Is It Better To Use A Paid or Free Trial?

free or paid trial for membership site

A majority of trial offer runs for free. That doesn't mean you can't do the same.

You can always choose the discounted rate or even give a free trial at an affordable cost.

Instead of providing them with a free trial, consider offering a modest fee in order to encourage them to "buy-in" for a membership website.

Charging a minimal fee is also a great strategy in order to screen off those looking to receive something free and those who are really interested in joining.

Ultimately, the answer is always yours to decide.

Why Should You Never offer a Free Trial of Your Member Site?

The solution will be contingent upon what you're offering.

In the case of providing an online class the trial duration might not be your best choice. Because your customers may complete the course prior to the trial being over.

There is however a way to get around this. You can protect, or drip-feed the latter or a certain portion of your classes and make it a part of your trial.

A different example is if you're offering a service. For instance, you're offering the repair of your garage for free for members who are on trial.

Consider another approach than an initial trial. It is possible to charge a minimal fee for the purpose of balancing the costs.

There is the possibility of offering an entry-level website where members who are trial users are able to access the scaled-down version of your whole offer.

At the very least it draws people into your membership site and your community, which may inspire them to buy the full version following the trial.

Questions you should ask yourself before offering the opportunity to try

questions to ask yourself

Before you decide to jump with that trial deal There are a few questions to consider. Answers to these questions will help you make an informed choice.

  • What should the trial time be? Your customers needs enough time to take a deep dive and determine if what your offering will be something they'll never be able to endure without. At the same time, you want to make sure that it's not "too long ."
  • Do you have the money to do the cost? Consider if providing people with the opportunity to access your product or service is something you can manage and will be beneficial to you in the long run.
  • What time will it take to convert What is the time frame for conversion? In running a business is money. Think about the amount of period it'll take for your test members to convert into paying members.

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