Wow...Lesson #1 is SOOO on-point. I think that is what is missing from the free-to-paid conversion narrative.
The only people that will convert from free to paid is those that have received value. SaaS apps need to start paying attention to the 'value indicators', and provide an upgrade path on that - rather than a time limit.
This is one of the reasons that companies that charge per transaction are so awesome - because the only time you pay, is when you make money (which is the implicit value there).
This concept needs to be blown into a blog post - I just may do it - because this is so important and so easy to miss.
Your conversion rate may suck, not because your product sucks....but because your internal value metrics suck. You aren't measuring the right thing.
The only people that will convert from free to paid is those that have received value. SaaS apps need to start paying attention to the 'value indicators', and provide an upgrade path on that - rather than a time limit.
This is one of the reasons that companies that charge per transaction are so awesome - because the only time you pay, is when you make money (which is the implicit value there).
This concept needs to be blown into a blog post - I just may do it - because this is so important and so easy to miss.
Your conversion rate may suck, not because your product sucks....but because your internal value metrics suck. You aren't measuring the right thing.