Don’t give up on trying to monetize your free users
It will pay off
Hey there, it’s Jacob at Retention.Blog 👋
I got tired of reading high-level strategy articles, so I started writing actionable advice I would want to read.
Every Tuesday I share practical learnings you can apply to your business.
Fabulous: Daily Habit Tracker is one of the best I’ve seen at trying to monetize their active, free user base.
I went through the last 24 emails they’ve sent me, and honestly, I learned more than I expected.
What did I find?
Use a variety of different offer types for free users to catch attention
If you show the same discount over and over again, it’s easier to ignore
Fabulous used: “30-day premium pass”, “$0.99 first month”, “$2 per month”, “3 months free”, and “$14 annual plan”
Compare your offer or price to a real-world item that people feel is inexpensive
“Get premium for less than the price of a cup of coffee per month”
Use extreme focus in your emails or promotions
Fabulous will only talk about one concept or feature in each email
Going deep on one thing in each email means your content doesn’t feel repetitive
Use limited-time offers whenever you can
A sense of urgency is powerful
If your email highlights an offer ending, that’s the focal point. Don’t get distracted (see the point above on focus)
Always send a “24 hours left” email or notification
This is the ultimate sense of urgency. Fabulous always ends their sales with this message
I’ve seen 30-50% of purchases come in those last 24 hours from promotions I’ve run in the past
People love “new” and “exclusive”
These are powerful words, don’t overuse them, but when you have something new, exclusive, or special, make sure people know
Use testimonials as a conversion “boost”
Not everyone is sold immediately on your offer, highlighting real feedback from a real person will help build more trust and improve conversion rates
Fabulous uses Trustpilot to make the testimonial seem more authentic.
Send more promotional emails to your free users if they’re active
Email isn’t as annoying as push notifications and can more easily be ignored
Over 3 months I received 24 emails from Fabulous related to purchasing a premium subscription
Don’t call your offer a “subscription”
Fabulous uses “Get your 30-day pass” or “Get Premium” but never “subscribe”
“Subscribe” is a big commitment that will turn people away
Don’t call your free plan “free”
When comparing their Premium to their free offer they use the word “Basic”
I like free stuff, but no one wants to be basic
Write unique content for every email, but use a standard template so you can continue to A/B test
They’re constantly testing and tweaking the names, CTAs, and styles while using unique content for every email
Over a few weeks, they tested and iterated this one copy line many times:
“Your personal 30-day pass”
Then they went to “Your 30-day Premium pass”
Then they added back in “Your personal 30-day pass” but as a 2nd CTA at the bottom of the email
Finally, they seemed to use the best of both and combined to: “Your personal Premium pass”
Layer in motivational nudges for promotions and sales
In one email they use: “Never-Before-Price”, “83% off”, “you still have a few days left”, “our lowest fare”, and “Act fast!”
If you have a valuable offer, it’s okay to hype it up
Trigger promotional emails after someone has accomplished something
I earned a “Self-reflection badge” which “unlocked” a 30-day premium pass for me
I’m always going to be more excited about something if I earn it
Describe real-world examples so users understand how the app can fit into their life
Fabulous is about routines so they mention specific routines and habits that may resonate with you e.g. “An online class” or “waking up at 7 am”
Always, always, always have a CTA above the fold in your emails
Fabulous uses a small content block with a CTA in almost all of their emails before you even get to the main content
Don’t be boring
Fabulous does a phenomenal job at always having unique writing and stunning visuals in their emails.
This is their “brand” in the app too and they do a great job of extending the visual style in other comms
Okay, is that enough for you? I hope you were inspired.
Some of these were new to me, some reinforced things I knew, and some reminded me of something I forgot.
Sometimes a little reminder of the right way to do things is all we need. Except for me, I need a lot of huge reminders…
And I can’t forget about the Whimsical research board!
I’ve added all 24 emails (w/ subject lines) to my past board with the Fabulous UI so you can check them out all together here.
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Love it!!! Another great post 👏
Quick question: how do you think startups should approaching cohorting the right users for these promos > avoid canalization of standard purchase behavior at standard prices?