The stakes are high. According to recent industry data, the average SaaS free trial converts less than 25% of users to paying customers. That means roughly two-thirds to three-quarters of your trial users are walking away without ever becoming customers.

But the good news is that trial cancellations aren’t random. They follow patterns. Users drop off at predictable moments in their journey and struggle with the same features or tasks. Once you identify these patterns, you can systematically address them through trial optimization.

Understanding why trial optimization matters for reducing cancellations

Before diving into how to reduce cancellations, let’s be clear about what we mean by trial optimization and why it deserves your attention.

Trial optimization is the systematic process of improving every touchpoint in your free trial or freemium experience to increase the likelihood that users will see value, engage consistently, and ultimately convert to paying customers. It’s not about manipulation or dark patterns. It’s about removing unnecessary friction, clarifying value, and helping users succeed with your product.

The impact of effective trial optimization extends beyond conversion rates. When you optimize the trial experience, you also reduce customer acquisition costs, improve customer lifetime value, and build a stronger foundation for retention.

Understanding your specific trial model is the first step toward optimization. Different trial structures create different challenges and opportunities.

What is a freemium model?

The freemium model offers perpetual access to a restricted version of your product, either by limiting features or placing caps on usage. Think Spotify’s free tier with ads, or Canva’s basic design tools. The challenge with freemium is that users can stay indefinitely without converting. Your optimization goal is building reliance while strategically gating features that create urgency to upgrade.

What is a reverse trial?

In a reverse trial, users start with full access to all features for a limited time, then get moved to a freemium plan with limited capabilities. This approach, coined by growth leader Elena Verna, prioritizes maximum value upfront. Users experience everything your product can do, making the subsequent feature restrictions feel more pronounced. Trial optimization here focuses on ensuring users activate on premium features during that full-access window.

What is trial with payment?

This model requires payment information up front for full product access during a limited period. Users are charged automatically after the trial unless they cancel. The friction of providing credit card details means fewer signups but typically higher conversion rates, with opt-out trials converting at 49-60% compared to opt-in trials at 18-25%. Optimization here balances making signup worthwhile despite the friction while ensuring the experience justifies the automatic charge.

Five steps to audit and optimize your trial experience

Trial optimization looks different in each of these trial models, but one thing is true across the board: reducing cancellations requires a systematic approach.

You can’t fix what you don’t measure, and you can’t optimize what you don’t understand.

Here is a summary of the five-step framework for auditing your trial experience. For a detailed walkthrough, including specific templates and decision trees, see our article on auditing free user experiences.

Step 1: Identify drop-off points with data analysis

Examine your product analytics to pinpoint exactly where users abandon their trial journey.

• Track activation drop-offs in your onboarding flow
• Monitor which features users engage with versus ignore
• Calculate time-to-value and compare against churn timing
• Segment data by acquisition channel, trial type, and user cohort
• Layer in session recordings to see what users actually do before leaving

Step 2: Conduct user interviews to understand the “why”

Numbers show where users leave. Conversations reveal why.

• Interview 10-15 users, split between active trial users and those who churned
• Ask what value they found, what confused them, and what would make them pay
• Listen for the exact language they use to describe their experience
• Note any competitors or alternatives they mention for market context

Step 3: Benchmark your experience against market standards

Your users compare you to every tool they’ve used. Conduct some competitive analysis to gauge where you fall in the market.

• Document how competitors structure their trial experiences
• Screenshot monetization touchpoints, upgrade prompts, and limit notifications
• Study products your users mention in interviews, even if indirect competitors
• Identify where your experience creates more or less friction than market norms

Step 4: Map user actions with verb scoring

Break down every meaningful action in your product and score the friction required by running a verb scoring exercise.

• List discrete actions users can take (create, share, export, invite, etc.)
• Assign each a verb score from Anonymous to Gated
• Look for inconsistencies in how similar actions are gated
• Identify if you’re giving away too much or asking too soon

Step 5: Connect insights to create an optimization roadmap

Synthesize your findings to prioritize what to fix first.

• Friction without reason: unnecessary barriers compared to competitors
• Value leaks: popular free features that don’t drive conversion
• Invisible gates: paywalls users hit without understanding why
• Poorly timed friction: asking users to pay before they’ve seen value

Prioritize optimizations by impact (users affected), confidence (data supports it), effort (time to implement), and market alignment (are you an outlier).

Six strategies for reducing trial cancellations

Once you’ve audited your trial experience and identified optimization opportunities, you will have a clear roadmap for addressing issues.

Plenty of strategies might arise in your research. Here are a few themes we see often.

Accelerate time-to-first-value

The faster users experience value, the less likely they are to cancel. Industry benchmarks suggest that users should reach their first “aha moment” within 48 hours of signup.

Design your onboarding to guide users directly toward the action that delivers value. Use progress bars and checklists to create clear paths forward.

Remove any friction between signup and first value. If users need to integrate other tools, fill out profiles, or configure settings before experiencing core benefits, you’re creating opportunities for abandonment. Save non-essential setup for after users have seen value.

Provide personalized onboarding experiences

Companies using personalized experiences see conversion rates improve by up to 67%. Generic onboarding treats all users the same, but different user segments have different needs, different technical sophistication, and different use cases.

Segment users based on their role, company size, or stated goals during signup. A solo entrepreneur using your project management tool has different needs than a project manager at a 100-person company. Your onboarding should reflect these differences.

Use progressive disclosure to reveal features as they become relevant. Don’t overwhelm new users with every capability on day one. Instead, introduce advanced features once users have mastered the basics.

Implement strategic reminder systems

Trials between 7-14 days convert better than longer trials because they create urgency. But urgency only works if users remember they’re on a trial.

Send regular emails and in-app notifications informing users about remaining trial time. These reminders should do more than count down days. Each one should emphasize value, highlight features users haven’t explored, or address specific pain points.

Gate features strategically based on usage patterns

In our experience optimizing for SaaS, offering too many free features can actually hurt conversion rates. Users need to experience value from free features while simultaneously understanding what they’re missing from paid capabilities.

Place prompts for premium features adjacent to free ones. PDF Converter, for example, offers free file conversion but positions the premium, higher-quality option nearby. This ensures users understand the upgrade path without being pushy.

Use clear visual cues like lock icons, “Pro” badges, or color contrasts to differentiate free from paid features.

Provide proactive support during critical moments

Customer support engagement during trial periods can significantly boost conversion rates.

Don’t wait for users to ask for help. Implement triggered messages based on behavior patterns. If a user hasn’t logged in for three days, send a helpful email with tips. If someone tries to use a gated feature multiple times, offer a personalized demo or support call.

For high-value potential customers, consider human touchpoints. A quick call from customer success at day three of a 14-day trial can answer questions, provide personalized guidance, and significantly increase conversion likelihood.

Design thoughtful cancellation flows

Not every cancellation is preventable, but many are. When users attempt to cancel, use that moment as an opportunity to understand why and potentially offer alternatives.

Implement exit surveys that capture cancellation reasons. According to data on subscription churn, understanding why users leave is critical for preventing future cancellations. Are they leaving because of the price? Missing features? Poor onboarding? Bugs?

Based on cancellation reasons, offer segment-specific alternatives. If someone is canceling due to price, offer a discount or payment plan. If they barely used the product after the trial, extend the trial. If they’re leaving due to missing features, ask which features would keep them.

Common mistakes that increase trial cancellations

Even well-intentioned optimization efforts can backfire. Avoid these common mistakes that actually increase cancellation rates.

Making cancellation difficult

Some SaaS companies deliberately make cancellation difficult, requiring users to call or email rather than cancel with a simple click. This dark pattern might delay cancellations temporarily, but it can destroy trust and create negative word-of-mouth.

Make cancellation simple. The goal isn’t to trap users; it’s to create such a good experience that they don’t want to leave.

Gating core value too aggressively

If users can’t experience your product’s core value without upgrading, they’ll cancel before converting. The free version should deliver genuine utility while creating a desire for premium features.

Neglecting mobile trial experiences

With increasing mobile usage, trial experiences must work seamlessly across devices.

If your onboarding is desktop-optimized but breaks on mobile, you’re creating cancellations for a substantial user segment.

Sending generic email communications

Automated email sequences that ignore user behavior feel impersonal and often go unread. According to research on trial optimization, personalized communication based on user activity significantly outperforms generic campaigns.

If a user hasn’t logged in since signing up, an email about advanced features is irrelevant. If they’re actively using the product daily, countdown reminders may feel pushy. Segment communications based on engagement levels.

Trial optimization frequently asked questions

What’s the ideal trial length to minimize cancellations?

The optimal length depends on your product’s complexity and how quickly users can experience value. Simple products often perform better with 7-14 day trials that create urgency.

Complex B2B tools may need 30-60 days for users to properly evaluate capabilities. If you are completely lost, start with 14 days and adjust based on your activation data and time-to-value metrics.

Should I require a credit card for trial signup?

This decision significantly impacts both signup volume and conversion rates.

Opt-out trials (credit card required) convert higher but generate fewer signups. Opt-in trials (no credit card) convert lower but attract more users.

The right choice depends on whether you prioritize higher conversion rates per trial or a larger volume of trials and how much more utility the full tier offers versus a free trial.

Most product-led companies start with opt-in trials to maximize exposure, then consider opt-out trials once they’ve optimized the trial experience.

How can I tell if my trial cancellations are normal or problematic?

Track cohort-specific metrics. If certain user segments, acquisition channels, or trial lengths show notably different cancellation patterns, those differences reveal opportunities for targeted optimization.

What’s the most important metric to track for trial optimization?

While trial-to-paid conversion rate matters, activation rate is often more predictive.

Activation measures whether users complete key actions that indicate they’ve experienced value. Research shows users who reach activation are significantly more likely to convert.

Define your activation criteria based on behaviors that correlate with conversion, then optimize to increase the percentage of trial users who activate.

How often should I test and iterate on my trial experience?

Trial optimization is continuous, not a one-time project.

High-performing SaaS companies test constantly. Start with your highest-impact opportunities identified during your audit, then implement a regular testing cadence.

Track results for statistical significance before making changes permanent. Plan quarterly reviews of your trial metrics to identify new optimization opportunities as your product and market evolve.

Can I reduce trial cancellations without changing my product?

Yes. Many cancellations stem from poor onboarding, unclear value communication, or inadequate support rather than product deficiencies.

You can significantly reduce cancellations by improving onboarding sequences, providing better in-app guidance, personalizing the trial experience, implementing proactive support, and strategically positioning upgrade prompts.

That said, if users consistently cancel, citing missing features or bugs, product improvements may be necessary alongside trial optimization.

Build a systematic approach to trial optimization

Reducing SaaS trial cancellations isn’t about quick fixes or growth hacks. It requires systematic analysis of your trial experience, a deep understanding of user behavior and needs, and continuous optimization based on data.

The five-step audit framework provides a structured approach: analyze data to find drop-off points, interview users to understand why they leave, benchmark against market expectations, map actions with verb scoring, and synthesize insights into a prioritized roadmap. Each step builds on the previous one to create a picture of optimization opportunities.

Implementation matters as much as analysis. Accelerate time-to-value, personalize onboarding, implement strategic reminders, gate features based on usage patterns, provide proactive support, and design thoughtful cancellation flows. These six strategies address the most common causes of trial cancellations, but keep in mind that your analysis will likely surface other unique issues.

Most importantly, treat trial optimization as an ongoing discipline rather than a one-time project. User expectations evolve, competitors improve their experiences, and your product adds features. Regular review and iteration ensure your trial experience continues performing as your business grows.

At The Good, we’ve helped SaaS companies reduce trial cancellations and improve conversion rates through our Digital Experience Optimization Program. We conduct comprehensive audits using heatmaps, session recordings, and user research to identify exactly where trial users encounter friction. Then we build custom optimization roadmaps and validate improvements through experimentation.

Ready to reduce your trial cancellations and accelerate growth? Schedule an introductory call to discuss how we can optimize your trial experience for better conversion and retention.

The post How Do You Reduce Cancellations During SaaS Free Trials? appeared first on The Good.

So, once you acquire a new customer, it’s crucial you deliver the value and user experience to keep them around. This is the whole point of the product-led growth (PLG) movement and is usually a major optimization focus. Make the product so good that they can’t imagine life without it.

But, even though we believe wholeheartedly in PLG, it’s naively idealistic to assume you’ll never send a customer to the brink of cancellation on your product experience alone. So, another lever you can pull to reduce churn is adding or optimizing a cancellation flow.

Rather than approaching a customer who is looking to cancel as a lost cause, take it as an opportunity to listen to their needs and finally address them with the right experience or offer.

There are plenty of SaaS companies out there that are already getting it right. In our work with clients, we’ve researched and reviewed hundreds of cancellation flows and analyzed them to determine what works to reduce churn. We’ve also conducted rapid tests to validate our ideas.

In this article, we’re opening the box on these learnings to show you what the best SaaS cancellation flows have in common and what really saves users within the online cancellation journey. Make the most of that sunk CAC, and let’s optimize your flow.

What is a cancellation flow?

A SaaS cancellation flow is the process that guides users through the steps to cancel their subscription or account for a software tool. It typically takes place while the user is logged into their account and includes multiple steps that gather data/feedback about their experience and offer alternatives or incentives with the goal of retention.

The cancellation journey can happen either on-site or in-app, depending on the tool. Either way, it typically follows a flow of:

• The user navigates to their profile/dashboard and clicks ‘cancel’
• They are prompted to choose a reason and sometimes a sub-reason for cancellation
• The tool offers some sort of product switch/downgrade offer
• The user either accepts the offer or proceeds to cancel
• Post-cancellation, the tool typically sends a follow-up confirming cancellation

For product teams, the cancellation journey can offer rich insights into what your customers value and what is missing from your product experience. The ‘reason for canceling’ along with the user profile data can paint a clear picture of where you might need to focus optimization efforts.

When to implement or optimize a cancellation flow

Beyond being good practice to review your digital journey regularly, there are some additional events that should prompt you to focus on the cancellation flow:

• High churn rates: If significant numbers of customers are turning over, it is probably time to address your cancellation flow. Review or add a step that collects feedback on why they are leaving.
• Customer feedback gaps: If you are collecting customer feedback but aren’t getting answers about why they’re leaving, a cancellation flow can help gather insights into customer dissatisfaction.
• Regulatory compliance: As your business scales, you need to ensure continued compliance with regulations like GDPR. Leveraging a clear cancellation process where users can opt-out is not only good practice but also a requirement in most places.
• New product launches or changes: If a company is launching new features or making significant changes to its service, a cancellation flow can gather early feedback on customer reactions and find ways to ease the transition.

What the best cancellation flows have in common (with examples)

From dashboard interactions to post-cancellation follow-ups, effective cancellation flows share common strategies for reducing churn.

Let’s break this down phase by phase, with real-world examples to inspire your optimization efforts.

Phase 1: Before initiating cancellation

The dashboard is the first line of defense against churn. Here’s what works:

• Reinforce the benefits of being a subscriber with compelling content.
  • Highlight subscription benefits like exclusive features.
  • Showcase features the user isn’t engaging with.
• Offer easy ways to solve common issues before users cancel
  • Let users validate their subscription status without clicking cancel
  • Show solutions to common technical issues
• Tailor the dashboard to the type of user
  • Require users with high cancellation intent to scroll through value-focused content before clicking cancel.
  • Give users with limited paid features the opportunity to upgrade from the dashboard.
  • For mid-funnel users, share options to downgrade their plan or, at minimum, show less expensive plan options.
• Provide alternatives to cancellation.
  • Offer compelling ways to manage their subscriptions that are not cancellation: pause, skip, snooze, report an issue, remind me later, etc.

Example: Canva value-focused dashboard

Canva is an online graphic design tool that lets users create visuals like social posts, posters, presentations, and more.

The Canva dashboard for premium users focuses on all the benefits and opportunities to use the tool. It includes new features, drops, and changes. It highlights where users aren’t making the most of their subscription ‘Star designs’ or ‘remove backgrounds’ as CTAs are benefits-focused. This keeps users engaged and always finding new value in the product.

Example: Opus’ clear subscription status and plan management options

Opus is an AI video repurposing tool that clips and captions long-form videos into short-form content.

Along with having quick reminders about how to use the tool on the main dashboard log-in (‘turn long videos into viral shorts’ and ‘add captions only’), once a user clicks on the ‘Subscription’ button, there is a clear overview of current plan status and management options. Users are presented with options to change their plan, add more packs, and review all of the features of their current subscription, all before the cancel button.

Phase 2: During the cancellation flow

Once users start the cancellation flow, the goal shifts to retaining them through clear communication and targeted offers. Key strategies include:

• Personalize offers based on the reason for canceling
  • For users who cite “too expensive” as a reason for canceling, an offer or discount is presented to appeal to their price sensitivity.
  • For users who cite “don’t use the tool,” an alternative to cancellation is presented (like pause, snooze, etc.)
• Emphasize the value users will lose if they cancel
  • Show the subscriber exclusive benefits to which they will lose access.
  • Remind free trial users of what they are giving up on by canceling their subscription before the trial ends.
• Differentiate the final cancellation step from the rest of the flow
  • Emphasize what the user is about to lose.
  • Ensure it’s visually distinct from the rest of the cancellation journey in messaging and design, instilling a sense of missing out and finality.

Example: Rocket Money engaging flow with multiple downgrade options

Rocket Money is a budgeting app that analyzes users’ bills and spending so they can find places to save.

In the cancellation flow, the tool offers multiple save tactics, including pick your own pricing, valuable features that haven’t been used (‘get your credit report’), and clear opportunities to reactivate post-cancellation.

Phase 3: After cancellation

Even after cancellation, there’s a chance to re-engage users. Effective post-cancellation strategies include:

• Sending emails highlighting new features or exclusive offers.
• Using the dashboard as a reactivation hub for canceled subscribers or free-tier users.

Example: Audible re-engagement offers after cancellation

Audible is an audiobook app from Amazon that allows users to purchase and listen to a library of books.

After canceling an account, a user is redirected to their dashboard, which clearly shows when they have their subscription, a special offer to reactivate the subscription, and recommended books that would interest the user.

Example: Evernote re-engagement offers after cancellation

Evernote is a task management and note-taking app that can be used as a virtual notebook.

Post-cancellation, Evernote sends an email letting the user know about new features: Evernote now syncs with Microsoft Outlook Calendar. The user is offered a week of Evernote Professional to try out the feature.

Example: Grammarly ‘Premium Update’ Weekly Emails

Grammarly is a cloud-based writing assistant that checks grammar, spelling, and more for users.

Grammarly Premium users receive a weekly ‘premium update’ email with statistics about their usage, writing, and productivity. The bottom of the email shows the features you are using and what you are missing. Post-cancellation, users continue to receive these emails until their original subscription period is up. This keeps the value in front of them and reminds them what they will miss out on when their subscription ends.

Reducing churn goes beyond an optimized cancellation flow

Optimizing your cancellation flow is only one part of the churn-reduction equation. The insights gathered—such as common reasons for canceling—can guide broader improvements in your customer experience.

Leverage surveys/customer service data to understand why people are canceling, their profiles, and when they drop off. Analyze the reasons for cancellations and retention rate data to find out why they are dropping off and optimize the experience long before they even get to the point of cancellation.

To reduce churn effectively, focus on:

• Transparency and ease of cancellation
• Feedback collection via short exit surveys
• Personalized retention offers
• Data-driven insights & continuous optimization

If you need support optimizing your cancellation flow or beyond, get in touch with our team at The Good. We operate as your fractional product team and can pinpoint opportunities you’d otherwise miss out on.

The post Reduce Churn: What The Best SaaS Cancellation Flows Have In Common appeared first on The Good.

Many leaders think the solution is straightforward: “Just scale up!” they say.

In truth, it’s not that simple. Product-market fit isn’t a single moment in time. It’s a state that you must maintain, even as the market and your customers change. If you’re not careful, you could lose it.

Let’s explore product-market fit and what to do once you’ve found it.

Product-Market Fit Definition

Before we get too deep into the post-product-market fit part of your lifecycle, let’s get on the same page.

Product-market fit is the point where your product satisfies a strong market demand. It happens when your target customers recognize your product as the ideal solution to their problem. This recognition leads to organic growth.

Essentially, it’s the point where you’ve created something people want and are willing to pay for.

There is a misconception that product-market fit happens at the $1M ARR mark, but product-market fit is not a revenue stage. It can happen at any income level.

A trusted way to gauge if you have found product-market fit is the 40% test by Sean Ellis. It is a pretty straightforward assessment using a customer survey question, “How would you feel if you could no longer use [product]?”

If more than 40% of your surveyed customers answer “very disappointed,” then you have found product-market fit. It’s a leading indicator of what portion of users really value your product.

Product-market fit is often considered the milestone that signals your product is ready to scale. It’s not just about acquiring customers, though—it’s about retaining them because your product consistently delivers value.

What Comes After Product-Market Fit?

Once you find your place in the market, the next obvious step is to scale up. But that comes with a caveat: You have to scale without losing product-market fit.

“Product-market fit is a key milestone to reach, but it’s often misinterpreted as being a static moment in time,” say Fareed Mosavat and Casey Winters, product leaders from companies like Eventbrite, Pinterest, Grubhub, Instacart, and Slack.

“The reality is that your customer base is always changing and consumer expectations are always growing. Once you get [an] initial product-market fit, you not only have to keep it, but also expand it.”

If you focus too hard on acquisition and fail to refine your product, there’s a chance you could lose product-market fit. Obviously, that’s disastrous.

Smart leaders who find product-market fit are wise to protect it to avoid losing market share. They continue to iterate on their product so customers always see it as the ideal solution.

Sean Ellis, head of growth at companies like Dropbox, LogMeIn, and Eventbrite, and the guy who coined the term “growth hacker,” says it perfectly:

“The mistake that many marketers make is that they are optimizing for short-term conversions. They think it’s all about maximizing clicks and sign-ups. But if the product isn’t truly great at delivering on the promise, then you will likely lose these people anyway.”

Strategies for After Product-Market Fit

All of this begs the question: How do you scale up without losing product-market fit? It requires a shift in thinking and a bit of strategy.

Step 1: Reassess Your User

In some cases, product-market fit can be fleeting because the users who loved the early version of your product aren’t the same as your long-term users.

We call this the “early adopter problem.” Early adopters love to try new products, especially when those products promise to disrupt existing systems or ways of doing things.

However, those early adopters are also likely to move on to the next big thing. If too many of your customers are these early adopters, your customer base might bleed away until you lose your share of the market.

“The problem is, the early adopters are only ever a small percentage of the overall market,” says Marc Andreessen. “And so a lot of founders, especially technical ones, will convince themselves that the rest of the market behaves like the early adopters, which is to say that the customers will find them. And that’s just not true.”

Early adopters aren’t your only challenge. It’s counterintuitive, but if your product-market fit is good, you tend to grow fast, and your customers raise their expectations.

“Slack had [an] extremely strong product market fit from the early days and ended up growing so fast,” says Fareed Mosavat, VP Programs and Partners at Reforge. “It was extremely difficult to keep up with the rising expectations of our customers over time, and took us a while to launch things like WYSIWYG editing, better ways to launch apps vs. just text commands, and simplified channel discovery that were important for our newer, less-technical users.”

Once you find your place in the market, turn your attention to your users. Continue to conduct research to understand how to meet the needs of customers who aren’t the early adopters.

Step 2: Build a Data-Driven Culture

The need for robust customer research should come as no surprise to any growth-focused company, yet too many leaders take their foot off the metaphorical research gas pedal once they achieve product-market fit.

Maintaining product-market fit and scaling up both require a culture that makes its decisions based on data and research. Scrappy startups can rely on quick, intuition-based movements, but scaling companies can’t ignore their data.

The first step to a data-driven culture is to establish your shared growth KPIs early and ensure your team is moving in the same direction.

Next, dig into your customer research. Conduct interviews, analyze data, and gather feedback to identify pain points, features, and reasons for churn/low engagement. Ideate on improvements to address those challenges.

Finally, rapid test or A/B test changes to your website, marketing, and product to understand if investing resources makes sense.

The key to building a data-driven culture is to make it a habit. You can start small by scheduling a few user/customer interviews each week, as expert human-centered product leader Emma Leyden suggests, and then build on that. With more and better data, you can more easily fold it into your process.

The good news is the value of your data continues to grow as you read this article. A bigger user base and more sessions mean more data points, which makes trends and patterns more apparent and reliable for decision-making.

Step 3: Shift Your Hiring Priorities

With product-market fit, your team and priorities will naturally evolve. You have new scale goals and likely a growing team that needs oversight.

Strong leadership is key here. You’ll likely also struggle at this stage with balancing team support for your growing user base while optimizing your product. Admittedly, that balance isn’t easy to achieve. It requires clear prioritization. Sometimes, newly hired leaders make the mistake of assuming their product is “built” and devest product design and development to work on other initiatives.

It can help to leverage an external pod of product experts to fill in any gaps and help prioritize changes.

The Good is a great option to supplement your product team post-product-market-fit. We can help you simplify decision-making by staying laser-focused on research, data, and goals through our Digital Experience Optimization Program.

Step 4: Start Building a Feature Moat

A feature moat is when a product offers such unique and superior product features that the competition can’t quickly replicate them. There’s literally a gap—a moat—that your competitors will be scrambling to cross.

Think of it like this: If your product is a great solution, it will change the lives and work of your users. Their needs and preferences change. They develop new problems that you’re positioned to solve. Each solved problem represents a widening moat between you and your competitors.

How do you create this advantage? By continuing to drill deep into user needs and pain points even after you’ve achieved product-market fit.

Don’t rest, satisfied that you’ve learned enough about your users. Continue to leverage generative and evaluative research to uncover new insights into their behavior and needs. Ultimately, this is key to developing a customer experience that evolves with the user.

Step 5: Stop Obsessing Over Registration

Registration is just one moment in the user lifecycle. It’s a big moment, for sure, but too much focus on new users can cause you to ignore your existing user base. After you have product-market fit is an ideal time to level-set with your team about initiatives beyond registration.

This is the time to work on your product-led growth strategy. Focus on improving the rest of the customer experience after registration, including onboarding, activation, engagement, expansion, and evangelism. These stages not only increase growth (through new users and retention), but they also give you a roadmap to iterate on your product moving forward.

Use research in the post-product-market fit stage to lower the cost of acquisition by considering that every user who doesn’t churn is an opportunity to spread positive word-of-mouth.

Step 6: Consider Market Expansion

Your product evolves as you introduce new features, achieve more growth, and scale up your platform. But eventually, your current product will reach a saturation point where growth reaches the limits of the market.

In this case, the only way to grow is to expand your product-market fit by expanding into adjacent products or markets to find new potential customers.

Expanding product-market fit doesn’t necessarily mean building new features. It’s a turn from fulfilling your users’ problems to anticipating their next problems. Expanding usually happens in three ways:

• Same product in a new target market, e.g., Instacart expanding into pharmacy delivery.
• Same market with an adjacent product, e.g., Lyft expanding to bikes and scooters.
• New product in a new market, e.g., Amazon launching AWS.

This kind of expansion does not happen incrementally. It typically happens in bursts when you recognize a new market, vertical, or user to serve. And in nearly all cases, it requires taking bigger bets.

Support for Post-Product-Market Fit

When your entire organization is built around finding product-market fit, the switch to a post-product-market fit strategy can be challenging. It requires a new way of thinking for this new stage in your company’s lifecycle.

In these cases, outside perspective is more important than ever. Our Digital Experience Optimization Program brings the pieces you need to build a better digital product. Our team can help you scale up without losing product-market fit. We bring the tools, technique, and expertise that you just can’t find in a single hire.

The post What Comes After Product Market Fit? appeared first on The Good.

One day someone is avidly using your app or buying your bestsellers and the next day, they’ve disappeared into the ether.

Where did they go? And, more importantly, how can you get them back?

SaaS and ecommerce winbacks are crucial for business because they bring back existing customers (a.k.a. people who have already invested in your brand). Customers who already have experience with your product are likely to spend more in the future, contribute to consistent revenue, and recommend you to their friends and family. Basically, they’re the Holy Grail.

But with fierce competition and a ton of choice, it’s easy to lose a user’s attention to the next newest, shiniest thing. It doesn’t have to be forever, though. Winbacks remind customers why they chose you in the first place and give them a good reason to come back.

What’s a SaaS and ecommerce winback?

SaaS and ecommerce winbacks are email campaigns that aim to re-engage past customers who have become dormant. Maybe they haven’t logged on in a while or maybe it’s been a few months since they made their last purchase. Either way, winback emails are perfect for staying top-of-mind and reminding past customers that you exist.

10 winback email strategies (with real-life examples)

The key to a good winback campaign is to let your brand shine and show customers why they should choose you over the latest new thing. There are several ways you can do this, as highlighted in these real-life SaaS and ecommerce winback campaign examples and email templates.

1. Make your winback campaigns segment-specific

Every customer and every user is different. They have different needs, face different challenges, and chose your brand for different reasons. Because winback campaigns intend to re-engage, it helps to send your emails to specific segments.

Someone who has bought several pairs of men’s shoes from you in the past probably isn’t going to be won over by a discount on women’s dresses. As well as segmenting subscribers based on when they last interacted with your brand, drill down further to segment your audience based on information like what they bought, why they use your product or their job title.

Language learning app Busuu has targeted inactive subscribers based on the language they’re learning. Here, they lure a user back with a discount specifically on Japanese courses – an incentive that wouldn’t be particularly enticing if the user was learning Spanish or Arabic.

2. Offer an incentive

Talking of incentives, offering subscribers a BOGO deal or a freebie if they re-engage can help give on-the-fence users the nudge they need. Make sure the incentive is relevant to their needs (i.e. don’t offer incentives on women’s dresses to subscribers who have only ever bought men’s shoes) and something that will help keep them engaged.

Skillshare starts its winback emails with a classic “we’ve missed you!” before offering a discount to users that have left the Premium plan. As well as offering a discount on their first month back, Skillshare also reminds subscribers about the benefits they receive as a Premium member.

Note how the offer is a discount for the first month. While we normally don’t encourage discounting your product, a one time exclusive deal to encourage reengagement can work well for SaaS brands. During this time, Skillshare can send regular emails to help users get set up again and make the most of the tool, increasing their chances of sticking around long term.

3. Showcase your latest features

Got something new to shout about? Include it in your winback campaigns. As well as reminding subscribers why they chose you in the first place, show them why they should choose you again (especially if there’s been an influx of competition in your market).

It helps users to see that you’re consistently adding new features that tackle fresh challenges.

Asana’s winback emails promote new content, offer new insights, and push new features. This triple threat of an update gives users all the information they need to return to the app and continue using it.

4. Send a quiz or interactive content

There’s nothing like a quiz or a piece of interactive content to increase engagement levels. There’s a reason BuzzFeed’s quizzes are so popular. Who doesn’t want to find out which 2000s movie star they are or what kind of house matches their personality?

Quizzes also personalize your winback campaigns. They help you understand more about your customers – if they get to the end of the quiz and click a tracked link, you can use this information to send more relevant communications in the future. You can also send a feedback email that asks lapsed customers to share their opinion on your brand, products, and their experience with you.

Toilet roll subscription brand Who Gives a Crap sends former customers a humorous flowchart quiz where all answers point to “buy more loo roll”. The quirky copy reflects the brand’s personality and, while the quiz doesn’t necessarily add a ton of value, it engages subscribers and is a clever way to encourage them to return.

5. Tell subscribers exactly what will happen

Sometimes the easiest way to win back customers is to tell them exactly what’s going to happen if they don’t resubscribe or show their interest. Not only does it give users a chance to make an educated decision about whether they want to come back or leave your list forever, but it also offers complete transparency (which incidentally builds trust).

Childcare brand Other Goose doesn’t mince its words in its winback campaign. It simply states why subscribers are receiving the email, what will happen if they don’t take action, and a chance for them to restore access to their account. It adds in a handy timeframe too, so that subscribers can think about their decision.

Use your subject line to hammer the point home: the more concise and to the point you can be, the better.

6. Keep it simple

Simplicity is everything in a winback campaign. The subscribers you’re trying to reach are already showing less engagement and the last thing you want them to do is jump through hoops just to show they’re committed to your brand.

If you make them do seven handstands, click four links, and film a video to resubscribe, there’s a very high chance (read: 100%) that they won’t come back.

Framebridge keeps its winback email short, simple, and to the point. Don’t want to resubscribe? That’s fine, you don’t have to do anything! If you do – also fine! Just click this link and you’ll stay.

7. Let users customize their resubscription

Sometimes there’s a reason customers haven’t returned. Maybe they haven’t received the information they need or they’re not getting the right product recommendations from you. Give subscribers a chance to choose their preferences and put them back in control, whether that’s by asking what kind of content they want to receive or what products they’re most interested in. This will help them create their own unique journey and increase the chances of them coming back and staying.

Animoto gives its subscribers the option to choose their email preferences, which include what types of emails they want to receive and what content they’re most interested in.

8. Remind customers what they’re missing

There was a reason someone signed up to your email list in the first place. Perhaps they downloaded an ebook, made a purchase, or simply wanted to get updates from your brand. Winback campaigns are the perfect opportunity to remind users why they gave you their email address in the first place and what they can expect from you moving forward.

Clothing brand Saks recaps what kind of emails customers receive when they stay on the email list.

9. Include social proof

The Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) is strong for a lot of people. They want to be amongst all the action and be a part of the cool crowd. Add social proof to your winback campaigns with reviews, testimonials, user-generated content, and numbers. Incorporating a couple of powerful and positive reviews can make all the difference, or showing how other users are benefitting from your product can help subscribers see what it can do for them.

Webflow highlights how many new users it’s acquired since the last time a user visited the site. Showing a dramatically higher user base gives subscribers pause for thought and gets them wondering whether they are missing out.

10. Leverage your brand personality

Your brand personality is what sets you apart. Use this to reconnect with customers and stand out from other, more serious winback emails. This winback example from Paul Mitchell does exactly that. The informal language and cute image pull on customer heartstrings and give shoppers the chance to re-engage.

What a sample winback campaign looks like in action

Successful winback campaigns identify the reason for customer churn and remind users why they should come back. The campaign should be sent to dormant customers who haven’t used your app, bought or product, or interacted with your brand in several weeks.

The content of customer winback email campaigns will vary depending on what you hope to get out of it – do you want to re-engage inactive customers or do you want to encourage a new purchase? Either way, it can take time to warm up subscribers again, especially if they’ve been dormant for a while.

As such, it helps to automate a series of emails instead of firing off just one and hoping it does the job. In this post, we go into more detail about what you need to think about when planning a winback strategy, but here’s a sample winback series to get you started.

• Winback email #1: Tell subscribers exactly what’s going to happen if they don’t stay subscribed and provide a very clear call-to-action (CTA) that tells them how they can stay involved
• Winback email #2: Remind users why they chose you in the first place and restate the benefits they get when they remain a subscriber (you can include new features and content here)
• Winback email #3: Add an incentive to the offer to give on-the-fence subscribers the nudge they need to stay
• Winback email #4: Send social proof or remind customers what kind of communication they can expect to receive from you moving forward
• Winback email #5: Give customers one last chance to re-engage by re-stating the incentive and telling them there will be no more emails if they don’t take action

Winback campaigns increase re-engage customers and improve retention rates

Customer churn is a big problem for SaaS and ecommerce brands today. The sheer amount of competition makes it incredibly easy for shoppers to skip from one brand to the next, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

Winback campaigns reach users who are still partially warm and re-engage them with great content, irresistible incentives, and a stark reminder about why they signed up in the first place. This ultimately leads to more conversions, higher customer engagement levels, and an increased customer lifetime value.

The post How to Drive Customer Retention With SaaS & Ecommerce Email Winbacks appeared first on The Good.