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I agree with everything you say. It is the usual best practices with this type of pricing model. Let's just compare these two services and the somewhat differ

I agree with everything you say. It is the usual best practices with this type of pricing model. Let's just compare these two services and the somewhat different take they have between the tiers of pricing. http://www.chompstack.com/pricing/ http://www.chompstack.com/pricing/ -only differentiation is if you need 11 restaurant. The upsell is only $15. http://letsfreckle.com/plans/ http://letsfreckle.com/plans/ -Freckle obviously plays better with the "idiot package" by upselling 10 more accounts instead of 1 restaurant like chompstack They both had different pricing strategies I see when sorting through the tiers: -Chompstack just went up $15 each tier -Freckle doubled each time instead of sticking with a fixed rate Any feedback on those thoughts?

ahoyhere 16y ago
Yep, hi, I'm the chief everything of Freckle. ;) (Except chief code monkey.) So, pricing wise, we had a particular strategy and we add very particular, measurable value. The value for a team is honestly more than double the value for an individual because value increases directly with the number of people who track time. I've actually hired a pricing consultant to talk about whether our pricing strategy (the chunking of user seats, the size of price increases) is the best for us. Til that process is wrapped up, it's a bit hard to weigh in! I will say that we priced our base plan higher than our "competitors", based on the difference between Basecamp and Basecamp With Time Tracking, although it looks now like our "competitors" have increased their prices as well. (I say "competitors" because we really serve different markets.) Also: we have as many Solo account members as all other paid accounts combined. We're not hurting for money either ;) and growing about 20% month over month since I've started serious promotion strategies. Hope this helps!
- stevenwei 16y ago
  I noticed that you guys have a free plan. Is that a significant percentage of your user base? It's a little bit hidden and I didn't see it at first (which I guess is the point).
  - ahoyhere 16y ago
    You're asking the wrong questions :) Is it a significant portion of accounts? Yes. There are thousands of free accounts and about 600 paying. But do people who actually use their free accounts stay free? No, at an overwhelming rate, they upgrade. Something like 30-50% of all free accounts with more than 5 time entries upgrade. Most free accounts are drive-bys or people who are merely curious. I'm also looking into ways to capture some of them, convince them to get over the hump to actually trying it, but I don't worry about how many accounts are free vs paid any more.
    - kirvyteo 16y ago
      Interesting! I am trying to work out the price plan for my startup as well. Can I ask if you got people signing up for paid accounts directly or they did the free plans first and convert later?
      - ahoyhere 16y ago
        Lots sign up for the paid accounts directly. We have a standard 3-6% monthly conversion rate from free -> paid. But, if you look at it in detail, the numbers get more interesting: About 17-25% of those each month have 5 or more time entries, which is our bar for an "active" account. (A low, sorta primitive bar, but still.) Of those, 35-55% upgrade to paid :) Thing is, unless you are in a very similar field with a similar interaction design quality / providing similar value, to people who "get" value for money, my experience on these points probably won't help you. That's why our sign up page de-emphasizes the free plan regardless, it's just an easier route :)
    - mattfrench 16y ago
      ahoyhere, thanks for the insight. I am working on pricing for our startup right now. We serve different markets, but I found your pricing structure interesting, that is why I used it as an example. Is there something to be said for offering a very cheap package instead of free (similar to the Chompstack pricing)? Have you guys tried that at Freckle?

ahoyhere 16y ago

Yep, hi, I'm the chief everything of Freckle. ;) (Except chief code monkey.) So, pricing wise, we had a particular strategy and we add very particular, measurable value. The value for a team is honestly more than double the value for an individual because value increases directly with the number of people who track time. I've actually hired a pricing consultant to talk about whether our pricing strategy (the chunking of user seats, the size of price increases) is the best for us. Til that process is wrapped up, it's a bit hard to weigh in! I will say that we priced our base plan higher than our "competitors", based on the difference between Basecamp and Basecamp With Time Tracking, although it looks now like our "competitors" have increased their prices as well. (I say "competitors" because we really serve different markets.) Also: we have as many Solo account members as all other paid accounts combined. We're not hurting for money either ;) and growing about 20% month over month since I've started serious promotion strategies. Hope this helps!

stevenwei 16y ago
I noticed that you guys have a free plan. Is that a significant percentage of your user base? It's a little bit hidden and I didn't see it at first (which I guess is the point).
- ahoyhere 16y ago
  You're asking the wrong questions :) Is it a significant portion of accounts? Yes. There are thousands of free accounts and about 600 paying. But do people who actually use their free accounts stay free? No, at an overwhelming rate, they upgrade. Something like 30-50% of all free accounts with more than 5 time entries upgrade. Most free accounts are drive-bys or people who are merely curious. I'm also looking into ways to capture some of them, convince them to get over the hump to actually trying it, but I don't worry about how many accounts are free vs paid any more.
  - kirvyteo 16y ago
    Interesting! I am trying to work out the price plan for my startup as well. Can I ask if you got people signing up for paid accounts directly or they did the free plans first and convert later?
    - ahoyhere 16y ago
      Lots sign up for the paid accounts directly. We have a standard 3-6% monthly conversion rate from free -> paid. But, if you look at it in detail, the numbers get more interesting: About 17-25% of those each month have 5 or more time entries, which is our bar for an "active" account. (A low, sorta primitive bar, but still.) Of those, 35-55% upgrade to paid :) Thing is, unless you are in a very similar field with a similar interaction design quality / providing similar value, to people who "get" value for money, my experience on these points probably won't help you. That's why our sign up page de-emphasizes the free plan regardless, it's just an easier route :)
  - mattfrench 16y ago
    ahoyhere, thanks for the insight. I am working on pricing for our startup right now. We serve different markets, but I found your pricing structure interesting, that is why I used it as an example. Is there something to be said for offering a very cheap package instead of free (similar to the Chompstack pricing)? Have you guys tried that at Freckle?