My friend had a similar experience in india. I wonder how the same kind of soft well approach could be applied to startups? Perhaps by making sure you provide value for people with no pressure to buy? The methodology sure seems to work.
I think application of this into a startup is all about interaction. How can a company passionately (read: more then just newsletter drips) interact with their users after they have signed up for the freeby but maybe aren't quite ready to pay? Even with the "free plan with hopes of people upgrading to pay" model so popular these days, conversion rates still seem too low to me. Users sign up for the freeby but then instead of diving into an engaged relationship with the company, too often those users are "off the hook" from courting... they have already shown interest, now wow them into converting.
Reciprocation is covered with the company providing the free trial or the free shipping. In startups, "Social proof", "Liking", "Authority", and "Scarcity" are all more-or-less defined by the userbase and market the company is in. That leaves us with "Commitment and consistency" as the magical 'weapon of influence'. So what is that exactly? I think it comes back to providing your users with an excellent product, excellent service, and make them feel like they are part of the family. From a different model, I think Zappos does an excellent job of this. To loyal Zappos customers, using the service is a no-brainer - at every turn the company makes users feel catered to, and in turn the users will continue to shop and feel confident that the relationship will work like it always has in the past.
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My friend had a similar experience in india. I wonder how the same kind of soft well approach could be applied to startups? Perhaps by making sure you provide value for people with no pressure to buy? The methodology sure seems to work.
I think application of this into a startup is all about interaction. How can a company passionately (read: more then just newsletter drips) interact with their users after they have signed up for the freeby but maybe aren't quite ready to pay? Even with the "free plan with hopes of people upgrading to pay" model so popular these days, conversion rates still seem too low to me. Users sign up for the freeby but then instead of diving into an engaged relationship with the company, too often those users are "off the hook" from courting... they have already shown interest, now wow them into converting.
Reciprocation is covered with the company providing the free trial or the free shipping. In startups, "Social proof", "Liking", "Authority", and "Scarcity" are all more-or-less defined by the userbase and market the company is in. That leaves us with "Commitment and consistency" as the magical 'weapon of influence'. So what is that exactly? I think it comes back to providing your users with an excellent product, excellent service, and make them feel like they are part of the family. From a different model, I think Zappos does an excellent job of this. To loyal Zappos customers, using the service is a no-brainer - at every turn the company makes users feel catered to, and in turn the users will continue to shop and feel confident that the relationship will work like it always has in the past.