Why People Don't Value Things They Don't Have to Pay for: The Real Cost of Free

Never give something away for free, as it can be perceived as worthless. From my experience, when people get something for free, they often think it’s not worth much. I created courses on Udemy and invested months in developing them. I once offered a free coupon, and everyone who used it didn’t even leave a review. Conversely, nearly all who paid for the course left positive feedback. Why? Because those who received it for free didn’t bother watching it, assuming it was subpar. However, those who paid felt they had invested, so they watched the course in full. Free users didn’t see its value, but paying users did.

I disagree; it really depends on the kind of goods you’re selling.

I have provided multiple services; my most recent venture is a stock market indicator and roulette prediction program. And to show you that I’m not some fraud, I’m giving it away for free.

I won’t mention its accuracy because, once again, I don’t want to overpromise, but my users have tried a number of tools where they have lost both their money and the cost of the license; therefore, the fact that I am letting them test it out for free before requiring them to sign up for a monthly subscription is what is really helping.

Yes, this is accurate, however free things also have a high value. Check out GPT-4 on Bing or Google.

It’s a very different circumstance. Although Google and GPT-4 on Bing may appear to be “free” to use, in actuality, they make a significant amount of money from data and advertisements. Businesses spend a lot of money on advertising to reach their audiences; you cannot run ads on Google or Bing for free. Not only is the product itself free to use, but these platforms’ revenue tactics also add value.

Yes, that’s correct, but from a user’s perspective, it’s free. In addition to search, the advertising provide value to the user, thus theoretically they are also part of the service.

What is the conversion rate of those who tested your product for free? Did you conduct any analytics?

definitely concur this is sooo right