2 builders who never spoke to each other

Sell it once to buyers tired of subscriptions

Small businesses actively hunting for recurring charges to cut will pay a premium once for something they can keep, which is the opening a competitor's move to monthly billing hands you. Match the payment shape to the value: a per seat charge paid once for life where the value lasts as long as that person is there, or a self hosted build priced against their hosting bill. If you do keep a subscription, spell out what the fee continues to pay for, because buyers who see no ongoing value resist it.

The method

1. 01

   Sell a one-time purchase with a year of updates to customers worn down by subscriptions, especially small businesses feeling payment fatigue.

2. 02

   Offer a version customers buy once and deploy to their own infrastructure with a single click, and price against the hosting bill rather than a rival's subscription.

3. 03

   Align the payment structure with how the customer actually uses the product - charge once per seat for life if the value is meant to last as long as that person is there.

4. 04

   Spell out what the recurring fee keeps paying for, or offer a one-time price, because buyers who see no ongoing value resist the subscription.

5. 05

   Try a one-time purchase product instead of assuming the model has to be a subscription.

What it returned

• 2013

  When Adobe moved Creative Suite entirely to monthly billing in 2013, Sketch took the opening at $99 paid once, including a year of updates and an optional renewal.

• $5

  Apostello, open source software for churches, offers one-click installation on Heroku or Digital Ocean and can run for as little as $5 a month plus Twilio charges, against roughly $49 a month for the comparable service.

• $100

  Know Your Company, a two-person company, charges $100 per employee once for life - $2,000 for a 20-person firm, plus $100 for each new hire - and has been profitable since launching two years earlier on 30% margins.

• Justin's objections were whether the yearly charge covered ongoing server costs and whether he could pay once and skip email support.

Sources

• SaaS is ripe for disruptionJustin Jackson · justinjackson.ca · 1. The return to desktop apps · undated
• Why I bought your softwareJustin Jackson · justinjackson.ca · Scene 6: Close the deal · undated
• 3 lessons learned selling 3 SaaS productsLuca Restagno · solopreneurtofreedom.com · Personal updates · 2023-12-17