Ask HN: How to choose the right business model for my web app? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How to choose the right business model for my web app?

3 pointsbarakstout7 comments

I have been working for a while a new web app that I believe will appeal many as a useful tool. I am almost finished working on a beta release and I am trying to come up with a business model. I know there are a number of options and I wanted to know what you think is a good option to start with.

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The right business model for your web app depends on what your competitors or the people you are replacing are already doing. Inertia will cause people to evaluate your web app versus how they are already solving the problem. So if what you are replacing does monthly saas billing, then you too should to monthly saas billing. Of course, going free or super reduced price can cause people to rush over to your web app though they will do so with a grain of salt because they will have already been used to another system.

Can the web app be used on a smart phone? If so, port it over. You will be able to charge for it once you build an audience. Starting free and getting these 1st users to chat about it then later initiate a fee. Or set a decent price for it and go all out with targeted marketing.

Free is a good option to start with. It will give your potential customers a reason to test your app - people rarely buy software nowadays without testing it. Also, it's a good way to get people to sign up for a newsletter.

Really? This is your advice? The guy probably spent months building the app and the best you can come up with is recommending the free option?

Yes, free can also be a business model, but there needs to be a lot of consideration put into it, because even free biz models need to make money at some point.

I'd say anything but free. If the app is really useful, like he says, people will pay for it (provided he has a proper landing page). I agree some free trial based period like 14 days or a month but definitely charge money for your app. It'll filter out freeloaders and let you focus on paying customers (providing great support, adding features faster...)

Doesn't it depend on what the app is? I know you need a business model other than just "make it free", but it seems pretty hard to give a meaningful answer without knowing anything specific about the app.

I would need a bit more detail about what your app is and what it does before I could make a recommendation.

Yo are right, I should have included it in the original post. The website is http://www.PixieDo.com Check it out. As of now it's all free supported with adsense.

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