Ask HN: SaaS launch tomorrow – lifetime deal or subscription?

1 pointspankaj92969mo ago4 comments

I ship tomorrow and I’m stuck on pricing. Product (one-liner for context): ViralFeed.ai helps create & publish UGC "hook + demo" videos promoting your product demo.

Two options on the table: - Subscription – $19/mo → $99/mo tiers (credits reset monthly) - Lifetime deal – $99 one-time for early adopters (same quota as $19/mo)

Concerns:

LTD may attract deal-hunters and kill future MRR

Subscription alone may slow early traction / feedback

Support & infra cost are low but not zero (Rendering + storage)

If you’ve tried LTD first, did it hurt later growth or churn? Conversely, if you skipped LTD, did you regret missing the launch spike?

Any war stories or heuristics appreciated. (Will share full numbers post-launch; link to the app in the first comment to avoid looking spammy.)

4 comments

AsimovVentures9mo ago

Happy to brainstorm on your pricing if you want. But it's hard to go in-depth based on what you've provided so far.

I run an agency focused on pricing and packaging 1–10M ARR companies. Always happy to give free advice to starting Founders. If you're interested just use this link to schedule something: https://revfixr.com/contact

pankaj9296OP9mo ago

Here's the product I'm referring to: https://viralfeed.ai — all feedback welcome!

SquidJack9mo ago

without trail version its really hard to get pro members

pankaj9296OP9mo ago

yeah, so the app allows you to singup for free, explore the app, even create draft videos. and it only ask for subscription when you try to export the video. I think previewing drafts is enough to eprceive value of the app.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

Ask HN: SaaS launch tomorrow – lifetime deal or subscription?

1 pointspankaj92969mo ago4 comments

I ship tomorrow and I’m stuck on pricing. Product (one-liner for context): ViralFeed.ai helps create & publish UGC "hook + demo" videos promoting your product demo.

Two options on the table: - Subscription – $19/mo → $99/mo tiers (credits reset monthly) - Lifetime deal – $99 one-time for early adopters (same quota as $19/mo)

Concerns:

LTD may attract deal-hunters and kill future MRR

Subscription alone may slow early traction / feedback

Support & infra cost are low but not zero (Rendering + storage)

If you’ve tried LTD first, did it hurt later growth or churn? Conversely, if you skipped LTD, did you regret missing the launch spike?

Any war stories or heuristics appreciated. (Will share full numbers post-launch; link to the app in the first comment to avoid looking spammy.)

4 comments

AsimovVentures9mo ago

Happy to brainstorm on your pricing if you want. But it's hard to go in-depth based on what you've provided so far.

pankaj9296OP9mo ago

Here's the product I'm referring to: https://viralfeed.ai — all feedback welcome!

SquidJack9mo ago

without trail version its really hard to get pro members

pankaj9296OP9mo ago

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse