Pre-salesBy Day Zero
Founding member pricing: how to run an early-bird offer for your SaaS
Founding member pricing is a better deal for your first customers, offered before or at launch to a limited number of people. It works best when it's capped, has an end date and gives founding members something later customers won't get.
In short
- A founding member offer gives your first customers a better deal in return for buying early.
- Three common forms: a locked-in discount, extra free time or a lifetime deal.
- Cap it by number and by date, so it's real and you can support everyone.
- Before launch, a lifetime deal is the easiest to explain. On Day Zero it's 10 to 100 founding seats.
Founding member pricing, also called early-bird or founders' pricing, is a special deal for the first people who pay you. They take a chance on a product that's new or not finished, and in return they get a better price and something later customers won't: a say in the product, credit as a founding member, or access that never needs renewing.
Three ways to structure it
| Offer | How it works | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Locked-in discount | A lower subscription price for as long as they stay subscribed | Launched products with billing ready | There's little to sell before the product works |
| Extra free time | Several months free, then the normal price | Getting people to try it | It tells you nothing about who will pay |
| Lifetime deal | One payment for lifetime access to a defined plan | Before launch, to prove people will pay | Lifetime users cost support and servers, so cap the seats |
What makes a founding offer work
- It's limited: a fixed number of founding members.
- It ends: a date when the offer closes, and it isn't reopened cheaper later.
- It's clearly better than what later customers will pay.
- It includes something beyond price: a say in the roadmap, a direct line to you, credit on a founders' page.
- It says exactly what's included: the plan, the features and any limits.
How many founding members
Enough to prove people pay, few enough that you can talk to every one of them. For most pre-launch software that's somewhere between 10 and 100.
How to price it
For a lifetime deal, a year or so of your planned subscription is a good starting point, discounted for the wait and the risk. For a locked-in discount, make the saving big enough to notice. More in how to price a lifetime deal.
How to announce it
Tell your waitlist and followers first: what founding members get, how many places there are and when the offer closes. Then remind them halfway through and the day before it closes. See waitlist email templates.
After the offer closes
- Keep every promise you made to founding members, especially about what the plan includes.
- Don't reopen the same offer cheaper. It punishes the people who trusted you first.
- Thank them publicly, with their permission, and keep them updated.
Founding seats on Day Zero
On Day Zero, a founding member offer is a lifetime-deal campaign. You choose 10 to 100 founding seats at $10–$150 and a backer goal, and the campaign is open for a week. Each seat is numbered, every backer gets a First Backer badge on their public portfolio, and backers talk to you in the campaign's public discussion. Backers are charged when you open access, so they pay once they can use the product. Listing is free, and sales from your own link or widget have a 0% Day Zero margin.
Questions
Is founding member pricing the same as early-bird pricing?
Close enough. Early-bird pricing usually means a lower price for buying early. Founding member pricing usually adds something beyond price, such as lifetime access or a say in the product.
Should founding members get lifetime access?
Before launch, a lifetime deal is the simplest offer to explain and the clearest proof that people will pay. Cap the number of seats and define the plan so the cost stays manageable.
Can I offer founding member pricing after launch?
Yes, usually as a locked-in discount for the first customers. Before launch it does more work, because it's also your proof of demand.