Gear

3 Things to Consider Before Signing Up for a Free Trial

Companies are blasting us with free trial offers while we’re stuck at home. That’s a good thing—until the bills show up.
two women in Nike workout gear
Workout apps are popular right now, and many are offering free trials.Photograph: Arthur Elgort/Getty Images

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Who knew everything from yoga memberships to primetime TV to audiobooks for kids could be so cheap?

They’re not, really. Not at all. But ever since communities around the globe started sheltering in place as part of a widespread effort to curb the spread of Covid-19, various apps have tweaked their subscriptions and blasted out marketing emails to offer potential customers free trials. Stressed out? Headspace, normally $13 per month, has assembled free collections for health care workers, teachers, and the general public. Kids stressing you out? Amazon-owned Audible is offering six categories of free kids books. Looking to work out? Peloton, Nike Training Club, CorePower Yoga, even a Chris Hemsworth workout app are all offering generous free trials. Feeling lonely? Never to be left out when it comes to technology trends, PornHub is offering free trials of its premium service.

It might be tempting to sign up for all kinds of free trials right now. Especially if your financial situation has become precarious, or you suspect it will in the near future. Free trials or “freemium” services can be incredibly useful, a means of testing out software and seeing how it works before taking the full subscription plunge. But taking advantage of what seems like a good deal in the time of coronavirus could end up creating a mess of your digital life in the long run. Here are a few things to consider before handing over your email and credit card info.

Free software trials (and bundles) were a trend long before the pandemic. Analysts who follow the software industry closely say these kinds of customer acquisition strategies have been used for years now. It might just seem like a novelty because companies are now trying to address price sensitivities in their messaging—or because the promotions are more directly in your face while you’re glued to screens at home.

“In business software there’s been a move from the perpetual license model to subscription models, or software-as-a-service, for a while now,” says John Santoro, a senior research director for Gartner. “And now it’s become popular in consumer software too. Subscription offerings allow the consumer to more effectively try it, and to feel like there’s a lot less invested if it doesn’t work out.”

Walt Piecyk, a partner and technology analyst at LightShed partners, points out that the telecom sector in the US has also been promoting free subscriptions. A few years ago T-Mobile started bundling a Netflix subscription with some of its family plans, a way to differentiate itself from its wireless competitors. Now T-Mobile is doing the same thing with a new streaming media service: Quibi, which charges up to $8 per month for 10-minute, ad-free videos. (Quibi is also one of the many apps offering a standalone free trial for 90 days.)

“They’re hoping they can reduce churn,” says Piecyk, referring to the rate at which customers leave. “It’s a very expensive element in the industry, so oftentimes offering free services, even if they’re not for an extended period of time, is a way to improve churn.”

That said, companies are definitely trying to lure you in while you’re stuck at home. By now you’ve likely you’ve seen some kind of free trial promotion punctuated with phrases like “As our community comes together in this time of crisis...,” “During this extraordinary and difficult time...,” and “To help everyone stay active and engaged while at home…” Millions of people sheltering in place while nations struggle to contain a global pandemic is a nightmare scenario for most of us. But for some software makers, it’s a chance to prove their socially distant value and convince you to give their app a try.

“In a situation like this more vendors are going to offer the software this way, because they’re certainly not going to come in and say to consumers, ‘Hey, make some big investment, trust me, you’re going to like it,’” says Gartner’s Santoro.

Certain categories of apps in particular are well-positioned for this moment, he says, including wellness apps and media-streaming apps—all of which serve habits we might have adopted in our lives before, and now can be extended while we’re all stuck at home. But those app categories are also incredibly crowded, which is why marketers need to push so hard. Something like Salesforce is hard to learn, and therefore hard to leave, Santoro points out. Something like Headspace is easy to use and easy to leave, so the company needs to entice you in some way.

That still doesn’t mean you should jump at every free trial offer. Just as the fear of missing out was a real thing when we could all hang out outside of the home, the fear of missing an “exclusive” online workout class, a new HBO series your friends are all talking about, or that subscription app that promises to simultaneously entertain and educate your kids, can be an additional stressor in these isolating times. Pause before you press download. Only you know what fits into your life right now, and what might still fit into it when we enter an actual post-pandemic phase. Unless the app also promises to put your kids to bed for you after it teaches them and entertains them. You should sign up for that one.

Comparison shop, and keep tabs on expiration dates. Some of those offers are just too good to pass up. And maybe you were already curious about Peloton, had resolved to try meditation, or were planning to brush up on your Broadway knowledge (BroadwayHD: free seven-day trial). You’ve gone ahead and downloaded the app, created an account, and punched in your credit card number.

Wait! You should still comparison shop. Yes, these are free trials, but if you’re going to invest any time exploring a new app or service, shouldn’t it be one you might want to actually continue using after the trial period ends? Not only that, some deals truly are better than others—and there might be freebies out there that don’t require you to hand over your payment info first.

For example, if you’re considering Headspace for meditation, you should also explore directly competitive apps like Calm (free seven-day trial, special offer of $42 per year after that); consider an extended online course, like Tara Brach’s Mindfulness Daily (free for a 40-day course); or look for an app that caters to your very specific needs, like Expectful for parents (free seven-day trial, $10 per month after that). If you’re looking for a streaming video fix, consider that Netflix just made 10 documentaries and documentary series free on YouTube; SlingTV is giving totally free access to its Sling Blue package between 5pm ET and midnight every night, no credit card required; and the NHL (and other sports leagues) are streaming classic games for free.

It goes without saying that you should keep track of every free trial you opt into. Screenshot the offer that was presented to you, and note the date the trial expires on your calendar. Some people download third-party budgeting apps to remind them of their subscriptions, like Truebill. Another app, DoNotPay, offers a kind of virtual credit card that you can use to sign up for free trials anonymously.

These are helpful, but some may see them as just another app to download and manage. It’s easy enough to use one of your existing apps to keep tabs of subscriptions, whether it’s a banking app, a password manager (many have notes sections) or a simple note-taking app like Apple Notes or Google Keep. Both Apple’s iOS and Google Android make it easy to view your current app subscriptions as well. On iOS, go to Settings, then your user name (at the very top), and Subscriptions. On Android, open the Google Play Store app, tap on the menu icon at the top, and from there navigate to Subscriptions.

Very few things in life are truly free, and that includes software as a service. Software can be expensive to make and maintain, so companies will eventually find ways to charge customers. But some of these apps are also acting as portals for connection, information, distraction, and small glimmers of enjoyment right now. That part is invaluable, free trial or not.

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