Go-to-Market
Beta approach, pricing framework, validation strategy, and kill criteria.
Go-to-market decisions are deferred to pre-beta and Phase 1. This page captures the frameworks and constraints that will guide those decisions when the time comes.
Beta Model: Paid Closed Beta
A free beta produces validation theater. If someone pays $25/month during beta with known bugs, that is stronger PMF signal than any survey.
Structure
- 20-30 users -- fewer than 10 is not enough data diversity; more than 50 overwhelms a solo founder with support overhead
- Users pay a founding member price (50% of planned retail) -- establishes willingness-to-pay as a real signal
- Single communication channel (Slack or Discord) + weekly email updates
- Biweekly 1:1 calls with 3-5 most engaged users (rotating)
Beta User Selection Criteria
- Must match ICP (see Target Users)
- Must be willing to pay (even at discount)
- Must commit to providing feedback (1 survey/week, available for 1 call/month)
- Prefer users with an active, urgent version of the problem
Exit Criteria
Set a firm end date before beta starts. Open-ended betas drift and delay launch.
- Sean Ellis PMF survey at Week 4 and Week 6: "How would you feel if you could no longer use this product?"
- If 40%+ answer "Very disappointed" -- proceed to public launch
- If not -- iterate and run another 4-week cycle
- Maximum two 6-week cycles (12 weeks total). If PMF signal is not there, reassess whether to iterate, pivot, or walk away.
Beta Transition
- Founding members keep discounted rate for 12 months
- New signups after beta end pay the standard price
- Collect testimonials and case studies before closing beta
Pricing Framework
Pricing model specifics are deferred to pre-beta. These are the frameworks and constraints that will guide the decision.
The Core Math
| Monthly ARPU | Customers for $10K MRR | Customers for $50K MRR |
|---|---|---|
| $10/month | 1,000 | 5,000 |
| $25/month | 400 | 2,000 |
| $50/month | 200 | 1,000 |
| $100/month | 100 | 500 |
Current working assumption: ~$8.99/month for paid tier, placing Trovella in the consumer/prosumer range. At that ARPU, reaching $10K MRR requires approximately 1,100 paying customers.
Known Constraints
- Free tier is necessary -- the target audience needs to experience value before paying. Free tier provides no-LLM skills and basic preference tracking.
- Per-user costs are real -- mini-apps, preference engine, and MCP capabilities consume LLM tokens. This is not a content product.
- Reverse trial model is preferred -- full access for 14 days, then downgrade to free tier. Combines urgency of trial with retention of freemium. Expected conversion: 8-15%.
- Achievement-based upgrade triggers (e.g., "you've hit the free limit") convert 258% higher than calendar-based prompts.
- No credit card at signup -- maximizes signups by ~57%.
- Stripe transaction fees at $8.99/month: 2.9% + $0.30 = $0.56/transaction (6.2%). Meaningful at this price point.
Multi-Tenant Tier Mapping (Unresolved)
The three-tier account model (Personal/Family/Company) introduces questions about how product tiers map to pricing tiers:
- Does the tier model map to pricing tiers 1:1, or are tiers orthogonal to account types?
- Which features are gated by tier vs. available to all?
- What usage limits differentiate tiers (storage, API calls, entities, users)?
- Should Personal tier be the free/freemium tier?
- How do users upgrade from Personal to Family or Company? Is migration seamless?
See Tenant Isolation and Organizations for the technical implementation.
Pricing Principles
- Price on value, not cost. Infrastructure costs are irrelevant to the customer.
- Start higher than feels comfortable. Discounting is easier than raising prices on existing customers.
- Plan for expansion revenue. NRR > 100% separates compounding businesses from linear ones.
- The 10-5-20 rule: Deliver 10x value, raise prices by 5% per 10 new customers, expect 20% pushback at the correct price.
Validation Strategy
Formal validation runs in parallel with development. The solo founder paradox: no buffer if the idea fails (argues for rigor), but no team (argues for speed). Resolution: maximize signal per hour invested.
Validation Activities
| Activity | Budget | Timing |
|---|---|---|
| Google Ads landing page test | $50-100 | Can run during development |
| Mom Test interviews (15-20) | Time only | During beta recruitment |
| Sean Ellis PMF survey | Time only | Beta Week 4 and Week 6 |
| Willingness-to-pay interviews | Time only | Pre-pricing decision |
Kill Criteria (Repeated from Target Users)
- Fewer than 5 of 20 interviewees describe the problem as urgent/painful -- reconsider
- Landing page converts below 3% after 300+ visitors -- messaging or problem is off
- Zero beta users will pay at founding member discount -- WTP signal missing
- Sean Ellis: fewer than 40% "Very disappointed" after two 4-week cycles -- iterate, pivot, or walk away
Related Pages
- Target Users -- who we are reaching and how we validate
- Success Metrics -- the metrics framework that runs during beta and beyond
- MVP Scope -- what the beta users will actually experience
- Competitive Landscape -- the pricing paradox that informs our pricing strategy
- Identity & Access -- tenant model implementation