How to Get Customers to Trial, Trust, and Treasure Your Business
In the vast, noisy, and often impersonal world of modern business, how do you make a promise so powerful, so compelling, that it stops a potential customer in their tracks? How do you craft an offer that not only grabs their attention but instantly demolishes their skepticism and makes trying your service an absolute no-brainer?
This isn't just a question of clever marketing. It's a question of deep strategic confidence. It's about having so much belief in the value you provide that you are willing to remove every ounce of risk for your customer.
I recently had a conversation on my podcast with a founder who has done exactly that. Matt, the entrepreneur at the centre of our discussion, has one of the most compelling customer promises I have ever heard. His offer is so strong, it immediately sets him apart from the crowd of faceless, online portals he competes against.
But having a great offer is only the first step. The next challenge, and the one that formed the heart of our conversation, is how to leverage that promise to drive growth. We had a fantastic, in-depth discussion about finding more customers, creating an irresistible entry-level product, and building a business that people don't just transact with, but truly trust.
This episode is an inspiring listen for any business owner who wants to rethink their own growth opportunities.
Today, inspired by my chat with Matt, I want to give you my definitive guide on how to use a powerful promise to build an unforgettable business.
Your Promise is Your Weapon - Competing Against the Faceless Giants
Matt's primary competition comes from huge, impersonal online portals. This is a challenge many small and medium-sized businesses face. You can't outspend them. You can't out-feature them. So how do you win?
You win by being everything they are not. They are faceless; you are human. They are transactional; you are relational. They are generic; you are specialized. And your customer promise is the tip of the spear in this battle.
A powerful promise does three things that a big, automated portal simply cannot:
- It Demonstrates Empathy: It shows that you understand your customer's deepest fears and hesitations. A promise like "You don't pay a cent until you are 100% happy" immediately tells a customer, "I understand you're worried about getting a poor result, and I'm here to take that worry away."
- It Screams Confidence: It is the ultimate flex. It signals that you have absolute, unshakeable faith in the quality of your product or service. You are so confident that you will deliver an exceptional result that you are willing to bet your own revenue on it. This confidence is infectious.
- It Builds Instant Trust: In a world of fine print and broken promises, a clear, powerful guarantee is a beacon of trust. You are aligning your success directly with your customer's success. It shifts the dynamic from a buyer-seller relationship to a true partnership.
Your irresistible offer is not a gimmick; it is the most powerful marketing statement you can make. It is your strategic weapon against the faceless giants.
The "Trial" Imperative - How to Create an Irresistible Entry Point
So, you have a powerful promise. Now, how do you get people to experience it? This is where the concept of an entry-level product, or a "trial offer," becomes so critical.
The goal of a trial is not to make a huge profit. The goal is to make it as easy and frictionless as possible for a potential customer to experience your brilliance. It's about giving them a low-risk "taste" that leaves them wanting the full meal.
In our conversation, Matt and I workshopped what this could look like for his business. The principles, however, are universal.
- Lower the Barrier to Entry: Your trial offer must be significantly less expensive or time-consuming than your core offer. It needs to feel like an easy "yes."
- Deliver a "Wow" Moment: The trial must, without fail, deliver a tangible, valuable result. It needs to solve a small but real problem for the customer and give them a direct experience of your expertise and your promise.
- Create a Natural Path to the Next Step: A great trial offer seamlessly leads to your core offer. At the end of the trial, the customer should be thinking, "That was amazing! If this is what they give away for a small price, I can only imagine how incredible their full service must be."
For a service business, a trial could be a one-hour paid strategy session. For a software company, it's a 14-day free trial. For a consumer product, it's a smaller, less expensive "starter kit."
Your trial offer is your audition. Your job is to make the performance so spectacular that the customer is begging to buy a ticket to the main show.
Finding Your People - A Smarter Approach to Customer Acquisition
With a great promise and an irresistible trial offer, you now have a powerful engine for growth. The next question is, where do you find the people to put into this engine?
You don't need to be everywhere. You need to be in the right places, talking to the right people.
- Go Where the Pain is Expressed: Where are your ideal customers actively talking about the problem you solve? This could be specific online forums (like Reddit), professional Facebook groups, or local community hubs. Your job is not to jump in and sell. Your job is to listen and then generously offer helpful advice. By becoming a trusted resource, you will naturally attract clients.
- The Power of Partnership: Who else serves your ideal customer in a non-competing way? For Matt, this could be real estate agents, mortgage brokers, or financial planners. Forging referral partnerships with these professionals is one of a highest-leverage growth strategies available. You are getting a warm, trusted introduction to a perfect potential customer.
- Leverage Your Happy Customers: Your existing clients who have experienced your promise and are delighted with your service are your greatest marketing asset. You must build a system to encourage and reward their advocacy.
- Ask for reviews: Make it a standard part of your process to ask for a review on Google or your preferred platform.
- Create a referral program: Offer a meaningful incentive to clients who refer new business to you.
- Document their success: Turn your best client results into compelling case studies that you can share on your website and social media. This provides the powerful social proof that new customers need to see.
An Inspiring Lesson in Building a Business That Cares
Matt's story is a brilliant example of how building a business with integrity and a deep commitment to the customer experience is the ultimate growth strategy. His compelling promise isn't just a tactic; it's a reflection of his entire business philosophy.
Our full conversation on the podcast is a dynamic and practical session that dives deep into these concepts. We workshop specific ideas for his business that are applicable to any founder who is looking to stand out, build trust, and grow. It's an inspiring listen that will leave you full of ideas for your own business.
Your Promise is Your Strategy
In a world saturated with marketing messages and competing options, the clearest path to success is to build your business on a foundation of absolute trust.
Craft a customer promise so compelling that it makes you stand out. Design an entry-level trial so valuable that it makes saying "yes" easy. And build a marketing system that leverages your greatest asset—the trust you've earned from your delighted customers.
When you do this, you stop competing on price. You stop competing with the faceless, impersonal giants. You start competing in a category of one, where your promise, your integrity, and the human connection you offer are the reasons people choose you, stay with you, and tell everyone they know about you.
That is how you build a business that doesn't just grow, but endures.
What is the customer promise at the heart of your business? And how could you make it even more powerful?
Frequently Asked Questions on How to Get People to Trial
1. What is the fundamental challenge a business faces in getting a customer to 'trial' their product or service?
The fundamental challenge is overcoming cognitive friction and perceived risk. Customers are naturally hesitant to invest time, money, or emotional energy into a new or unfamiliar product. A business must focus on minimizing the perceived risk and maximizing the perceived benefit by simplifying the trial process, being radically transparent about the value proposition, and providing unassailable social proof.
2. How can a business use the 'Less is More' principle to successfully drive customer trials?
A business uses the 'Less is More' principle by ruthlessly simplifying the path to trial. This involves reducing the number of steps a customer must take, eliminating unnecessary information, and removing any financial barrier (e.g., freemium models, low-cost/high-value introductory offers). The goal is to make the decision to trial an absolute 'no-brainer' by minimizing the commitment required.
3. What is the role of 'social proof' in convincing a skeptical customer to trial?
'Social proof' is vital because it manages the customer's perceived risk. Skeptical customers trust the verifiable, lived experience of their peers more than they trust a brand's own marketing claims. Businesses must proactively gather and clearly display authentic customer reviews, testimonials, and case studies to validate the product's effectiveness and reduce the customer's hesitation to take the first step.
4. How does the 'Science of Sales' inform a successful trial strategy?
The 'Science of Sales' informs a successful trial strategy by grounding it in data-driven discipline. This involves calculating the Cost of Customer Acquisition (CoCA) for the trial process, monitoring conversion rates at every stage, and understanding the customer's psychology to identify the optimal triggers for conversion. The trial should be treated as a quantifiable investment that is constantly tested and refined for profitability.
5. What practical advice do you have for a founder looking to maximize the conversion rate from trial to full purchase?
To maximize trial-to-purchase conversion, focus on the 'unambiguous clarity' of the value received during the trial. The customer must clearly and quickly understand the full benefit. Ensure a seamless, personalized onboarding experience that reinforces the product's solution to their specific pain point. Crucially, the transition from trial to paid service must be simple, frictionless, and clearly communicated before the trial period ends.
