I reviewed 30 SaaS solutions doing product-led in 2024. Here’s what I learned.

3 weeks and 21+ hours of research & trials later.

Here’s what I’ve learned.

Before we start

Just in case you’re reading for the first time about the PLG concept, here’s the idea: product-led growth is a self-serve approach for prospects to get access to a software solution, try it out, and, eventually, convert into customers. All without having to go through a human-driven sales process.

There’s no “book a demo call” required, persons involved, or, usually, paywalls in place, but rather “here’s the tool, create an account and try it out”.

Why?

I’ve always guided myself and the projects I’ve been involved in by an open research & iterative principle: studying what others have done, learning from what works, and improving what’s not exactly clicking for me. This approach has saved me plenty of time from having to reinvent the wheel.

I wanted to revisit the best practices for converting prospects to customers in this competitive 2024 SaaS market, how to stand out, and, at the same time, to learn what or what not to do.

Furthermore, a couple of days ago, I was asked about my favorite examples of PLG tools. I was close to naming a few from my personal experience when I realized I’d rather prefer to have an objective comparison done before. I could not only spice things up by reviewing a higher number of cloud solutions but also learn a couple of things along the way as well.

How the research is structured

To be on point with the review for each solution, I’ll only cover the following:

• headline: the main copy from the landing page

• what’s the tool about: a brief description of the solution

• getting access: the steps needed to create, confirm & activate an account

• total time to goal: the time it takes to achieve what the tool promises

• pricing & usage model: the plans and trial experience the tool offers

• communication: what’s the approach marketing takes to convert prospects?

• support: how fast and reliable is the support?

• what’s cool: one item that impressed me along the way (optional for each tool)

What you should expect

This research covers the account creation, onboarding, activation, and usage of the tool up to the moment of conversion from a prospect to a customer.

What it does not cover: more than 2 weeks of testing a SaaS solution or using it post-trial, after a potential buy-in decision.

How did I choose the tools?

Aka the methodology. It was a combination of the solutions I knew of, Google research, one ChatGPT query and checking the projects my LinkedIn feed is involved in.

I’ve combined them all in one place and then chose the top 50 mostly on gut feeling.

The highlights

Here’s what stood out to me during this research.

1️⃣

The onboarding flow that feels the most natural is part of the core solution (as seen in HEY): an e-mail app can onboard you via information delivered directly to your inbox. Similarly, a learning management system (LMS) can do it via courses tailored to you after signing up.

2️⃣

Get people in first, then create addiction (as seen in Grammarly, Figma & Notion): the best solutions are the ones that make users ask themselves “how could I have lived without this before?”. Driving demand is one of the most natural and organic ways to sell & grow a product. Welcome people in, offer them a whole ton of advantages, and make them reliant on your service. They’ll either realize they cannot live without it anymore or that they need more out of it. Even if they don’t convert, they are likely to discuss it with others.

3️⃣

Show customers what they’re missing out on, not only what they get (as seen in TinyKiwi): we’re generally used to seeing the type of pricing plans split into 2-5 options, each offering more ✅ features than the previous. You can also adopt a reverse approach, by showing what customers are missing out on 🚫 when choosing one of the lower-tier plans.

4️⃣

Explicitly stating that access is “free” serves as a differentiator in driving leads (as seen widely across various platforms): the call-to-action (CTA) copy, in a significant % of the solutions I reviewed, is a variation of “Sign Up for Free” rather than a simple “Sign Up”. Most of the time the above-the-fold area contains 2x buttons as well, one in the header, and the other in the hero area.

5️⃣

Unique out-of-screen onboarding experiences make users feel special (as seen in Miro): if the devices prospects use play a key role in how the service is consumed — for instance, through a mouse or trackpad— then tailoring the onboarding experience individually for each will get you a long way ahead.

6️⃣

Get big & confident enough, and you’ll be able to command a premium price in an exclusive way, if that’s truly your goal (as seen in Ahrefs): there are businesses, bold and well-resourced enough, that have the means to exclude any trial option or free plan whatsoever. Want in? Get your card out and pay first.

7️⃣

Offering omni-licenses for a portfolio of inter-connected products could boost lifetime customer value (LTV) and retain more customers as they expand (implemented by Freshworks, unlike Monday): as businesses grow, they become more cost-conscious, especially when expenses rise with every additional license & team member. If customers utilize multiple products from your suite, overlapping user licenses to integrate their operations can lead to significant costs, potentially opening the door for competitors who offer a consolidated solution. An umbrella license ensures customers feel valued, not exploited, and has the potential to reduce churn.

8️⃣

The less active time users spend in your solution, the more value they could get out of it (seen in Vercel): in today’s time, where multitasking, switching between SaaS platforms, managing teams, delivering value to customers, and staying ahead of market trends are all in a single day’s work, the time investment required by cloud solutions may often outweigh their financial costs. Delivering direct value to your customers while minimizing the required effort from their side might get you a long way.

9️⃣

Convert at a low fee and offer an extended trial period, enabling customers to fully integrate your service into their core business (as seen in Shopify): allowing the first 3 months of access to a service for $1 / month or a similar financial commitment would capitalize on the perceived value effect. This strategy not only turns prospects into customers directly but also grants them plenty of time to make your solution an integral part of their activities, start seeing direct returns, and appreciate the value your service offers.

🔟

A sandbox is the fastest & most comprehensive method for users to browse your solution (as seen in Sentry). Often in SaaS, the steps to test a tool typically follow a standard process: create an account, go through onboarding, integrate 1st or 3rd party services, add a team, populate the workspace with data, and then see what you can get out of it. Every single aspect here can be streamlined into a workspace filled with mockup, but realistic data, which customers can browse in one click.

You can find the raw review information for each of the 30 SaaS tools in this article (split due to the length).