Reciprocation
The Old Give and Take…and Take
Let's go through a simple conversation to understand reciprocation
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Where do We See Reciprocation?
1. Spotify Premium free trial
(Spotify, n.d.)
Spotify is a great example of a product that lets users experience its value for free. The music streaming platform uses a freemium model, allowing users to listen to music without paying. But the free version means your music or podcast will be interrupted by ads now and again.
However, Spotify offers a 30-day free trial that includes full access to the premium features: ad-free music streaming and offline mobile access, among other things. This is an ingenious strategy to pull people in, make them love the product, and later convert them into paying customers.
Many users will opt to permanently upgrade after experiencing the product’s value, especially considering the low price per month.
2. Amazon Free Trial
Amazon is another popular example of reciprocity in marketing.
The platform allows users to get all the benefits of Amazon Prime for free for a limited time. Once users see the savings and convenience they get with Prime, it’s unlikely they’ll want to return to the regular plan.
3. HubSpot educational resources
(HubSpot, n.d.)
HubSpot is an example of how content marketing can be used to reach out to and attract quality leads.
Our content engine has a variety of SaaS-related educational content entirely for free. Think in-depth blog articles, case studies, webinars, discussion panels, templates, newsletters, etc. The goal is to gather an audience well-educated on SaaS so they can understand the value of our products and start to use them.
Content marketing is also a great way to drive WoM when users find something useful and share it with their networks.
In addition to quality education, Userpilot has a free trial and offers personalized free demos for those interested in boosting their product growth.
A Coffee Shop - Decision Based Story
You are given a decision based short story below, to give you better understanding of the reciprocation principle
Raffle Ticket Purchases Database
This dataset is based on Dennis Regan's 1971 study on reciprocity, where participants were either given a small, unsolicited gift (a soda) or no gift at all. The study aimed to observe whether receiving a gift would influence participants to reciprocate by purchasing more raffle tickets. The data shows a clear difference in ticket purchases between those who received a gift and those who did not, highlighting how even small, unexpected gestures can significantly impact people’s willingness to give back.(Regan, 1971)