We are in talks with an enterprise to start a pilot project for our software. Is it a norm for companies to pay for a pilot project? Or should it be free to get a foot in the door and learn more about their problems and processes
Definitely yes!
Your product and your time are valuable and that should be recognised. Also, neither you nor the company you pilot with will benefit from you running any financial risks.
But...there are various things you can do to ensure that the pilotcompany feels just as recognised as you do. Just some thoughts:
- Cost prices only during the pilot
- Engineer on site during pilot to immediately fix things
- Special discounts
- Lifelong premium service for free
- Be a prominent use case (they might need the innovative publicity)
Good luck!
