You can really introduce a subscription model in the beginning. This would mean you could have a free model and a subscription model. You would have to make the subscription model more robust than the free one in order for people to want to subscribe but the free model could at least help you to build up your list of subscribers by signing up for your newsletter.

Hello,
your question is nearly impossible to answer properly without more context. Pricing is a crossroad for many companies and navigating the waters is not easy. Mistakes can be costly and put a lot of pressure on the company as a whole. Sweet spots are tiny. Hard to find and even harder to fortify. I assume that you don't have a pricing expert in your team - otherwise you wouldn't ask this question. Get professional help if you are unsure about this. Its a very influential factor for your success.

That being said. There are some rather standard questions you can answer that should help you to answer that question on your own or at least to start thinking into the correct direction. They are quite abstract because your question lacks specificity and context. Feel free to contact me for more tailored advice.

1. What is your current pricing model?
2. Are you able to deliver value repeatedly?
3. Are you aiming at growth or monetisation?
4. How are the competitors priced?
5. Price sensitivity of your target group?
6. What is cheapest way to the same value for your pot. customer and what is their most convenient way? Where are you positioned in between those?
7. How much runway do you have until you need to break even?
8. How many ways of monetising your services can you see? Upsell, crossell potential? Would it make sense to subsidise the entry level drug?

That is all from the top of my head. I hope it helps your endeavours!

Feel free to get in touch with follow up questions.

Have a great day!

I think it's more important to ask if you have a subscription base model. Implementing forms of payment is irrelevant to the point of if you actually have the value. If it's something people really want, they will find a way to pay for it. So, just reiterating again, make sure you have something worth utilizing as a subscription model. If you need help with digging in on the context of your situation, please reach out to me.

That should be done right at the beginning right after you’ve successfully completed your beta testing and have ironed out the major bugs.

I see many founders worried about customers leaving if they start charging. Newsflash, if they’re not paying then they aren’t your customer.

The only time this may not be applicable is if you have a hybrid model. Squareup.com doesn’t charge immediately but they get paid by facilitating transactions. https://usefulpdf.com doesn’t charge immediately either but it’s partially ad supported.

You should charge immediately and ask for more money than you think the product is worth right now. Most founders underprice by a huge margin.

I believe this guide will help you greatly in this regards: https://www.priceintelligently.com/blog/subscription-business-model
Besides if you do have any questions give me a call: https://clarity.fm/joy-brotonath