Building a profitable software-as-a-service (SaaS) business often feels like a balancing act between solving a legitimate problem and finding the right way to charge for it. For Jack Frics, founder of PostBridge, reaching $7,000 in monthly recurring revenue (MRR) within just five months wasn't a stroke of luck—it was the result of a calculated SaaS pricing strategy. By moving away from restrictive yearly billing and implementing high-intent free trials, Jack unlocked a conversion engine that turned organic social media traffic into a sustainable subscription business model. This guide explores the specific levers you can pull to increase SaaS MRR and optimize your conversion funnel based on the PostBridge playbook.
The Transition from Yearly Billing to 7-Day Free Trials
When Jack first launched his apps, he experimented with different monetization models. His first success, Curiosity Quench, relied heavily on a $30/year subscription. While effective for a consumer mobile app, he found that for a B2B-style web application like PostBridge, a high-friction entry point was a barrier to SaaS conversion rate optimization. Users were hesitant to commit to a full year of a social media scheduling tool without first testing how it fit into their daily workflow. According to the Starter Story research, switching to a 7-day free trial was the catalyst for his rapid growth.
The 7-day window is particularly effective for tools that solve daily recurring pain points. If a user can automate their social media posting for a week, they quickly realize the time-saving value of the product. This creates a sense of loss aversion; once the trial ends, the prospect of going back to manual posting is painful enough to trigger a conversion. For founders looking to increase SaaS MRR, shortening the distance between sign-up and value delivery is the most effective way to improve the free trial conversion rate.
"Free trials and heavy discounts on yearly plans are two simple levers that drive revenue up significantly for early-stage SaaS."
Credit Card-Required Trials vs. Open Trials: Finding Lead Quality
One of the most debated topics in SaaS marketing is whether to require a credit card upfront for a free trial. PostBridge opted for a credit card-required trial, a decision that prioritize lead quality over raw lead volume. While an "open" trial (no card required) might generate more sign-ups, those users are often "tourists" who have no intention of paying. By requiring a card via a provider like Stripe, you filter for high-intent users who are genuinely looking for a solution.
| Feature | No Card Required (Open) | Card Required (Gated) |
|---|---|---|
| Sign-up Volume | High | Low/Medium |
| Lead Quality | Low | High |
| Conversion Rate | Lower (1-5%) | Higher (15-50%) |
| Support Overhead | High (more tire-kickers) | Low |
As noted in the Starter Story breakdown, this friction ensures that the users entering your ecosystem are serious. For a solo founder managing his own support and development, reducing the noise from non-paying users is critical for maintaining focus. This approach ensures that your subscription business model is built on a foundation of customers who value the product enough to trust you with their billing information from day one.
Pricing Based on 'Fairness' and Competitive Benchmarking
Jack Frics’ approach to SaaS pricing strategy was rooted in personal frustration. He built PostBridge because existing social media schedulers were, in his view, 10x more expensive than they needed to be. Instead of following traditional enterprise pricing models, he priced PostBridge at a "fair" starting point of $9/month. This price was something he would personally pay, making it an easy sell to other solo creators and developers.
However, fairness doesn't mean leaving money on the table. Jack leveraged competitive benchmarking to ensure he was offering more value at a lower price point than legacy tools. By keeping overhead low—utilizing tools like Supabase for his database and Next.js for the frontend—he could maintain a price point that undercut competitors while still enjoying high margins. This "fairness" factor becomes a powerful marketing angle, especially when communicating with an audience that feels overcharged by "big tech" alternatives.
"I priced it at what I think is fair, and that fair price was something that I was willing to pay. I still make a very healthy profit."
Retention Through Stickiness: Solving Recurring Pain Points
Acquiring a customer is only half the battle; the real growth in a subscription business model comes from retention. PostBridge maintains high retention rates because it solves a "sticky" problem: the daily grind of social media distribution. When a tool becomes part of a user's daily habit, the churn rate naturally drops. Jack suggests that the best way to build a sticky product is to solve your own recurring problems, as these are the ones most likely to be shared by others.
To further reduce churn, PostBridge focuses on constant iteration. By using product analytics tools like PostHog, founders can track exactly where users drop off in the funnel and fix those leaks in real-time. For instance, if a user signs up for a trial but never posts their first video, the onboarding flow needs to be adjusted. Jack emphasizes that SaaS conversion rate optimization doesn't end at the sign-up; it extends through the entire first week of the user's experience.
Managing SaaS Margins: Scaling to $10,000/mo on a Budget
One of the most impressive aspects of the PostBridge story is the 95% profit margin. Jack manages to generate $10,000/mo from his two apps while keeping total costs around $400/mo. This efficiency is possible by choosing a lean tech stack and avoiding unnecessary personnel costs. His primary expenses include the Twitter API ($200/mo) and general hosting fees. This lean approach allows him to reinvest his time into organic marketing rather than managing a large team or complex infrastructure.
For founders looking to replicate this, the playbook is clear:
- Choose a modern, scalable stack: Use boilerplates like ShipFast or frameworks like React Native to build quickly.
- Automate everything: Use AI to handle code errors and marketing tasks.
- Minimize fixed costs: Avoid heavy enterprise software until your revenue justifies it.
This financial discipline is what allows a solo founder to achieve financial freedom much faster than a venture-backed startup with high burn rates.
Scaling with Organic Marketing and Creator Outreach
Jack spends only one hour a day on marketing, yet he has generated over 300 million views. His strategy is simple: find proven video templates on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, and recreate them with his app as the solution. He avoids traditional ads, focusing instead on organic marketing and engagement-driving "mistakes" in his captions to spark comments.
As your SaaS grows beyond the solo-builder stage, you may want to scale this organic reach by partnering with other creators. When you reach the point of needing to source influencers or User-Generated Content (UGC) at scale, platforms like Stormy AI can help you find and vet creators who fit your niche. Instead of manually scrolling for hours, an AI-powered creator discovery tool can help you identify influencers with high audience quality, ensuring your marketing efforts continue to drive high-intent trial sign-ups while you sleep.
Conclusion: Your Path to SaaS Growth
Optimizing your SaaS pricing strategy is not a one-time event but a process of constant iteration. Jack Frics’ journey with PostBridge proves that by solving a painful, recurring problem and offering a "fair" price through a 7-day trial, you can build a highly profitable business with minimal overhead. Focus on lowering the barrier to entry while maintaining high lead quality, and prioritize retention by making your product an indispensable part of your user's daily routine. If you are ready to start sourcing creators for your next campaign, you can discover creators on Stormy AI to help amplify your message and increase SaaS MRR through authentic, high-converting content.