Crisis — now Crisis / Stall

People sign up, use it once, and never come back — activation or value problem?

Your signup numbers look fine. Retention is a disaster. Users aren't getting to the 'aha moment' — either because the onboarding is broken or the value isn't what they expected. This kills monetisation before it starts.

Up to £2,000 MRR 1–2 people SaaS Crisis — now

The Pattern

Based on 327 decisions

72%

Positive outcome

7.0

Avg score

327

Decisions

63 positive 25 negative 239 pending

10 scale 309 optimise 8 experiment

What founders did

high confidence

Monetisation Case Studies

Curated library

Reddit Founder: Offer unlimited usage on entry-level SaaS plan (2026)

A SaaS company decided to include 'unlimited usage' as a key feature on its entry-level plan, priced at $29/month. This was likely intended to attract users with a perception of …

Negative outcome Server costs exceeded revenue for power users

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

6.1

Startup A: Revise and fix lifetime pricing model (2026)

This founder decided to re-evaluate and change their existing lifetime pricing model after realizing it was a mistake. This involves understanding the financial impact, communicating with existing customers, and implementing …

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

6.5

Unnamed SaaS Company: Offer an 'unlimited usage' entry plan (2026)

An unnamed SaaS company made the strategic decision to offer an 'unlimited usage' model on its entry-level plan, likely to simplify pricing and attract users. This choice was made in …

Negative outcome Profitability -X%, Server costs / Revenue ratio unsustainable

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

6.7

SaaS Founder Inc.: Offer and sell lifetime deals for their SaaS product (2026)

An anonymous SaaS founder (referred to as 'SaaS Founder Inc.') made the decision to offer and sell lifetime deals for their SaaS product, generating $50k upfront. For a founder, this …

Negative outcome Negative impact on MRR, low profitability

SaaS £0–5k/month Scale — Double down, proven signal

8.2

Startup Founder: Offer lifetime deals for a SaaS product (2026)

A startup founder made the decision to sell lifetime access to their product, a one-time payment model instead of recurring subscriptions. As a founder, you face the choice between immediate …

Negative outcome Regret, unsustainable model, future revenue jeopardized

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

7.9

SaaS Company: Offer unlimited usage on entry-level plan (2026)

A SaaS company decided to offer 'unlimited usage' on its entry-level plan, a common strategy to attract new users and simplify pricing. However, this choice inadvertently led to significant resource …

Negative outcome Unprofitable customers, 60% server costs by 4 users, …

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

6.1

SaaS Founder: Offering lifetime deals (2026)

A SaaS founder decided to offer lifetime deals (LTDs) for their product, which involves giving customers indefinite access for a single, upfront payment. While it can provide a quick cash …

Negative outcome Negative long-term sustainability; High churn of one-time users

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

7.6

Unnamed Founder: Offer lifetime deals for their product (2026)

A startup founder made the decision to sell lifetime access to their product, generating $50,000 in revenue. While this provided an immediate cash injection, the founder retrospectively identified it as …

Negative outcome Long-term profitability - (negative impact)

SaaS £0–5k/month Optimise — Working but needs refinement

7.4

As founders contribute their monetisation decisions, you'll see what people at your exact stage are doing too.