A research procedure for pricing a digital product before launch

A research procedure for pricing a digital product before launch

Context: creators price courses by gut, then discount in panic. Both errors are avoidable with a short pre-launch research sequence.

The sequence:
— Map the competitive set and their prices, but record what's bundled — a $500 course with cohort access isn't comparable to a $50 self-paced one.
— Run a price-sensitivity probe: a waitlist with tiered early-bird options reveals real willingness-to-pay through behavior, not stated preference.
— Test the highest defensible price first. Raising prices after launch erodes trust; lowering them is easier and signals less.
— Estimate refund rate into the model — digital-product refund rates run materially higher than physical, eroding gross revenue.
— Anchor against the buyer's alternative cost (their time, a competitor, the status quo), not your effort to build it.

Caveat: pre-launch signals overstate demand because early-list members are your warmest audience.

Implication: price for the segment that values transformation, not the one hunting the lowest number.

What we still don't know: reliable refund-rate benchmarks by price tier and niche, which platforms hold privately.