September 23, 2025
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Every growing business builds the same staircase.
It doesn't matter if you're selling software, running a community, or teaching courses. The pattern is identical:
Start with something free to attract attention
Create a logical next step that requires minimal commitment
Build increasingly valuable offerings that deepen the relationship
This is called a value ladder, and a lot of founders stumble into it through happy accidents. A free blog post leads to paid consulting. A basic service evolves into a premium package. A single product spawns an entire suite.
Happy accidents are great and all, but when you map the progression ahead of time, it becomes the basis of your business strategy.
The value ladder tells you exactly what to build next. No more paralysis when faced with a dozen “urgent” opportunities.
You simply ask: “What's the next logical step for my customers?”
This framework doesn't just help people climb toward your premium offerings. It helps you climb out of the chaos of infinite possibilities and focus on what actually moves your business forward.
In this newsletter:
How the value ladder ascends industry
The best way to think about your offerings
Creating your own value ladder
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The value ladder isn't industry-specific. It's a universal growth pattern that works whether you're building software, communities, or selling expertise.
For that reason, I thought it would be valuable to show you the same three-step progression, across four completely different businesses. It goes like this:
The lowest rung: something good and free
Your first job is to create something good, that people want to use, and offer it for free (or very cheap).
Tally offered a completely free form builder. Anyone could create unlimited forms without a credit card or trial limitations.
Courtland Allen launched Indie Hackers as an open forum. Founders could connect, share stories, and get advice. Zero cost to join the conversation.
For most people, the entry point to Small Bets is reading Daniel Vassallo’s tweets on X. Daily threads about entrepreneurship, failures, and small wins. Free expertise that built an audience.
Baremetrics gave away basic subscription analytics. Small businesses could track revenue and customer metrics without paying anything.
At this stage, you’re looking to make a good impression. You need to target a pain point, then solve it effectively.
Your next rung: low-friction paid entry
After establishing a connection with your users, it’s time to make things official. AKA, get paid.
Once Tally had engaged users, they introduced paid plans with form logic and custom branding. Natural upgrades for people already seeing value.
Indie Hackers added premium newsletter perks and sponsorship opportunities. Small, paid commitments that enhanced their community members’ experience.
Small Bets created $30 bite-sized guides. Specific, actionable content for people who were interested in the X threads, but wanted to go deeper.
Baremetrics developed useful add-ons like Cancellation Insights. Existing users could expand their analytics capabilities for a reasonable fee.
Your version of this is going to be unique to your customers and the problem you’re helping them solve. I’ll write a newsletter on this process in the future but, in short: talk to your customers. They’ll tell you what to build.
The top rung: a premium offering
Once you’ve effectively monetized a portion of your audience (read: made money, while keeping users happy), you want to determine who your top customers are.
These are people who like your product and the way you do things, and align with your ICP.
Your premium offering isn’t going to be for everyone; it’s explicitly meant to enhance your top customers’ experience, whilst staying aligned to your vision.
Tally's highest tier included advanced features and priority support. This identified their power users, who needed enterprise-level functionality.
Indie Hackers offered exclusive mastermind groups and private events. Deeper community access for serious entrepreneurs.
Small Bets launched $1,000+ live cohort programs. Direct mentorship for people ready to make significant investments in their growth.
Baremetrics started adding more intensive, specialized tools like Recover and Flightpath. Each new offering increased customer stickiness and lifetime value.
The pattern works because each step focuses on the genuine relationships you have with your customers, while naturally leading to the next level.
Different businesses. Different industries.
Same ladder. Same outcome.
📚 Related Reading
Customer lifetime value in tiered models by Miltos George (Growth-onomics) | Learn how smart tiering helps you focus on high-value customers and build offers that naturally grow alongside them.
How to increase customer lifetime value by Itamar Haim (elementor) | 18 tactics (upsells, better onboarding, personalization, etc) that turn one-time buyers into long-term customers.
Maximize profits with cross-selling and upselling tactics by Nicolette V. Beard (BigCommerce) | Clear examples show how the right upsells and cross-sells boost order value while giving customers exactly what they need next.
Intent to Action
The most effective way to build a value ladder is to work backwards from your current offering. Here's how:
Step 0: Don’t overthink it
This plan will undoubtedly be wrong. Or, rather, contain incorrect assumptions, products that flop, and other disappointments.
Don’t let anxiety about being wrong stop you.
Put your best effort into this exercise, but don’t worry about it being perfect. Just focus on bringing it to life.
Step 1: Map what you already have
Write down everything you currently offer. Include:
Free content (blog posts, social media, newsletters)
Paid products or services
Any consultations, calls, or personal interactions
Don't worry about organizing it yet. Just get all your value-creating activities on paper.
Step 2: Identify your current gaps
Look at your list and ask:
What's my best free offering? (The thing that gets your ideal customers’ attention most often)
What's my easiest paid entry point? (Low commitment, obvious value)
What's my premium experience? (The thing your most committed customers wish you had)
Most founders discover they're missing one of these three rungs. Mark the gaps.
Step 3: Fill one gap at a time
Start with whichever gap affects the most people. If you’re missing a…
Free entry point: Create something valuable that showcases your expertise. A useful template, a short guide, or a free tool that solves a real problem. Figure out how to get it in front of people.
Paid entry point: Take your most compelling, modular offering and package it on its own. A 30-minute consultation, a mini-course, a basic version of your main offering.
Premium offering: Use what you know about your customers to create a higher-value bundled offering/add-on. Add strategy calls, targeted features, priority support, or exclusive access to your expertise.
Step 4: Test your ladder logic
Before building anything new, validate the progression with existing customers:
“If I offered [free thing], would that have gotten your attention initially?”
“After using [free thing], would [paid entry point] feel like a natural next step?”
“Once you're happy with [paid entry point], what would make you want to invest more in the [tool/service]?”
This is the same process that experts use to determine their pricing. Your customers’ answers will tell you if your ladder makes sense or needs adjustments.
Step 5: Build one rung, then move to the next
Don't try to create everything at once. Pick the most important gap and focus there for the next month.
Launch it. Get feedback. Improve it. Then move to the next rung.
Remember: your ladder doesn't need to be perfect. It just needs to give people a clear path to get more value from what you do.
Perfect is the enemy of good.
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🧰 Toolbox
UXPressia | A journey-mapping tool that helps you visualize each stage of the customer experience, making it clear where new rungs in your ladder could fit.
HubSpot Free CRM | Tracks prospects as they move from free offerings into paid tiers, giving you visibility into how customers are climbing your ladder.
Hotjar | Provides heatmaps and session recordings so you can see where users engage or drop off whilst on your website.
