PLG: definition
Product-Led Growth: a strategy where the product itself drives acquisition, with the user trying and adopting it before ever talking to sales.
Definition
PLG (Product-Led Growth) makes the product the main lever for acquisition, conversion, and retention. The user discovers the value on their own, through a free trial or freemium plan, and the move to paid is triggered by usage rather than a sales pitch. Done well, it lowers acquisition cost by reducing the need for human selling.
Why it matters
PLG can make your growth far more efficient: when the product partly sells itself, you acquire customers without a salesperson for each one, and usage itself generates word of mouth. But it requires a product whose value is felt quickly and without hand-holding, which isn't a given for every product.
When to use it
You adopt it when the product can be understood and adopted independently, without a demo. Concretely, you polish onboarding to bring the user to their first value on their own, and you trigger the paid offer at the moment they hit a limit that matters to them.
Example
A tool the user adopts for free, works into their daily routine, then pays for once they need to collaborate with their team.
Common mistakes
- Adopting it for a product that requires a demo.
- Neglecting onboarding, which is the heart of the model.
- Waiting for growth without a trigger for moving to paid.
Don't confuse it with
- freemium: Freemium is one possible pricing model for PLG; PLG is the overall strategy where the product carries all of the growth.
Related terms
Articles that use this term
Frequently asked questions
- PLG or sales-assisted?
- PLG works when value is felt quickly and without hand-holding. For complex or high-price products, sales-assisted selling is often still necessary.