Kyle Poyar on Why Going Enterprise Doesn't Mean Killing PLG

Test PLG Without Blowing Up Your Pricing

Most enterprise software companies think shifting to PLG means rewriting their entire pricing model and risking massive cannibalization. Kyle Poyar has a different playbook.

Start with a person-assisted free trial. Not fully self-serve, just a "request free trial" button that triggers a 30-minute onboarding call. This lets you test demand without building out full self-service infrastructure.

That's something that you can do without having a fully self-serve, fully operational free trial. It's more of a way of testing that appetite for a free trial.

— Kyle Poyar

Next, try interactive demos on your website. Poyar sees these drive higher intent leads because prospects experience the product before talking to sales. They're already bought in by the time they request a demo.

The key is de-risking each step. You can run these experiments with your current team and motion. No need to hire a PLG squad or rebuild your product before you've validated demand.

Product-Influenced Revenue: The Only Metric That Matters

Poyar cuts through the PLG vanity metrics with one question: how much of your net new ARR starts with a meaningful product interaction before sales gets involved?

In OpenView's latest benchmark survey, freemium companies ranged from 25% to 100% product-influenced revenue. Just having a free tier doesn't mean it's driving business outcomes.

A trend, first of all, is cutting PLG initiatives that aren't working or were more side hustles, experiments, as opposed to core.

— Kyle Poyar

This metric forces honest conversations. If you've built a PLG motion with dedicated engineers, product folks, and marketing spend but it's only influencing 10% of revenue, you're running an expensive science project.

The companies doubling down on PLG in 2024 are the ones where product influence is core to their model, not a side bet. Everyone else is refocusing on what actually works.

The Enterprise Trap: Airtable's Cautionary Tale

Here's the pattern Poyar sees repeatedly: a PLG company starts landing big enterprise deals. Enterprise customers have better retention and expansion. Leadership pivots to enterprise, waters down self-serve access, raises prices across the board.

The first few quarters look great. Sales converts free users to enterprise plans. Pipeline is healthy. Then a year later, the well runs dry.

They don't have a pool of users that they can fish from and turn into these enterprise customers. And all of that's dried up because they totally disinvested in PLG, which became the foundation for their enterprise growth efforts.

— Kyle Poyar

The mistake is thinking enterprise and PLG are opposites. In reality, PLG is often how you reach enterprise buyers. An individual user at a Fortune 500 company tries your product, sees value, then advocates for enterprise adoption. Or they use it at an SMB, switch jobs, and bring your tool to their new enterprise employer.

Airtable announced their enterprise shift. Poyar is watching closely to see if they avoid this trap.

Where PLG Actually Works (And Where It Doesn't)

Developer tools and infrastructure software have near-universal PLG adoption. Developers expect to use products self-serve. They won't tolerate being forced into sales calls.

But finance tech, vertical-specific software, and legal tech? PLG adoption sits around 15-20%. In OpenView's benchmark survey, company size mattered too. SMB-focused tools see high PLG adoption. Companies selling to 1,000+ employee enterprises rarely use it.

The pattern is clear: PLG works when buyers want self-serve experiences and when products can deliver value quickly. Enterprise software with complex integrations, multiple stakeholders, and lengthy setup? Much harder to pull off unless you find a specific wedge.

Deal size economics matter too. If you're selling $200/month contracts, you can't afford high-touch sales. You need automation. If you're closing $100,000 deals, you have room for white-glove service. Apply PLG where the unit economics demand efficiency, not where it's trendy.

What's Next: Personalization at Scale

Most PLG companies collect mountains of product usage data but don't actually personalize the experience. They've built product-qualified lead scoring, but sales reps don't change their pitch based on what users actually did in the product.

Poyar sees the next wave as true automation of the customer journey. Not just self-serve onboarding, but automated email streams that look like they come from the AE. Outbound campaigns triggered when multiple users at the same company adopt the product. Messages that adapt based on specific actions taken.

Another challenge: SEO has been the lifeblood of PLG user acquisition. Generative AI and zero-click searches are threatening that channel. The companies winning tomorrow will crack community strategies, social media, and influencer partnerships to reach users at scale.

The takeaway? PLG isn't about choosing between product and people. It's about using product data to automate and personalize every touchpoint, whether that happens in-app or through your AE.