Turning free trials into treasures: the effect of perceived control on psychological ownership of digital products

Free trials are a prevalent marketing strategy used across various industries to mitigate customer uncertainty about product quality. However, the role of free trials in enhancing psychological ownership is not well-documented in existing literature. In our research, which involved 868 respondents and focused on content-based digital products such as e-books, we discovered that period-limited trials (full content access but time-restricted) are more effective than part-limited trials (limited content access without time restriction) in fostering psychological ownership. Furthermore, we found that the effectiveness of period-limited trials is enhanced when considering the product’s utilitarian-hedonic attributes. Perceived control over the products tested mediates these effects. Our findings provide valuable insights for marketers on designing free trial promotions that effectively enhance psychological ownership, especially by aligning trial types with the digital products' hedonic or utilitarian attributes.