免费+增值服务模式

    Law360是一家提供法律行业新闻及其他资源的在线出版商，出版物包括《私募股权法360》（Private Equity Law 360）等。这家在线出版商利用“免费+增值”模式，打破由Westlaw法律信息平台和律商联讯（LexisNexis）等实力派的垄断局面，成功从中分得一杯羹。该公司主要通过电子邮件营销策略，为高收入法律事务所的律师个人提供免费阅读Law360出版物的权限。

    Law360联合创始人马吕斯•迈兰德表示，要想让潜在客户订阅出版物，上述策略是必须的。他将Law360描述为“法律界的‘彭博社’（Bloomberg）”。据悉，该公司出版物的全国统一订阅价划分为不同的类别，横跨从不足1,000美元的个人订阅价格到超过10万美元的大型公司订阅价格。他还表示，“我们认为，销售出版物的最佳方式就是让用户亲自体验我们的产品。因为，我们不能空口无凭地告诉客户，我们的出版物有多么出色，这是行不通的。”

    都说干律师这行的人不好对付，但这家以律师为客户的公司却实现了可观的盈利。该公司成立于2003年，2009年销售额就达650万美元；而到2010年，这一数字迅速攀升至1,000万美元。贺格兰预计本年度总收入将升至1,300万美元到1,400万美元之间。

Use valuable freebies to hook customers

    Law360, an online publisher of news and other information for the legal industry, with publications such as "Private Equity Law 360," used the "freemium" model to break into a niche dominated by players like Westlaw and LexisNexis. It offers individual lawyers in high-revenue firms free trials of the publications through email marketing.

    That's essential to getting them to commit to subscriptions, which cost anywhere from under $1,000 annually for a sole practitioner to more than $100,000 for large firms, says co-founder Magnus Hoglund, who describes Law360 as being "like a Bloomberg for lawyers." "We think the best way to sell content is for people to experience it," he says. "You can't just tell people a publication is good."

    Lawyers are biting. The profitable company, launched in 2003, grew from $6.5 million in sales in 2009 to $10 million in 2010. Hoglund projects $13 to $14 million in revenue this year.