Service-to-SaaS Pricing: How Effex Made the Transition
Maarten Laruelle The shift from service-based to product pricing is one of the hardest transitions a company can make. You’re not just changing a number — you’re changing the entire relationship with your customer.
Dewi and the team at Effex lived this transition. Their experimental design platform delivers wildly different value depending on the use case. A simple A/B test versus a complex multi-factor experiment — same platform, very different outcomes.
The service-to-SaaS challenge
When you’ve been selling services, pricing is straightforward: time and materials. The customer understands it. Your team understands it. Everyone can do the math.
But as you productise, that model breaks. You can’t charge hourly for a platform. And flat subscription pricing ignores the reality that some customers get 10X more value than others.
Why credits worked for Effex
Credits-based pricing solved the core problem: variable value. Instead of one flat fee, customers buy credits that they spend based on the complexity and scale of their experiments.
Simple experiments cost fewer credits. Complex multi-factor designs cost more. The pricing stays proportional to the value delivered, without the overhead of scoping every project individually.
For Effex, backed by Volta Ventures and KU Leuven, this was the bridge between service economics and SaaS scalability. The credits model gave customers flexibility while giving Effex predictable, recurring revenue.
Managing the transition with existing customers
The hardest part isn’t designing the new model — it’s migrating existing customers. People who bought services now need to buy a product. The conversation changes, the expectations change, and the value proposition needs to be re-articulated.
The key? Don’t surprise them. Bring customers into the process. Show them the value they’ve been getting, then show them how the new model reflects that value more accurately.
Read the full story: Effex case study
Making the switch from services to SaaS? Let’s design your pricing model.