“Why pay €29 when X is free?” — fair question, deserving a real answer. Digital products have real costs. If you’re not paying, the model earns somewhere else. There are only three somewheres.
Model 1: freemium — you are the prospect
The free tier is deliberately limited (properties, languages, features) and exists to convert you to paid. Fine — until you hit the ceiling mid-season and discover the migration cost you avoided was merely postponed.
Model 2: monetising your guests — you are the inventory
Some free products earn through your guests: commission on upsells, or capturing guest emails via Wi-Fi login for marketing databases (a model openly advertised in this market). Ask yourself whether your guests’ data and wallet are yours to hand over for a template.
Model 3: the loss-leader — you are the audience
A free tool feeds a broader funnel (premium AI, services, audience value). Legitimate — but your guest welcome becomes a link in someone else’s sales pipeline, developed with whatever attention is left over from the paying products.
The non-monetary bills
- Longevity risk: free products that don’t convert enough pivot or fold — with your printed QR codes attached.
- Product priority: development follows revenue; free modules get the leftovers.
- Your image: guests see the vessel of your welcome. Upgrade nags and bridled features rub off on your property.
Our counter-model, in plain terms
Cléo is free to create and test, then €29 once to publish — funding servers, development and support with no commission, no ads, no forced upgrades. You are the customer, once; the owner, forever.
Livret d’exemple · liveAppartement Montmartre
Paris 18e · Visiter le livret →
Livret d’exemple · livePenthouse vue mer
Marseille · Visiter le livret →
Livret d’exemple · liveAppartement Vieille Ville
Annecy · Visiter le livret →
Des livrets d’exemple publiés avec Cléo — ouvrez-les comme le ferait un voyageur.
Notre verdict
Free is a deferral, not an absence of price.
If your budget is strictly zero, an honest freemium will serve you — eyes open. If you can invest the price of a pizza night, one payment closes the subject permanently. That’s the trade we defend, and it’s verifiable in the demos above.
Frequently asked questions
Could Cléo turn its pricing into a subscription later?
Published guidebooks are paid once, for life — contractually. Our growth comes from new guidebooks, not from converting past customers into rent.
Are free products scams?
Not at all — free is a business model, not a fraud. The point of this page is simply that you should know which model you’re in, and accept its trade-offs deliberately.
Créez votre livret d’accueil en quelques minutes
Création et test gratuits. Publication : 29 € une seule fois — votre livret est à vous à vie, modifiable à volonté.
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