The Trouble with ‘Free’

Who doesn’t like something for free?

We sometimes get requests for free trials. “If I like it, Hugh, I’ll subscribe.”, they write. Except one thing: we do not give free trials. We used to many years ago but not anymore. In the end, nothing is free and nobody truly benefits.

a) If I give you a free trial, you will not respect and value the product/service, and therefore, you will not do well with it. It’s human nature.

b) We spent hundreds of thousands of dollars developing our knowledge base, our training and trading systems. Are we not worth a lunch to you?

c) It would not be fair to those who pay for it.

We are looking for those who have skin in the game, serious students committed to learning a skill of great value. Quality always beats out quantity. We believe in what we teach; if you do too, we have a match. Looking to learn to earn? We can help. But it won’t be free.

Here’s something else ‘free’ gets you: the free brokerage, Robinhood. Apparently they had some accounts hacked, securities sold and funds transferred out to the hackers. A recent news story cites one example. Soraya Bagheri was shocked to find that 450 shares of Moderna Inc. had been liquidated and $10k withdrawn from her account. To make matters worse, there seems to be no one at Robinhood to effectively handle her complaint. An email reply after alerting the brokerage that she believed a theft was in progress, merely said they would investigate and get back to her in a ‘few weeks’. Her money was soon gone. For good. This is but one example. There are many.

This should never happen, even on a brokerage that seems to be priced right, attracting many millennials and those unwilling to give the broker any commissions. Robinhood seems to have no contact information, should something go astray. So, how good is that ‘zero commissions’ working out now?

I have always warned against seeking ‘free’. Just like the free trials to our service, in the end, it is the consumer who loses.

Hugh Grossman, Head Trader, DayTradeSPY