You Can Decide Not to Buy

Before starting a free AI trial, write down what would make you walk away.

Goldman’s new small-business AI initiative includes three months of no-cost Google AI Pro access. I’d put a purchasing review on the calendar before opening the tool.

For a weekly owner update, count the time spent checking the draft, including the maintenance issue it left out and the call someone had to make to find the correct status. That time belongs in the review. Have a colleague prepare the next update using only the written instructions, without the person who wanted the trial coaching them through it.

Maybe the tool earns its keep. Or writing those instructions fixes most of the problem, and you don’t need another subscription. You can finish a trial with a better process and decide not to buy.