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The conventional wisdom that asking for credit card on free trial signup is bad for conversion is hardly an established fact. Sure, more people will fill out th

The conventional wisdom that asking for credit card on free trial signup is bad for conversion is hardly an established fact. Sure, more people will fill out the form (which is admittedly the point of this article), but whether or not you'll get more paying customers depends on too many factors for there to be a one true answer. Here's a good discussion of this issue: http://www.quora.com/For-web-apps-is-it-better-to-ask-for-the-credit-card-before-their-trial-starts-e-g-on-the-signup-page-or-after-their-trial-expires http://www.quora.com/For-web-apps-is-it-better-to-ask-for-th... Also, some nitpicking: SSL has nothing to do with encrypting information on the server.

ams6110 15y ago
Thanks for pointing that out, in fact a site assuring me that my information is secure because they "use SSL" makes me wonder if they really understand security at all.
- JoeAltmaier 15y ago
  Another nitpick: its "any time" not "anytime". Drives me nuts.
EvilTerran 15y ago
But the article's not talking about conversion rates, it's talking about user experience. It's taking the site user's perspective, not the site owner's. Asking for credit card details before starting your free trial inevitably seems scummy from the user's point of view. It's awfully reminiscent of those services with a "free trial" that start charging you automatically the moment the trial ends, and make it difficult & laborious to cancel -- those AOL discs being an infamous example. I'd also consider it a violation of points 4, 5, and 6, to varying degrees. Why should I go to the trouble of digging out my card, copying in & double-checking the numbers (point 5), just so you can hold onto it in a way I can't know is secure (point 4), when you shouldn't even need it (point 6)?
- entropyneur 15y ago
  Customer experience is only a means (however important) to better business performance. Even the article title suggests that it's considered in that context. And frankly, I fail to see what other context can there be. But more importantly, notice how I refer to it as customer experience. I couldn't care less about the experience of a random user who is never going to become a customer. Maybe I want to deliver better service to a smaller subset of customers. Is it a downgrade from the customer's perspective? I don't think so. By asking for the credit card right away I'm simply sending a message that I need some commitment from you before I give you something for free. Yes, it is definitely less enjoyable for the user than the other way. But my point is that viewing it purely from this perspective is useless.
  - EvilTerran 15y ago
    "A random user who is never going to become a customer" may still recommend your service to others, if they like your site in principle, but decide after trying it that it isn't for them. Or, if they come away with a good impression, they may think of you before your competitors if they need such a service later. For instance, I've never given http://nearlyfreespeech.net http://nearlyfreespeech.net a cent personally, because I don't need a website at present -- yet I've recommended them to about half-a-dozen people who've gone on to sign up with them, because their website makes it easy for me to understand what they've got going for them. Also, when I do need a small website, they're at the top of my list for hosting. As such, structuring the UX so users who are currently ambivalent about paying you in the future are forced to make a decision now may be good for your conversion rate, but I don't believe it's self-evidently good for the size of your customer base long-term. Consider a real-world analogy: if I go into a shop, just to browse, with no intent to buy anything at the time, and the staff are frosty to me because of that, I'm gonna badmouth that shop to my friends. I believe most people would do likewise. Maybe I'm just an idealist, with my liking to think of the business-customer relationship as a co-operative one, with both sides working for their mutual betterment. The "customer experience is merely a means to higher profits; if it needs sacrificed to achieve that goal, so be it" attitude turns that relationship into an adversarial one. I find that... distasteful. To the point that I go out of my way to avoid businesses that I feel are trying to manipulate me through their UX -- the archetypal, pushy door-to-door salesman, for instance. Maybe that's just me. I like to think not.

ams6110 15y ago

Thanks for pointing that out, in fact a site assuring me that my information is secure because they "use SSL" makes me wonder if they really understand security at all.

JoeAltmaier 15y ago
Another nitpick: its "any time" not "anytime". Drives me nuts.

EvilTerran 15y ago

But the article's not talking about conversion rates, it's talking about user experience. It's taking the site user's perspective, not the site owner's. Asking for credit card details before starting your free trial inevitably seems scummy from the user's point of view. It's awfully reminiscent of those services with a "free trial" that start charging you automatically the moment the trial ends, and make it difficult & laborious to cancel -- those AOL discs being an infamous example. I'd also consider it a violation of points 4, 5, and 6, to varying degrees. Why should I go to the trouble of digging out my card, copying in & double-checking the numbers (point 5), just so you can hold onto it in a way I can't know is secure (point 4), when you shouldn't even need it (point 6)?

entropyneur 15y ago
Customer experience is only a means (however important) to better business performance. Even the article title suggests that it's considered in that context. And frankly, I fail to see what other context can there be. But more importantly, notice how I refer to it as customer experience. I couldn't care less about the experience of a random user who is never going to become a customer. Maybe I want to deliver better service to a smaller subset of customers. Is it a downgrade from the customer's perspective? I don't think so. By asking for the credit card right away I'm simply sending a message that I need some commitment from you before I give you something for free. Yes, it is definitely less enjoyable for the user than the other way. But my point is that viewing it purely from this perspective is useless.
- EvilTerran 15y ago
  "A random user who is never going to become a customer" may still recommend your service to others, if they like your site in principle, but decide after trying it that it isn't for them. Or, if they come away with a good impression, they may think of you before your competitors if they need such a service later. For instance, I've never given http://nearlyfreespeech.net http://nearlyfreespeech.net a cent personally, because I don't need a website at present -- yet I've recommended them to about half-a-dozen people who've gone on to sign up with them, because their website makes it easy for me to understand what they've got going for them. Also, when I do need a small website, they're at the top of my list for hosting. As such, structuring the UX so users who are currently ambivalent about paying you in the future are forced to make a decision now may be good for your conversion rate, but I don't believe it's self-evidently good for the size of your customer base long-term. Consider a real-world analogy: if I go into a shop, just to browse, with no intent to buy anything at the time, and the staff are frosty to me because of that, I'm gonna badmouth that shop to my friends. I believe most people would do likewise. Maybe I'm just an idealist, with my liking to think of the business-customer relationship as a co-operative one, with both sides working for their mutual betterment. The "customer experience is merely a means to higher profits; if it needs sacrificed to achieve that goal, so be it" attitude turns that relationship into an adversarial one. I find that... distasteful. To the point that I go out of my way to avoid businesses that I feel are trying to manipulate me through their UX -- the archetypal, pushy door-to-door salesman, for instance. Maybe that's just me. I like to think not.