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Using subscription billing to monetize a subscription service is a great way to increase customer lifetime value and gain predictable subscription revenue, but there are other considerations to make when bringing in new customers. How easy is it for new users to sign up for your subscription service? When brands make it too difficult for customers to sign up for a subscription billing platform, they may be reducing overall conversions. Here are some considerations for the sign-up process that could impact conversion rates:

Keep it short
How much information do you need about subscribers right away? Generally, the more information you ask customers to fill out, the more reluctant they will be. For customers who are already on the fence, a lengthy sign-up process can tip the scales to a "no." According to an experiment conducted by Marketo, shorter forms tend to convert more frequently than longer ones. Marketo found a form with nine fields converted 10 percent of the time, compared to a five-field form, which converted 13.4 percent of the time.

"Use a social login to reduce friction."

Another option is to skip the form altogether and utilize a social login, like Spotify and other platforms do. This method allows brands to gain access to crucial data like name, location and email address without requiring users to write them in, according to Login Radius. Another benefit is that social sign in makes the platform easy to use because it doesn't require customers to remember another username and password combination.

Copy language
You never know what changes will increase conversions. Sometimes it's as simple as changing the wording on your sign up page. In an article for Unbounce, Michael Aagaard noted in one example how click-through rates spiked 90 percent when he changed the wording of a CTA from "start your free 30 day trial" to "start my free 30 day trial." The only change was adjusting the language from second to first person. The slight change may reduce friction because the wording encourages customers to think the trial is already theirs to claim.

Free trial with credit card or not?
In most cases, a free trial is necessary to gain paid subscribers. Overall, a free trial reduces friction by allowing users to try a service before they buy it. However, the question remains: Should you require users to submit credit card information for a free trial? There are many different opinions on this. Requiring credit card information may introduce friction into the sign-up process in the beginning, but then it allows seamless transition to paid use of the service once the trial is over. On the other hand, some potential users may be reluctant to provide this information and will not convert as a result.

Promotions
Subscription businesses also have to consider how they will convert lapsed free trial users. As with the initial sign-up, brands need to make it easy, for instance, sending an email with a one-click registration. To create these messages, it helps to have a subscription billing partner that makes it easy to quickly create promotions and unique pricing structures to draw in new and previous customers.

Finding the best fit
Every company has unique products and customers. While one sign-up solution may be effective for a streaming music service, a B2B SaaS company will likely find a different solution works better. A/B testing can help companies discover what approach is most effective for them. There are many other variables to play around with, aside from those listed here. To improve conversions, brands can also look to layouts, colors, fonts and more to see what increases sign-ups.