# Login paywall: a medium amount of explanation beat the minimal version

- Outcome: Won
- Page type: Signup page (SaaS)
- Elements: Page length, Copy
- Test run by: [Alma Media](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/alma-media/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://wingify.com/success-stories/alma-media-reads-between-the-clicks/
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/alma-media-login-paywall-copy-length/

On its login paywall, Alma Media found that a moderately informative message won over both a minimal version and the most detailed version. The team at Alma Media, a Finnish digital media company, ran this test itself, and it was published as a VWO case study. No numbers were shared, and the team had expected the minimal version to win.

## Result

**a medium amount of explanation beat the minimal version**

- The moderately informative paywall got the most logins and registrations, so it was declared the winner.
- The minimal version, which the team predicted would win, did not.
- No uplift figures, sample size, duration or confidence levels were published.

## Control

The login or registration paywall showed a minimal explanation of why readers should log in or register.

## Variant

Two alternatives were tested: a moderately informative version and a most detailed version. The moderate one won.

## Why it likely won (our reading)

- Too little text may leave readers unsure why they are being asked to log in or what they gain from registering.
- Too much text can slow people down and make the step feel heavier than it is.
- a paywall works best when it gives just enough context to answer the obvious questions, then gets out of the way.

## Caveats

No numbers were published, so the size of the win is unknown. The test was on a news subscription paywall, which may not match other sign-up flows.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we add a short explanation of what users get by logging in or registering to our minimal gate, then more users will complete it because they understand the value without being slowed down by long copy.
- Primary metric: Login and registration completions at the gate
- Guardrail: Bounce or exit rate at the gate
- Guardrail: Paid subscription starts after registration
- Guardrail: Return visits from registered users
- Who should test it: Publishers, SaaS products and membership sites with a registration wall or login gate. If your gate already explains the value clearly and converts well, gains will likely be small.

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Credit: Alma Media ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/alma-media-login-paywall-copy-length/).
Usage: Free to use, quote and build on, with credit and a link: name the practitioner or organization that ran the test and link to its LiftArchive page. The results belong to the practitioners who ran and shared them; the summaries and commentary are LiftArchive's.