'Get Started Now' vs 'Start Free Trial' button: +11% clickthrough
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsChanging a banner button from 'Start Free Trial' to 'Get Started Now' lifted clickthrough by more than 11%.
MECLABS ran the test for a large global media company selling premium software to businesses, and published it on MarketingExperiments in 2014. It was one of five button phrases tested side by side.
- Clickthrough rate: more than +11% for "Get Started Now" against "Start Free Trial". This is a win on clicks.
- In the same test, "Try Now" cut clickthrough by 26% against "Start Free Trial".
- The metric is button clicks. Whether more trials or sales followed was not reported.
- Sample size, duration and confidence level: not shared.
The change
The banner button text changes from 'Start Free Trial' to 'Get Started Now'.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
A banner along the top of the page had a button reading "Start Free Trial".
Variant
The same banner and button, with the text changed to "Get Started Now".
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- "Get Started Now" frames the click as the first step toward using the product, which may feel more useful than "trying" it.
- Dropping "trial" may make the click feel less like entering a time-limited test run.
- It's still a click on a banner. A softer, broader phrase can draw curious clicks that don't turn into sign-ups.
Caveats: The test measured clicks, not trial starts or revenue, and sample size, duration and confidence are not shared. It was a five-way test from around 2014.
Who ran it
MECLABS ran this test for a large global media company selling premium business software and published the results (MarketingExperiments). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on MECLABS →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we change our trial button from 'Start Free Trial' to 'Get Started Now', then more visitors will click because the copy frames the action as the start of using the product.
- Primary metric
- Button clickthrough rate
- Guardrails
- Trial starts per visitor
- Trial-to-paid conversion
- Bounce rate on the page after the click
- Who should test it
- SaaS companies with a trial or sign-up button on a landing page or banner. Watch trial starts closely, since a click lift can disappear further down the funnel.
Questions
Is 'Get Started' better than 'Start Free Trial'?
In this test, "Get Started Now" got more than 11% more clicks.
Results vary by audience and offer, so test both on your own page.
How much can button copy change clickthrough?
A lot. In this five-way test, the gap between the best and worst phrase was large, with one losing 26% and another gaining over 11%.
Do more button clicks mean more trial sign-ups?
Not necessarily. This test measured clicks on the banner button only, so check trial starts and paid conversions before rolling out new copy.