Members vs non-members comparison chart: +76% free trial sign-ups
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsAdding a members vs non-members comparison chart, plus testimonials, to a membership free-trial page lifted free trial subscriptions by 76%.
MarketingSherpa ran the test on its own page, and it was published by sister site MarketingExperiments.
The chart and testimonials shipped together, so the lift belongs to the bundle, not the chart alone.
- Free trial subscriptions: +76% for the version with the comparison chart and testimonials.
- The page grew longer, yet still converted better, which suggests the added content was worth the extra scroll.
- Sample size, duration and confidence level were not shared.
The change
Variant adds a members vs non-members chart with testimonials beside it and under the button.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The membership free-trial page described the benefits in copy, with no side-by-side view of what members get versus non-members.
Variant
A comparison matrix showed member versus non-member access, with testimonials placed beside the chart and below the call to action. The page also got longer.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- A table is faster to scan than paragraphs, so visitors could see the gap between free and paid access at a glance.
- Showing what non-members miss frames the trial as a clear upgrade.
- Testimonials next to the chart and under the button may have eased doubts right at the point of decision.
Caveats: Bundled test: the chart and testimonials were added at the same time, so the result can't be credited to one element. The test is from 2008 and sample size was not shared.
Who ran it
MarketingSherpa ran this test and published the results (MarketingExperiments). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on MarketingSherpa →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we add a free vs paid comparison chart to our trial page, then trial sign-ups will rise because visitors can see the value of the paid tier in seconds.
- Primary metric
- Free trial sign-up rate
- Guardrails
- Trial-to-paid conversion
- Bounce rate on the trial page
- Plan mix of new sign-ups
- Who should test it
- SaaS and membership businesses with a free tier or public content and a paid plan with clear extras. It helps less when the paid plan's value is hard to list as features, or when there is no free option to compare against.
Questions
Do comparison charts help free trial sign-ups?
In this test a members vs non-members chart, added with testimonials, lifted trial sign-ups by 76%.
Charts make the extra value of a paid plan quick to see.
Does making a sign-up page longer hurt conversion?
Not necessarily. Here the page got longer and still converted better, because the added content answered questions visitors had.
Where should testimonials go on a trial page?
Near the decision point tends to make sense, such as next to the plan comparison or right under the button. This test placed them in both spots.
MarketingExperiments