# Email field added to a free trial call to action: +133% sign-ups

- Outcome: Won
- Page type: Free trial (SaaS)
- Elements: Form fields, Cta design
- Date shared: 2007-10
- Test run by: [MarketingExperiments](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/marketingexperiments/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://marketingexperiments.com/a-b-testing/conversion-increase-over-100-again
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/subscription-trial-email-capture-cta/

Adding an email capture field to the call to action on a free trial offer page lifted direct trial sign-ups from 0.68% to 1.57%, a 133% increase. The MECLABS team ran this test for a monthly subscription site priced under $30 a month and published it on MarketingExperiments. The team expected the extra field to lower direct sign-ups slightly, so the result surprised them.

## Result

**+133% sign-ups**

- Trial sign-up rate: 0.68% (222 of 32,782 visitors) for the control vs 1.57% (480 of 30,479) for the variant, a 133% lift.
- The lift is in direct sign-ups on the first visit, before any recovery emails were counted.
- In the publisher's experience, an email field usually lowers direct sign-ups a little and the recovery emails make up the gap. This test went the other way.

## Control

A long-copy offer page ended with a button or text link to start the free trial. There was no email field.

## Variant

The same page added an email field to the call to action, with a reason to enter it. Visitors who left without finishing could then get a follow-up email.

## Why it likely won (our reading)

- Typing an email may work as a small first commitment that makes finishing the sign-up feel natural.
- A form field at the end of long copy may read as a clearer next step than a plain button or link.
- Giving a reason for the email may have lowered worry about what happens next.

## Caveats

This is a 2007 test and the source does not state duration or confidence. The publisher says it fits a narrow profile: free trial, long copy, under $30 a month, and a button or link call to action.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we add an email field to the free trial call to action and explain why we ask, then more visitors will start a trial because the first step feels small and clear, and we can follow up with those who drop off.
- Primary metric: Trial sign-up rate per unique visitor
- Guardrail: Sign-up completion rate after the email step
- Guardrail: Trial-to-paid conversion
- Guardrail: Unsubscribe or spam complaint rate on recovery emails
- Who should test it: Low-priced subscription or SaaS products with a free trial and a long sales page that ends in a button. It is less likely to help if your call to action is already a form, or if the price is high enough that buyers need a sales conversation.

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Credit: MarketingExperiments ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/subscription-trial-email-capture-cta/).
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.