'Don't remember passport details?' option: +35.8% applications
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsLetting applicants skip passport details and send them later raised credit card application submissions by 35.8%.
Tinkoff Bank's in-house analytics team ran the test, published as a VWO case study.
A checkbox let people choose phone or email for supplying the details afterwards.
- Application form submissions: +35.8% conversion rate.
- The rate of conversions after filling in the form also rose 10%, per the source.
- Reported with a 100% chance to beat the control.
- The test covered more than 265,000 visitors over 23 days.
The change
The variant adds a checkbox to supply passport details later.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The application form required passport details at step two. Applicants without their passport to hand had to stop or drop out.
Variant
A checkbox reading "Don't remember passport details?" was added at that step. Ticking it opened a small window where applicants picked phone or email to provide the details later.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Many people apply on impulse and do not have an ID document nearby, so a hard requirement stops them cold.
- An escape hatch keeps the applicant moving, and the bank can still collect the detail later.
- Offering a choice of phone or email makes the follow-up feel easy rather than like a second chore.
Caveats: Figures are reported by the vendor and the test date is not shared. The source does not say how many deferred applicants later supplied their passport details.
Who ran it
Tinkoff Bank ran this test and published the results (VWO case study). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Tinkoff Bank →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we let applicants defer a hard-to-find document field and supply it later, then more will submit the form because a missing document no longer blocks them.
- Primary metric
- Application form submissions
- Guardrails
- Share of deferred applications that are later completed
- Approval or funded rate
- Sales or support follow-up cost
- Who should test it
- Lenders, insurers and lead-gen forms that ask for ID numbers, policy numbers or other details people rarely know by heart. Skip it if the detail is legally needed before you can respond, or if follow-up costs outweigh the extra leads.
Questions
Should I make hard-to-find form fields optional?
If people often lack the information on hand, letting them supply it later can lift submissions.
Tinkoff saw a 35.8% increase from this change.
How do I still collect the missing details?
Tinkoff asked applicants to pick phone or email for a follow-up.
Track how many deferred leads actually complete the step.
Will deferred fields hurt lead quality?
They can. Watch approval rates and completion of the follow-up alongside the submission rate.