Robert | 3.09.2006 @ 5:35 PM
Permalink | 0 Comments  

Wow. That's just ... crazy.

GooTodo, a new to-do list app, has extremely little information on its homepage. It says it's a to-do list app and offers a tiny a text link to its Intro section, a sign-in form, and a sign-up form. That's it.

The crazy part is that it asks you for your credit card number right off the bat, even for the free 30-day trial. There are two big problems with this. First, I have to offer up my credit card information to a company I've never heard of, with no information about the app I'm about to try out. Second, if I decide I don't want to use it, I have to opt-out of the service to prevent the automatic $18 charge for six months of service.

They're probably betting I'll forgget to cancel my subscription even if I don't use the app. And I just don't like that at all. Even if I see the charge later on, and cancel it then, they've got my $18.

Smarter solution: Offer the trial without forcing me to enter credit card info. Second, when the trial is a week away from ending, send an email to let me know I need to hand over the credit card info to keep the service up and running. Third, don't charge me for six months of service all at once. Charge me for one month. It's very easy for me to commit to one month. It's only $3. That's pocket change from a week's worth of lunch hours. When that month is up, charge me again, and keep doing that until I tell you to stop.

In other words, gimme one reason to stay here. Then let me try out the app without committing to anything. Then give me something tiny, like a $3 charge, to commit to. Ease me into your world. Do that, and odds are good you'll get your hooks in me and I'll stick around for a good long time.