How Can an Innocent Text Modification in the Checkout Impact Subscription Rates?

One of our clients approached us with an interesting problem...

One of our clients approached us with an interesting problem. He wanted us to evaluate the performance of his subscription pop-up banner and suggest improvements as he was aware of the negative net increase in new subscribers and had been struggling with this issue for some time without success.

Although we were initially asked to inspect only the subscription pop-up banner, our prior experience led us to broaden our investigation. We analysed not only the pop-up banner but also the proportional contributions of all sources for new email consents. The analysis revealed a critical shift in November 2023, when there was a sudden drop of almost 60% in the new subscriber rate to their regular newsletter, a decline that has not recovered since.

However, contrary to the client's expectations, we found that the major source of this plunge was the consents coming from the checkout process, not the subscription banner. This report presents the daily count of email signups collected during the checkout process:

After notifying the client about this, further investigation on his side revealed that on the critical day in November 2023, the wording of the checkout consent checkbox was altered from:

“I agree to the processing of my personal data for marketing purposes”

to:

“I would like to receive regular information about news and discounts via the newsletter.”

This change, initiated by the internal legal team without prior testing, led to a drastic reduction in new consents from checkout by 70-90%.

Recognising the substantial impact of this modification, the A/B test was conducted comparing the original and revised texts. The original wording achieved up to a 250% (!) uplift in new subscriber sign-ups.

As a result, it was recommended to reevaluate the consent texts to ensure they support retention goals while complying with legal standards.

Key Lessons Learned:

Holistic Approach: Even when the source of a problem seems apparent, it is beneficial to step back and consider all elements. This approach can reveal overlooked factors affecting performance (pop-up banner vs checkout as the primary source of consents).

Impact of Changes: Minor modifications in the marketing/sales funnel can have profound effects on business objectives. It is crucial to test even the small changes thoroughly before implementation.

Balancing Compliance and Goals: While adhering to new regulations is necessary, changes should be made sensitively to align with the broader goals of the organization, ensuring all team efforts are harmonized.

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