Announcing this, roughly one month in advance, gives them time to assess and evaluate the nature of the responses they receive and make some key business decisions with respect to any possible adjustments or updates to their Offerings and Pricing.

I do not have access to the information they have available to base their decisions on, but I “quickly” put together a possible Pricing Structure they might consider instead.  The two suggestions (in color) are quickly provided without the benefits of the information Bantam Live has access to (between my two possibilities, the only difference is the price points).  Additionally, there is much more that goes into optimizing a pricing page to best position your value proposition for maximum conversions, which I do not cover here.

http://www.bantamlive.com/

- As always, you may click the larger image below to view an even larger image -

Network Solutions has been around for a long time, in fact if you click the link you will discover . . . . much longer than you may think.  I have registered a number of domain names over the years and have also used other providers such as GoDaddy.com and Register.com.  If you were to conduct a Google search for “domain name registration” the top three results (as well as top 3 sponsored links) are those three companies; Network Solutions, Register.com, and GoDaddy.com.

Because Network Solutions has been at this for so long, wouldn’t you think they have become really good at optimizing the process and have fine-tuned what content to include, content location, content format and overall design.  You decide.

Below I have captured the complete purchase process from the point where I have decided to check-out.  Total time was around 5 minutes (I subtracted the time it took me to grab screenshots).

Some brief elements I’d like to point out:

1) Initially, you get the impression that the process is going to take 3 steps, but really each of those first 3 steps are communicating additional offerings (upgrades, add-ons) they want you to consider.  Perhaps a bit misleading though, as the user likely is initially thinking the whole process is only 3 steps.

2) To advance through the first 3 steps, the user must scroll down the page, exposing the offers along the way, to find the “continue” button.

3) Next, is the real check out process which is 4 steps.  The first step is to decide the registration duration (and thus pricing) for each domain you are purchasing.  Note the Slidebar approach, which I have provided a few shots on how sliding the bar changes the price.  Five years is the default setting and note the “Did You Know” statement.

4) Throughout the rest of the process there are a number of noteworthy elements (e.g. – suggestions) that I won’t call out here, but take a look, observe and consider.  I also included screenshots of what happens if you click on the "feedback" or "follow us on Twitter" links, as well as the email confirmation.

Watch for a future post on PricingWire ( http://www.pricingwire.com ) if you want to know more about the compelling idea I have in mind for The Best Solution Summit.

 - - as always, click the larger image to see an even larger image - -

It has been almost seven months since I first posted Producteev’s pricing page on PricingWire back in March, when they were launching public beta.

Producteev is now out of beta and with this recent pricing page update they appear to have gained some insight into what they believe customers are willing to pay (or perhaps they are just giving it a go with little to no data to support their decision).

Across most of their offerings, not only have they changed prices (increased), but they also modified file storage allocation and number of users.  They have also de-emphasized the Free offering for non-students, as well as now make mention of a white label version which is an idea I like a lot.  Additionally, they have picked up on the best practice of including testimonials.

Overall, they have made some nice improvements and I like that they are attempting to raise prices now that they are out of beta.  It is always easier to lower prices than raise them (messaging is critical in both cases).  Briefly, a couple areas I’d like to see them address would be the spacing between the different offering boxes . . . it just seems a little off and not uniform.  Also, they could use a good once over by a copy editor.  For example, this copy at the top of the pricing page just doesn’t sound right, “Try any of those plans for free during 14 days!”.

One more nice touch, is that they include three offerings with sign-up buttons below the fold, at the bottom of each page on their site.  It would be interesting to see how many clicks come from these.

I personally still prefer the organization of the beta pricing page (note beta next to logo), but keep in mind what matters is which page performs the best, not personal preference. 

- - as always, you can click the larger image to see an even larger version - -

I have personally been to the HBR Subscription page at least 3 times in the past year and decided not to proceed each time.  Tonight, nothing on the site compelled me to go ahead and get out my credit card, rather it is a project that I am working on that tipped my curiosity to the point of being willing to pay to search their database and determine if similar efforts have been undertaken by others.

Below is the series of pages I was guided through.  It took me longer to decide which of the three offerings to choose, than it did to complete the subscription process (total time 7mins 38secs).

Please take note of :

  - Calls to action

  - Clean design

  - Testimonial (only one, better than none)

  - Hover over question-mark for more information

  - Limited info (which is good, not overwhelming), but includes link “Show more details” for those that want more

  -  Free Trial Sign-up Page includes: Live Chat option and Process Progress Steps “visualizer” at top

Bill.com is clearly targeting two segments and doing so allows them to craft more compelling value messaging that should resonate more effectively with businesses and accountants.

Aside from some needed design enhancements, Bill.com has included many key elements that help translate into more conversions.

Key elements such as:

  -  Benefits

  -  Testimonials

  -  “Risk Free” messaging

  -  Cost Savings Example

The design would benefit from achieving a less text heavy appearance, which can be accomplished without losing what they are trying to convey.

* As always, click on the larger image to view an even larger image.

As one of the current big players along with Facebook, Twiiter and MySpace . . . I have been meaning to post pricing pages for LinkedIn for some time now.

* Note: for below images, click the larger image for an even larger (better quality) image.

Some elements to point out . . .

-  The difference between Comparison Pricing Page and Upgrade Pricing Page

-  “Get 2 Months Free” is for those who opt for the Annual Payment (not monthly)

-  “Recommended” offering – you can influence users this way

      -  Other examples of this:  “Our Most Popular Plan”, “Best Value”, etc.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Notice that LinkedIn can forecast system demand based on how they segment the offerings they make available to their users.  Such as tiered limitations on sending Introduction Requests, InMails and Search Results.

Also, consider a large percentage of active users are likely going to be individuals who are either out of work or seeking greener pastures.  Their pricing structure compels users to consider the value of the “potential” for more opportunities to improve their lives and upgrade their lifestyles.

With that said, I believe LinkedIn is missing some valuable opportunities to convert more free users into paid customers.  Why do I say that?  Upgrading is not promoted to free users as actively as it could be.  Certainly not implying that they should spam or go over-board, but they could provide more apparent opportunities to take advantage of LinkedIn’s “additional benefits”.

If you happen to know, please pass along what LinkedIn’s  “free user”  to  “paid customer” ratio is? 

* Note: for below images, click the larger image for an even larger (better quality) image.

If you are considering launching soon or have already launched and believe you have room for improvement, consider spending some time observing how 37signals has fined tuned their product and pricing presentation over time.  Just some of the key elements for you to observe is the layout, the messaging and the fact they are providing well produced video testimonials of actual users.  As noted in the video below, their current sites are a result of multiple A/B test iterations and a willingness to try new approaches.

In addition to the screenshots below . . . I have also provided a worthwhile video of a presentation that the creator of the Ruby on Rails framework and partner at 37signals, David Heinemeier Hansson, provided at Startup School `08.  http://www.pricingwire.com/home/2009/3/11/a-secret-to-making-money-online.html

One more great resource to take a look at is Robert Dempsey’s blog post:  http://blog.adsdevshop.com/2009/02/27/how-to-price-your-app-learning-from-basecamp/

Click thru the below screenshots and click the larger version for an even larger version.

For all those who jumped on LogMeIn’s IPO this week . . . tell them to contact me to improve conversion by improving how they communicate their value and pricing.