[OT] Re: [thelist] web site registration

Robert Goodyear rob_goodyear at yahoo.com
Wed Oct 31 19:44:34 CST 2001


+1 on that. Spurious registration is absolutely offensive. I too work for a fairly large
corporate consultancy ( Young & Rubicam - http://www.yr.com ) and my division,
interactive, is insanely focused on striking a balance between prospect acquisition vs.
annoyed user. We were all pretty surprised that BMWFilms required viewers to enter
registration before seeing their films. And I have yet to recieve any sort of followup or
prospecting communication from them, even though I told them I was in-market within 90
days.

As a user, I will gladly register to...

1. Buy something (duh)
2. Download software
3. Download a PDF ~ maybe!

But moreover it all depends on the Quid Pro Quo. My (personal) data is worth something...
so your product (intellectual or physical) had better be worth it.

Hey Bruce: can you hint at the type of content your customers will be reading? Maybe
that'll start some ideas for appropriate and responsible data capture.

/rg

--- me <me at cgiguy.com> wrote:
> 
> ok. so my sense of humor is nothing short of dry.
> 
> but, writing sockets code is fun fun fun...
> 
> anyway, my message was that unnecessary registrations are a bit foolish.
> they only serve to run off traffic. i'd really enjoy hearing your arguments
> about this.  if yer up to it.
> 
> for the record, i am pushing 40...
> 
> me.
> 
> 
> >From: Robert Goodyear <rob_goodyear at yahoo.com>
> > Hey CGIGUY:
> >
> > I thought you were twelve years old? ;-) Didn't you tell us all that in re
> custom
> > sockets?
> >
> > /rg
> >
> > OK: I seriously owe for that one...
> 
> > --- me <me at cgiguy.com> wrote:
> > > hand deliver this to your boss?
> > >
> > >  i run ecommerce for some fairly large companies
> > > and i never *require* registration. from site entry to checkout.
> > > website registration is stupid. at best.
> > >
> > > we gather any required info on the fly.
> > > for example, if you need shipto info, gather it after the customer
> > > has clicked on checkout. Not when they first enter your site.
> > >
> > > wanna run em off? do it when they first get to your site...
> > > thats a sure fire recipe for failure.  wanna win? show em
> > > your stuff. let them *ask* for it. then ask em for a shipto and
> > > billto and cc#. bingo. now yer rockin.
> > >
> > > to require registration to read the newspaper is asinine. for what?
> > > if the ny times wants a cc#, just ask for it. but how exactly
> > > do they profit by having some bogus info that i give them
> > > in a registration form? they dont. thats how. they are only
> > > trying too hard. and they only inconvenience me. oh but maybe
> > > if i register for the nytimes, they could send me some sales crap
> > > about a hidden camera or something... big whoop...
> > >
> > > skratch at cgiguy.com
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: Bruce Lawson <brucel at glasshaus.com>
> > > To: <thelist at lists.evolt.org>
> > > Sent: Wednesday, October 31, 2001 9:26 AM
> > > Subject: [thelist] web site registration
> > >
> > >
> > > > my boss is talking about making people register to read the content on
> our
> > > > web site.
> > > >
> > > > I believe that most users *hate* giving an email address (and maybe a
> > > > password too) when  they surf to a site. I know that I never follow
> links
> > > to
> > > > the NY Times (say) because it requires me to register in order to go
> > > beyond
> > > > the Front Page, whereas the LA Times doesn't.
> > > >
> > > > Am I alone in not wishing to give out my email address 10 times a
> day - or
> > > > should i just accept it as an inevitable development of the web?
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Bruce Lawson
> > > >
> > > >


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