The Checkout Process: Why Many Paywalls Fail – and How to Do It Better (Part 2)

Here wrote about how paywalls often deter potential buyers – even when they are actually interested in subscribing.
Even when users are interested in subscribing, paywalls often scare off potential buyers. For a successful premium subscription business, there’s another critical area for optimization: the checkout journeys behind paywalls are often even more problematic.

Figures from Upscore’s benchmarks (November 2024), based on data from 31 regional and local publishers, underline this clearly:

• On average, just 1.4 clicks per 1,000 paywall impressions (1.4 per mille)
• Of those clicks, only around 15% lead to a completed subscription

The top performers, however, reach up to 38% conversion. That means: an average publisher could quadruple their conversions if their checkout process were as optimized as those of the best. (It’s worth noting that November’s 15% was boosted by Black Friday campaigns – in previous months, the average was closer to 10%.)

What Are the Best Publishers Doing Differently?

The answer is simple: they remove unnecessary obstacles.

1. Only two pieces of information are required at checkout:

• Email address / password
• Payment details
  → That’s it. Even name and address can be requested later (e.g., by email), if truly needed (for example, when a customer wants an invoice). The goal: get users to complete the purchase as quickly as possible.

2. No “detours”:

Many checkout journeys include intermediate landing pages presenting product information – even though the user has already decided to buy. These interruptions often lead to drop-offs. High-performing checkout flows are seamless and uninterrupted.

The Cost of Unnecessary Friction

Why is this so important? A simple calculation shows the scale of the problem:

• A publisher with 1,000 conversions per month could reach 4,000 by optimizing the checkout flow.
• With an average Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) of €50, that’s a lost revenue of €150,000 per month – or €1.8 million per year.

In short: Complicated checkout processes are expensive.

Conclusion: Optimized Checkout Flows as a Growth Lever

An optimized checkout process delivers clear benefits:
Fewer hurdles in the process

• More conversions through fewer drop-offs
• Sustainable growth through higher conversion rates
• It’s worth taking a close look at this part of the funnel – because every hurdle costs not just users, but real money.

Joachim Dreykluft is Head of Data & AI Strategy at Upscore.