Finding the next growth experiments for Sweet Off
Sweet Off uses a hard subscription gate, returning-user triggers and an exit offer. I reviewed how these monetisation moments respond to different user behaviours and identified four opportunities worth testing.
Rather than asking how to improve a single paywall, I looked at the subscription journey as a system.
The goal was to find where the journey may be leaving revenue on the table, then turn the strongest opportunities into experiments the team could run and learn from.
Start with the user, not the paywall
Before looking for conversion opportunities, I first look at who the user is and what they are trying to achieve with the app.
That context helps me judge which monetisation moments matter most and which are worth testing.
Where are they coming from?
Because Sweet Off acquires users through TikTok, the content that brings them in can shape their expectations of the app.
Who are they?
The working assumption is women, age between 20 to 40 who are struggling with skin complexion issues or inconsistent energy and stress levels due to high intake of sugar.
What do they already believe in?
Many users already aware of the issues caused by sugar, and believe their habits need to change, so they may not need much convincing that reducing sugar is worthwhile.
What change are they trying to make?
Users are looking for a sustainable way to achieve their goal of cutting sugar and build healthier eating habits.
How ready are they to act?
A curious downloader, someone actively trying to quit sugar, and a returning user may reach the subscription decision with very different levels of intent.
Where the subscription journey may be leaving revenue on the table
Contextual paywall for returning users
A notification encourages users to return and log progress towards their energy goals. A non-paying user who opens the notification is then shown the general subscription paywall.
Would a paywall tailored to why the user came back convert better?
Exit-offer qualification
After dismissing the hard paywall, every user is automatically shown a discounted exit offer.
Would showing the exit offer only to more price-sensitive users preserve full-price revenue while still converting those who need a discount?
Exit-offer timing
Sweet Off currently uses a hard paywall, followed by an exit offer for every user who dismisses it.
Could delaying the exit offer with a timer make the discount feel more intentional and improve revenue from users who don’t convert at full price?
Crossgrade weekly subscribers to annual
Some users may remain subscribed to a higher-priced weekly plan over multiple renewal periods.
Could offering these committed weekly subscribers an annual upgrade improve longer-term subscriber revenue?
Turning opportunities into experiments
Finding an opportunity is only the first step. The next is deciding what to test, who to test it on, what to measure and what the result should teach us.
Here’s how I turned one of the Sweet Off opportunities into an experiment.
Observation
A notification encourages users to return and log progress towards their energy goals. A non-paying user who opens the notification is then shown the general subscription paywall.
Business question
Would a paywall that matches the intent that brought the user back earn more from these returners?
Behavioural reasoning
The user reopened Sweet Off with a specific goal in mind. Connecting the subscription message to that goal may make the value of subscribing more relevant at the purchase decision.
Hypothesis
If the returning-user paywall references the the same message from the notification, more returners will convert because the message reinforces the motivation that brought them back.
Control vs variant
Control: the current, generic returning-user paywall. Variant: the same plans, pricing, CTA, timing and purchase flow, with a headline and body connected to the user's energy goal and logging progress.
Primary metric
30-day net subscription revenue per eligible returner.
Guardrails
Paywall dismissal rate, refund rate and notification opt-out rate should not regress relative to the control.
Feasibility
No new plans or purchase flow changes are required. The change is limited to copy for one paywall placement, which keeps implementation and QA straightforward.
Decision / learning
Ship the variant if it improves net revenue per eligible returner without harming the guardrails, iterate on the messaging if results are mixed, or keep the control if there is no meaningful lift.
A clear roadmap for what to test next
The review gives the team a prioritised set of opportunities, with enough detail to turn each one into a clear experiment.
The team leaves knowing what to test, why it matters, what to measure and what to learn next.
Not sure what your team should test next?
I review subscription journeys, identify the highest-value opportunities and turn them into experiments your team can actually run and learn from.
