Build Better Paywalls with AI

Built a Flappy Bird clone inside the paywall with Helium's AI chat (no hand coding). The higher the score, the deeper the discount, capped at 50%; at e.g. 30% the offer pops up and the user can keep playing for more. Shown to ~10% of users as an experiment. Best for whimsical, already-gamified apps with a young audience, not focused business apps.

The paywall opens with some content visibly missing (something eye-catching), then the trial information animates in from the side. Rationale: many users hit X without reading even a trial-explainer paywall like Blinkist's, so the first job is to get them to read one word.

Floating bubbles in the onboarding background, splash effects on taps, and haptic feedback so each step feels satisfying and people don't put the phone down.

A screen in onboarding saying the app is 'creating your experience' (an animated build-up step).

For an audio app (e.g. sleep sounds or relaxing soundscapes), play the actual audio while the user goes through onboarding.

In onboarding, add a 'Who referred you?' question whose options signal legitimacy, e.g. 'My personal trainer' or a television ad, even if the app has no trainer partnerships or TV ads. Older audiences respond to authority; whimsical/gamified paywalls work for younger users instead.

Identify the variables that drive conversion for your app (age is the big one; people above ~35 think differently) and run separate experiences and experiments per segment, so learnings from one group don't pollute the other. E.g. show a tailored paywall only to users over 45.

Use a remote paywall tool (no app update needed) to test many variants at once: three plans on one paywall, different default-selected plans, colour schemes, trial lengths (1, 3, 7 days). Customers run eight or nine experiments simultaneously.

When the user taps a plan, show the Apple Pay prompt directly (payment processed by Stripe) so it feels like a normal in-app purchase, rather than redirecting to Safari or opening a Stripe link. Enabled by the Epic rulings; avoids Apple's 15-30% cut. Helium has tested app-to-web variants for years.

On plan tap, open a web checkout outside the app (Safari page, like Flo Period Tracker does) or pop up a Stripe payment link.

Client app sold on iPad as well as iPhone; host recommends iPad to a kids' drawing app because few developers target it.

Main onboarding paywall offers a 7-day free trial. If the user dismisses it or cancels the trial, follow up with a 14- or 30-day trial offer. Do not make the long trial the default.

Helium's 'Get Started' asks a few questions including average revenue. Small apps get in directly; big apps see what looks like a waitlist so the team can talk to them first. Guest says it may soon open to everyone instantly.