Duolingo · B2C · language learning app
Charge $1-3 to fix a broken streak
A good share of users paid; showed how much users value their streak
What they did
What happened
- Stage
- first monetization, 2016
In their words
Why Your Free Users Are Your Real Growth Engine – Cem Kansu, Duolingo CPO
Cem KansuAnd around the same time the ads experiment started. But I think the first thing that users saw at Duolingo as a thing they could buy was repairing your streak for I think a dollar or $3. That was our first entry.
Cem KansuHonestly, it was a good experiment. We actually learned a lot. We learned that users really cared about their streak, and a good percentage of our users are willing to pay a dollar or two to repair their broken streak.
Cem KansuBut then I think then we got into this experiment mode of what really works with our audience and how do we make sure that we keep the product highly retentive and a great user experience? Coming back to your question, that is the moment where we started trying ads. So that was 2016.
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More from this episode
- Keep lessons free and sell learners' translations to news sitesSmall revenue; dropped by 2016 (price race and low translation quality)
- Show one ad only after a lesson ends, and test it against retentionRetention mostly neutral, at most a slight hit, across ad tests
- Count ad complaints per million users and compare them to other complaintsMissing-course complaints were 3x ad complaints; ads launched
- Block gambling and sketchy ad types, even if it costs revenueAccepted lost ad revenue for better experience; no numbers
- Sell ads directly to brands and have app characters introduce themUsers like the format; slow to sell because it's custom
- Use the end-of-lesson ad slot to advertise your own paid planGuest says house ads beat programmatic ads; no numbers
- Run 3-6 month holdouts for changes whose effects show up lateNew push lifts can turn negative after about 6 weeks
- Sell a one-time ad-free month at $3, $5 or $10 to test demandUptake far above expectations; led to the subscription
- Launch a plan with no ads, offline use, and 'support our mission'About half of early buyers paid to support the app; started a run rate
- Offer a free trial even though the app is already freeOne of the biggest unlocks; guest had expected it to flop
- Tell users on the paywall you'll remind them on day 5 of a 7-day trialWon A/B tests by easing fear of subscription traps
- Change the buy button to say 'Try for $0.00'Beat 'Try for free' on both trial starts and trial-to-paid
- Give subscribers unlimited hearts so mistakes never stop their lessonsBig turning point: raised subscription conversion and retention
- Make paid features free when a test shows they earn littleTook a small revenue hit on purpose to grow free users
- Add new subjects inside the main app instead of launching new appsSeparate apps were 'hard mode'; in-app works better, but many users still don't know
- Offer live human tutors on demand in a higher-priced planFailed: users joined, panicked and left; later replaced by AI video call
Tags: iap, streaks, first-monetization