switch from USD to EUR currency for join pages? amounts, ramifications..? - GoFuckYourself.com

chupacabra · 02-05-2006, 06:50 PM

hey all... k, heres the deal; i have one particular paysite that i am setting up w/ a new processor who allows me to choose billing currency finally, and i am thinking hard about switching over to EUR for my join pages...

my customer base is like 40% euro, 40% american, 20% "other"... for years this site has billed at $29.95USD recurring monthly, and while i'd love to up the price to 29.95EUR i'm hesitant that it might scare some away. i'm not even sure if many american surfers would know how to convert USD->EUR offhand sadly, and the last thing i want is to hurt signups w/ such a change... keep in mind this site has cost $29.95USD monthly for 6 years now.

any opinion? anyone switched from USD to EUR across the board on their paysites, and if so what were your results? any input would be most welcome, thx in advance all..!

romeoboi · 02-05-2006, 06:54 PM

i dont run paysites, but couldnt you set up some kind of cascade where instead of switching proccessors, you could send half your joins to a $29.95 US option and the other to a 29,95 euro option?

Theo · 02-05-2006, 06:57 PM

you should try that since taking replies from boards as granted is not good thing. More than often i have found out things suggested as not working well to be actually good

Webby · 02-05-2006, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chupacabra

hey all... k, heres the deal; i have one particular paysite that i am setting up w/ a new processor who allows me to choose billing currency finally, and i am thinking hard about switching over to EUR for my join pages...

my customer base is like 40% euro, 40% american, 20% "other"... for years this site has billed at $29.95USD recurring monthly, and while i'd love to up the price to 29.95EUR i'm hesitant that it might scare some away. i'm not even sure if many american surfers would know how to convert USD->EUR offhand sadly, and the last thing i want is to hurt signups w/ such a change... keep in mind this site has cost $29.95USD monthly for 6 years now.

any opinion? anyone switched from USD to EUR across the board on their paysites, and if so what were your results? any input would be most welcome, thx in advance all..!

Just do it chupacabra

That 40% Euro traffic is worth a good bit of difference bottom line!

Been doing this for a while and there is a definate overall gain, but have kept all other pay options available. Surfers who are familiar with Euros or Pounds Sterling are likely to use em, tho the conversion rate may be higher than the dollar. Ain't familiarity nice?

SmokeyTheBear · 02-05-2006, 07:45 PM

i thought the opposite , it seems rather simple to me , if you have equal euro and equal u.s. joins , i dont see why you wolud charge euro's ( other than to up the price ) because..

How many euros dont buy from you because you charge american dollars compared to how many americans wouldnt buy from you because you charge euro's. I would think the latter

Webby · 02-05-2006, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmokeyTheBear

i thought the opposite , it seems rather simple to me , if you have equal euro and equal u.s. joins , i dont see why you wolud charge euro's ( other than to up the price ) because..

How many euros dont buy from you because you charge american dollars compared to how many americans wouldnt buy from you because you charge euro's. I would think the latter

Mmmm.. would not know an answer to that Smokey. But overall, the total revenue is up by offering memberships in multi-currency. Nothing is hidden on sign pages - surfers are free to pay in dollars, Euro's and a few other currencies. Suspect it has more to do with currency familiarity than much else, tho there is a gain on currency exchange, but doubt the average surfer gives a damn

PS... Dunno if this is relevant or not, say a membership is US$29.95 - that's around 25 Euros or 17 UK Pounds. 17 UK "appears" kinda cheap after you may have promised em the earth on a front end and may not look credible in UK terms - the UK is used to paying more - even Hamburgers cost more :-) A reasonable UK price would be around 24.95 UK Pounds tho who knows.

SmokeyTheBear · 02-05-2006, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Webby

Mmmm.. would not know an answer to that Smokey. But overall, the total revenue is up by offering memberships in multi-currency. Nothing is hidden on sign pages - surfers are free to pay in dollars, Euro's and a few other currencies. Suspect it has more to do with currency familiarity than much else, tho there is a gain on currency exchange, but doubt the average surfer gives a damn

PS... Dunno if this is relevant or not, say a membership is US$29.95 - that's around 25 Euros or 17 UK Pounds. 17 UK "appears" kinda cheap after you may have promised em the earth on a front end and may not look credible in UK terms - the UK is used to paying more - even Hamburgers cost more :-) A reasonable UK price would be around 24.95 UK Pounds tho who knows.

having memberships in multi-currencies is what im saying.. but if you default to euros your likely going to lose u.s. customers.. speaking from experience ( although with mainstream ) if i see default euor's it makes me think the company is likely in the u.k. and support is going to be in opposite time zones and may not follow local laws. ( like if theres a problem and its u.s. based you have alot more options ) If i'm not told and its .com and in u.s. dollars i dont usually ask ( although still could be u.k. based )

Webby · 02-05-2006, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmokeyTheBear

having memberships in multi-currencies is what im saying.. but if you default to euros your likely going to lose u.s. customers.. speaking from experience ( although with mainstream ) if i see default euor's it makes me think the company is likely in the u.k. and support is going to be in opposite time zones and may not follow local laws. ( like if theres a problem and its u.s. based you have alot more options ) If i'm not told and its .com and in u.s. dollars i dont usually ask ( although still could be u.k. based )

Na... sounds kinda risky offering only one currency

It's back to the familiarity thing with the suggestion of different time zones etc - far better to offer whatever currency a surfer wants to pay in.

We all offer support 24/7 don't we?

chupacabra · 02-05-2006, 08:54 PM

hmm... good points from all, thx for the input friends.

while i was thinking of just going w/ one currency offering (EUR) it sounds like i should definitely offer both USD and EUR options... but, i definitely don't want to charge 29.95 for both currency-types, what would you guys suggest for the differential between the two? doesn't have to be spot on of course, but what would look good? i think i can get away w/ raising my signup price here, as i said its been 6 years w/out ever and up from the $29.95USD so i think the marks... er... "customers" can bear a bit of an increase w/out complaint.

can anyone suggest some nice roundish sounding amounts for both USD and EUR perhaps? thx again for the input and a good one to all..

Calvinguy · 02-06-2006, 02:46 AM

I charge in euro only. Before I had a daily updated approximately EUR/USD exchange rate I got almost daily emails asking for the amount in USD.

Sausage · 02-06-2006, 03:08 AM

We bill in euros on all our traffic including US.

There is a common misconception that US surfers won't pay in euros and european surfers prefer to pay in euros. I don't think thats correct at all. We find that ratios are the same we would expect, and in some cases even better when charging in Euros. Found that it works best to charge around 26-27E which equates to around $32-33usd. That extra few $ can come in really handy and does add up!

John Marco · 02-06-2006, 05:06 AM

We have had the exact opposite experience as Sausage. US surfers are a little less willing to try 'new things' and anything foreign scares them off.

Why don't you just geo-target your join form and charge 24.95 pounds to brits, EUR 29.95 to Europe, and $29.95 to US? The customers will never know the difference

romeoboi · 02-08-2006, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Marco

We have had the exact opposite experience as Sausage. US surfers are a little less willing to try 'new things' and anything foreign scares them off.

Why don't you just geo-target your join form and charge 24.95 pounds to brits, EUR 29.95 to Europe, and $29.95 to US? The customers will never know the difference

seems pretty smart - or do it as a drop down menu - so if you are in europe you get redirected to a page where the billing price selected is in euros...

I think if you try different prices in euros and dollars some people may feel cheated or confused because they dont know the conversion. I also have a feeling europeans have a better idea of where the dollar stands versus the euro as compared to americans

JOKER · 02-08-2006, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Marco

We have had the exact opposite experience as Sausage. US surfers are a little less willing to try 'new things' and anything foreign scares them off.

Why don't you just geo-target your join form and charge 24.95 pounds to brits, EUR 29.95 to Europe, and $29.95 to US? The customers will never know the difference

Bingo

KGucci · 02-09-2006, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Marco

We have had the exact opposite experience as Sausage. US surfers are a little less willing to try 'new things' and anything foreign scares them off.

Why don't you just geo-target your join form and charge 24.95 pounds to brits, EUR 29.95 to Europe, and $29.95 to US? The customers will never know the difference

I have to agree with John on this one

If you do not use a geo-target system, why not put a USD button and EUR button up? Let the surfer decide.

SCORE Ralph · 02-09-2006, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Marco

We have had the exact opposite experience as Sausage. US surfers are a little less willing to try 'new things' and anything foreign scares them off.

Why don't you just geo-target your join form and charge 24.95 pounds to brits, EUR 29.95 to Europe, and $29.95 to US? The customers will never know the difference

I actually expected this way at the top. GeoIP redirect to the correct form this way you maintain familiarity, ppl arent confused or writing emails about conversions, and you keep your customers happy.

Verotel · 02-09-2006, 09:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aspwm

I actually expected this way at the top. GeoIP redirect to the correct form this way you maintain familiarity, ppl arent confused or writing emails about conversions, and you keep your customers happy.

I fully agree.

Verotel Multi-currency

02-05-2006, 06:50 PM	#1
chupacabra Confirmed User Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 3,626	switch from USD to EUR currency for join pages? amounts, ramifications..? hey all... k, heres the deal; i have one particular paysite that i am setting up w/ a new processor who allows me to choose billing currency finally, and i am thinking hard about switching over to EUR for my join pages... my customer base is like 40% euro, 40% american, 20% "other"... for years this site has billed at $29.95USD recurring monthly, and while i'd love to up the price to 29.95EUR i'm hesitant that it might scare some away. i'm not even sure if many american surfers would know how to convert USD->EUR offhand sadly, and the last thing i want is to hurt signups w/ such a change... keep in mind this site has cost $29.95USD monthly for 6 years now. any opinion? anyone switched from USD to EUR across the board on their paysites, and if so what were your results? any input would be most welcome, thx in advance all..! __________________ ...promise her a defamation, tell her where the rain will fall..

02-05-2006, 06:54 PM	#2
romeoboi Confirmed User Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 343	i dont run paysites, but couldnt you set up some kind of cascade where instead of switching proccessors, you could send half your joins to a $29.95 US option and the other to a 29,95 euro option? __________________ Cash in on Exclusive ZERO TOLERANCE DVD Downloads!

02-05-2006, 07:45 PM	#5
SmokeyTheBear ►SouthOfHeaven Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: PlanetEarth MyBoardRank: GerbilMaster My-Penis-Size: extralarge MyWeapon: Computer Posts: 28,609	i thought the opposite , it seems rather simple to me , if you have equal euro and equal u.s. joins , i dont see why you wolud charge euro's ( other than to up the price ) because.. How many euros dont buy from you because you charge american dollars compared to how many americans wouldnt buy from you because you charge euro's. I would think the latter __________________ hatisblack at yahoo.com

02-05-2006, 08:54 PM	#9
chupacabra Confirmed User Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 3,626	hmm... good points from all, thx for the input friends. while i was thinking of just going w/ one currency offering (EUR) it sounds like i should definitely offer both USD and EUR options... but, i definitely don't want to charge 29.95 for both currency-types, what would you guys suggest for the differential between the two? doesn't have to be spot on of course, but what would look good? i think i can get away w/ raising my signup price here, as i said its been 6 years w/out ever and up from the $29.95USD so i think the marks... er... "customers" can bear a bit of an increase w/out complaint. can anyone suggest some nice roundish sounding amounts for both USD and EUR perhaps? thx again for the input and a good one to all.. __________________ ...promise her a defamation, tell her where the rain will fall..

02-06-2006, 03:08 AM	#11
Sausage Confirmed User Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Australia Posts: 3,012	We bill in euros on all our traffic including US. There is a common misconception that US surfers won't pay in euros and european surfers prefer to pay in euros. I don't think thats correct at all. We find that ratios are the same we would expect, and in some cases even better when charging in Euros. Found that it works best to charge around 26-27E which equates to around $32-33usd. That extra few $ can come in really handy and does add up! __________________ IW Skype : blance8888 Icq : 15567120

02-05-2006, 06:57 PM	#3
Theo HAL 9000 Industry Role: Join Date: May 2001 Posts: 34,515	you should try that since taking replies from boards as granted is not good thing. More than often i have found out things suggested as not working well to be actually good

02-06-2006, 02:46 AM	#10
Calvinguy Confirmed User Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: European Union Posts: 1,752	I charge in euro only. Before I had a daily updated approximately EUR/USD exchange rate I got almost daily emails asking for the amount in USD.

02-06-2006, 05:06 AM	#12
John Marco Confirmed User Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 912	We have had the exact opposite experience as Sausage. US surfers are a little less willing to try 'new things' and anything foreign scares them off. Why don't you just geo-target your join form and charge 24.95 pounds to brits, EUR 29.95 to Europe, and $29.95 to US? The customers will never know the difference __________________ WEBCAMS.COM $42+ PPS or revshare ICQ: 476-111 Google Talk: Webcams.com Last edited by John Marco; 02-06-2006 at 05:07 AM..