Implemented Proposed Simpler Registration Process

[TheBigK]

I'm adding this suggestion based on my earlier thread 'Can the registration process be simpler?' .

I sincerely believe that making people register on a forum is difficult; and a big registration form makes it even more challenging. There are people who do not want to use FB/Twitter/Google to login and I think a simpler and intuitive registration process can help forums gather more members.

Proposed Solution:

Limit the registration form to Email Only! The flow would look like this:-

1. Display this email field in the sidebar or on a separate registration page or on the top slide-down panel like this:

[ Enter Your Email Address ]
[Confirm My Registration] <- Button.
[Social Login Buttons, If Enabled]

2. User then gets an account activation link.

3. Clicking on the link takes the user to a customisable, post sign-up page. This can have customisable sign-up page:

Example:

• Type your desired user name: [ ...... ... ]
• Type your password: [......]

Advantages:

1. You've got their email address, baby. You can send them one or two follow-up emails, if they do not complete their registration.

2. You saved your visitor's time and efforts in filling up large form.

3. User thinks: Wow, sign up is so easy! I love it!

4. You get more sign-ups.

 

[Mouth]

Proposed Solution:

Limit the registration form to Email Only! The flow would look like this:-

1. Display this email field in the sidebar or on a separate registration page or on the top slide-down panel like this:

[ Enter Your Email Address ]
[Confirm My Registration] <- Button.
[Social Login Buttons, If Enabled]

2. User then gets an account activation link.

3. Clicking on the link takes the user to a customisable, post sign-up page. This can have customisable sign-up page:

Example:

• Type your desired user name: [ ...... ... ]
• Type your password: [......]

Advantages:

1. You've got their email address, baby. You can send them one or two follow-up emails, if they do not complete their registration.

2. You saved your visitor's time and efforts in filling up large form.

3. User thinks: Wow, sign up is so easy! I love it!

4. You get more sign-ups.

Absolutely NOT!!!
You're mandated the requirement for email - archaic attitude.
Made sign-up a necessary 2 step and wait process.
Only split current sign-up process into 2 distinct halves.

Sorry, cannot agree.

 

[Amaury]

I can't agree, either, for the reasons stated above.

 

[ŽivaAkcija]

registration is so simple i dont see any reason for change it?

 

[Newt]

... or get rid of the two password fields and get the system to set the password as it does when users reset passwords

 

[Alpha1]

We need registration for valid users to become quicker and easier while blocking trolls and spammers better.

1. Firstly we need 'just in time' registration. Post first. Register later.
2. Secondly signup needs to be a breeze. Something similar to the above. Email, username, google recaptha.
   
3. After signup is completed through email confirmation we can get mandatory Profile fields & details from the new member.
4. Then moderate any account that is suspect (flagged by algorithms)
5. Then make the members posts visible to others.

 

[Ernest L. Defoe]

I personally don't see what the big deal is with the current way it's done. It takes all of 30 seconds to register. If someone can't take 30 seconds to register then chances are they aren't going to be very active anyways. That's just my opinion.

 

[Kintaro]

Register with username, email and password (bypassing mandatory fields).
Then once the registration is confirmed give write permission only if the user complete the mandatory custom fields.

Maybe is already possibile with user criteria and user group upgrades/permissions?

 

[Alpha1]

I personally don't see what the big deal is with the current way it's done. It takes all of 30 seconds to register. If someone can't take 30 seconds to register then chances are they aren't going to be very active anyways. That's just my opinion.

That used to be the case. However the net has changed in this regard. People want to reply immediately. If they can't they are gone. Or at most they will do a few clicks for simple registration.

And there is some sense in that. If you read something on the net that you wanted to reply to, but have to register first, then chances are that by the end of the registration you already forgot what you were replying to, what you were going to write or where you can find this page. Mind that most users are on mobile, single window only. So once a page is gone, its gone.
In this situation registration is useless as for the average user it does not lead to a reply to the message that you saw. So why bother with registration? It only leads to an account on a website that may interest you. But that is an entirely different objective.

 

[Chris D]

Vaguely speaking, this suggestion has been implemented in that the process has been simplified.

Notably, we only ask for username, email address and the password once. The date of birth field is only displayed if it is required (as with other fields). The terms and rules agreement is implicit rather than needing the user to check a box. Combine this with reCAPTCHA's new invisible CAPTCHA (or just switching CAPTCHA off and relying on other anti-spam measures) and you get a registration form as simple as:



I'm not sure it can get much simpler than that so we'll call this implemented for now.