ClaimID nears 75k users
February 23rd, 2009 - Fred StutzmanYes, it has been too long since we last posted! In the meantime, ClaimID has grown steadily, we’ve optimized a bunch of code so that the site should be much faster, and we’re looking at new ways to improve the site. To that extent, we are considering two things. The first is finding some better solution for our OpenID service. There are a number of third parties who do the checkboxes -and-security stuff better than we do. Delegating OpenID authentication to a third party might be a nice solution for our users. We are also considering a pay model for ClaimID – something like 12 dollars for a two-year membership. We would still provide OpenID’s for free, but we would charge for value-adds like link resume and caching, etc. Of course, all users with existing accounts would be grandfathered in with free accounts – this would only apply to new users (and OpenID’s would always be free for all users). Unfortunately, running ClaimID is not cheap, so we’re going to strive for a model that is both sustainable and secure. None of this is written in stone, so we’re very open to feedback!
February 24th, 2009 at 2:58 am
I would be in favor of a system in which you solicited donations from the grandfathered users, and allowed new users a period of time, say six months or so, of free use before requiring a fee. I didn’t think claimID would be valuable to me until I had used it for a few months, and I would never have signed up if I had to pay a fee up front.
February 24th, 2009 at 3:19 am
Shari,
Good points. We may ask for donations from older members, but we also feel pretty indebted to our early adopters. Believe it or not, joining early and creating critical mass is very important to a startup (even one with 75k users).
Just a point of clarification – we will never require a fee up front. We will continue to provide free OpenID’s. We will require a fee for additional services, but there will never be a fee to sign up. This is important to us. I see your point, though. A period for free doesn’t cost us much, so that is a pretty good idea! We’ll definitely talk it over.
Thanks,
Fred
February 24th, 2009 at 9:50 pm
A fee after a few months is a terrible idea. I would never sign up to something that I intended to use for a long time if it said I would only be able to use it up to a certain point, and then have to pay.
February 25th, 2009 at 12:21 am
And that makes one very strong vote against! I actually think we’ll probably end up going your way, Aeshir. Charging after a few months feels a little bait-and-switch, even if you’re totally up front about everything.
March 7th, 2009 at 11:58 pm
hi,
why the claim ID cannot display gravatar?
March 24th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
Don’t forget about the obvious: A basic, limited-features account that’s free forever, along with 2nd- and 3rd-tier paid accounts that offer valuable features. Unless I’m mistaken (I may be) this is one of the most common monetization strategies currently in use (37Signals, DropSend, etc., etc.).
Anyway, good luck!
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:00 am
Link-caching 75k+ users is probably eating up the bulk of your resources. you may try tiered payment for link caching if it is easy to implement e.g. 1 link is free, 2-5 links for $10/year, etc
Better still keep it free but share content with vetted jobsites,etc for a fee