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What did AllTrails learn from testing a boring sign-up screen?

AllTrails' simpler signup screen beat a version with a scenic hiking-trail background video. The winning screen kept the brand mark, direct signup/login language, social login buttons, and email continuation without letting the outdoor imagery compete with the auth choices.

  • By Ali Abouelatta
  • 1 visual
  • 1 min read
  • signup · onboarding · conversion · video
Read as Markdown
AllTrails signup screen experiment comparing a hiking video control against a plain experiment.
AllTrails tested a hiking-trail background-video signup screen against a simpler dark signup screen with stacked auth options; the visual says the simple version won.1600 × 926opens the full image

The evidence

The AllTrails comparison shows a video-backed control next to a plain, darker experiment with the same core signup/login job made more legible.

What changed

  • Control: a scenic hiking background under multiple auth choices.
  • Experiment: a dark, static screen with the logo, clear auth methods, and email continuation.
  • The experiment moved the screen from scenic brand expression to direct account access.

Why it matters

  • Category-relevant imagery can still reduce signup focus.
  • Auth screens need legibility and choice clarity more than atmosphere.

Sources

  1. [1]

    Lazyweb Research: AllTrails signup-screen experiment

    The AllTrails example shows a simple signup screen winning against a background video showcasing hiking trails.

    Source

Methodology

Product-experiment write-up by Ali Abouelatta, dated on August 2, 2024. Source links are listed below.

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