The Silent Renewal
"Free trial ends. You're charged. You don't notice for months."
Require a card upfront for a 'free' trial; auto-convert to a paid plan with no warning email; price the renewal as annual.
Same hack. Three very different choices.
Trial without a card; clear renewal email 7 days before charge with one-click cancel.
Card required, but renewal warning email is sent and cancel is in-app.
No warning, no email, annual charge, refund only by phone.
A formula you can steal
Trial → [WARNING EMAIL N DAYS PRIOR] → [ONE-CLICK CANCEL] → only then charge.
Where you've already seen this
- App store 'free' subscriptions auto-charging $99/yr after a 7-day trial.
- B2B SaaS billing the credit card for an annual term silently on day 15.
- Streaming services rolling promo-rate users to full price with zero notice.
Never the silent version. Trials with reminders are the white-magic alternative — and convert nearly as well.
Anywhere chargeback rates would tell the story (they will).
Try the trick today
Add a 'your trial ends in 3 days' email with a one-click cancel link. Measure churn — usually flat or improved.
Free Marketing Hacked module included. See more cautionary tales and learn the playbook from the inside.