Converting visitors into paying customers is one of the hardest challenges for any founder. The good news is that you don’t need huge budgets to move the needle.

Here are a few simple and proven tactics I’ve used myself or seen implemented at fast-growing startups. Each one reduces friction in the user journey and gets closer to revenue.

One of the smartest tactics I’ve seen lately comes from Lovable. Instead of asking users to start a trial or enter credit card details, they let you simply start typing your idea.

You get a result almost instantly. That “aha moment” kicks in fast: from nothing to a working prototype in under two minutes. Only then are you asked to sign up or upgrade. It may seem costly upfront, but it results in significantly higher conversion.

Users are more eager to sign up when they know exactly what to expect. At Tykr, we boosted visitor-to-trial conversion by replacing a plain background with a blurred preview of the app behind the signup form.

This gave users a clear sense of the product they were about to try. The result? The new signup page increased visitor-to-trial conversion by over 15%, compared to the previous 6%.

If you want your startup to grow, you need to charge users as soon as possible. Offering a free plan is tempting, but in B2B it rarely makes sense. In reality, a free plan subsidizes your entire user base in the hope that a tiny percentage will convert.

A better approach is a free trial that lasts 14 or 30 days. This gives users enough time to implement your solution into their workflow and experience real value. Consider requiring a credit card upfront to attract more serious prospects, and make the transition from trial to paid seamless with clear communication about pricing and features.

When Dropbox entered the crowded cloud storage space, their product stood out with great UX. But what really accelerated growth was their famous referral program. It was simple: both sides got rewarded.

Existing users earned up to 16GB of free space (500MB per referral), and new users received a 500MB bonus on signup. Because the referral offer was integrated directly into onboarding, users stuck with the app and shared it widely. Over time, this snowballed into a staggering 3900% growth.

A blank screen with no guidance is a wasted opportunity. Users tend to get lost and are likely to abandon your flow. Instead of showing an empty screen, consider guiding users toward their first action with helpful prompts or sample content.

Figma does this brilliantly. When you open a new file, you are not met with a blank canvas but with subtle hints that encourage you to start creating right away. By turning an “empty” moment into a guided experience, you reduce friction, help users reach value faster, and turn silence into conversion.

None of these hacks replace building a strong product, but if you already solve a real problem, small design tweaks can add up to big wins. Show users what they get before signup, give them an instant aha moment, charge early to validate demand, turn referrals into growth loops, and use empty states to drive action.

Together, these strategies reduce friction and compound into serious growth. As a founder, your job is to test fast, double down on what works, and treat conversion as part of your product, not just your marketing.