In the days to come, Google will start offering notifications through Search Console to allow website owners to find out whether they have unclear billing pages. With Chrome 71 set to be launched in December, it is going to be essential for website owners to keep a track of unclear billing pages. Chrome will display a warning to allow users to make wise decisions when signing up for mobile-based subscription services. Users will be provided the choice either to go ahead with the page or go back if they were oblivious that they were entering a billing page.
What are unclear mobile subscriptions?
Think about this: John is browsing the internet on a mobile connection to access a gaming page and he comes across a page which asks for his mobile phone details. He fills in all the details with his contact number and clicks on Continue, and gain access to the content.
The next month, John finds out a charge which he hadn’t been expecting in his phone bill. Was the subscription charge for online gaming service too costly? Did he agree to pay the specific amount for the service? What was the exact amount he agrees to pay for gaining access to the content?
Chrome users will have better billing information
Google wants to ensure that Chrome users have a clear idea when they are undergoing a billing flow and be confident about making informed decisions while browsing the internet. To inform users clearly, it is necessary to offer a substantial amount of information inside the billing page as specified by Google’s mobile billing charges best practices. Pages which answer positively to questions given below offer sufficient details for users-
Are the billing details visible and apparent to users?
For instance, not adding subscription details on the subscriptions page or hiding the details is not a good thing to do as users need to have access to details when agreeing to subscribe.
Can customers easily view the costs they are going to pay prior to accepting the terms?
For example, showing the billing details in grey characters on a grey background, thereby making it less legible, is regarded as a bad user practice.
Can fee structure be easily understood?
For instance, the formula shared to explain how cost of service will be decided needs to be clear and concise.
If Chrome comes across pages which don’t offer adequate billing details to users, the warning given below will be visible to users on Chrome mobile, Chrome desktop, and Android’s WebView-
When Google detects these pages, they will inform the webmaster via Search Console in which there will be an option for them to view changes made to simplify the billing process. For websites which haven’t been verified on Search Console, Google will try to contact the affected webmasters and will available to answer questions on their public support forum. After an appeal has been made through Search Console, Google will review changes and do away with the warning.
In case your billing service takes users through a billing process which they can understand clearly as mentioned in Google’s best practices, you won’t have to make any changes. The new warning on Chrome will also have no warning on your SERP ranking in Google search.
