I had a thought.

You build a product. A user finds it. They click sign up.

Before they see anything, you ask for their email. Then a password.

Their name. Their company. Their role.

The user came to see if your product solves their problem. They don't know yet if it does. You make them commit before they can find out.

Walk into a clothing store. Nobody asks for your email at the door. You feel the fabric, try it on, decide.

You touch before you buy. You taste before you order. That's the order trust is built in everywhere else in life.

In software, we invert it. We ask for identity first, then we let the product speak. Then we call this acquisition.

They were curious enough to click. That curiosity is the most expensive thing you ever buy. You traded it for an email.

Then we tell ourselves we have a lead. But a lead from a user who never saw the product is not a lead. It's a stranger with your welcome email in their spam folder.

What did your user have to hand over before you let them feel anything?