Another choice is to use their phone number. They sign up on the web, type in their phone number. Then they are shown a PIN, you have an automated phone system that dials the phone number and prompts them to enter the PIN that is displayed. RapidSSL.com uses this method to quickly confirm a user for their SSL certificate, so I assume it is good enough for your use.
Ask YC: Login system
11–14 of 14 posts
Re: Ask YC: Login system
#12Keep in mind, Gmail has fewer customers than Yahoo mail or Hotmail - you're limiting your service to a fairly small number of users if you do option B, and people are probably not interested in signing up for some OTHER service just so they can sign up for YOUR service.
Re: Ask YC: Login system
#13I'd go for option A too. If people are paying for something, an email address is a legitimate request. Its a virtual world, and you need a way to contact them. I would have your privacy policy ready to go and prominent though.
You might not like option A for some reason, but most of the time if the verification email is sent immediately, its not a big hassle.
Re: Ask YC: Login system
#14I'm also confused about why you need a valid email address for the payments. A little clarification would be good. I would recommend against the Google account login system, I prefer to try to keep some of my life secret from Google. Have you considered openID?
Receipts, customer service contact, account summaries. There's a reason why they ask I'm sure. Its good practice to keep in touch with users when money is involved.