As a consumer I hate this. If you know that you <i>need</i> the software it isn't a big deal to add your CC info, but if you are just trying out some different products/services it is really annoying.<p>Also, I suck at completing timed trials. I sign up for a service, play with it for a bit, and might not come back for a few weeks - usually when the trial has expired. Having to enter credit card information is exactly one of the roadblocks that causes me to abandon ship and put it in the "This is a pain and taking more time than I thought, so I will just do this later." category.<p>So, while I don't think you are losing any customers that already know they need your service, you may be losing some who <i>might</i> need your service, but aren't sure yet.<p>The best onboarding process gets me signed up as quickly as possible (you are clearly doing that) - and takes me through an interactive tutorial (i.e. "Enter your project name here") where you are actually entering information into the system, not just completing some demo that isn't useful.<p>Show users how to do something useful with your service as quickly as possible and you will have their attention. The CC info will be secondary - they will happily enter it when the time comes!