Customers pay a monthly fee to access a product or service in a subscription-based market.
This business model is becoming increasingly popular because it allows for multiple transactions once a customer has signed up.
The subscription path, on the other hand, can entail a significant amount of additional work for marketers.
They must persuade prospective consumers that a product or service is worth several payments. They must also ensure that current customers do not abandon them.
Recurring purchases will assist companies in achieving long-term success until consumers pay for a subscription. It can be daunting to build a subscription model if you've never done so before. So, where do you begin? On the other hand, if you've started a subscription model, it may not be working as well as you anticipated. So, what's the best way to get back on track?
With those considerations in mind, consider the following seven marketing strategies for increasing subscription-based sales:
1) Offer A Basic Package That Is Free.
Often, your entry-level, or basic, kit will be offered for free. This is not feasible for every business. You cannot do this if you are providing home delivery of clothes or grooming items, for example. It is a perfect way to hook a new customer whether you are selling software or some other form of intangible service.
Subscription-based models can be highly lucrative, and they are becoming increasingly popular. The seven tips outlined above will help you succeed if you are introducing this form of service or changing your current model.
Offer a free basic service and then invite consumers to try a paid edition for a limited time. Make signing up for a longer period more appealing by aliexpress offers deals, and be transparent at all times. Maintain outstanding customer service and contact with your clients so that if you need to increase your rates, the uproar will be minimal.
For instance, take a look at Evernote:
Evernote is a multi-platform software that can be used for a variety of tasks. It can act as an online file cabinet, note-taker, regular journal keeper, project management system, recipe repository, and more.
The basic kit is free, so users can get a feel for what it can do. Customers would be less likely to use Evernote in the first place if they had to pay for it from the start. However, since it's initially free, a prospect is more likely to try it out and then pay for it later if it's useful.
It is a no-risk, all-reward strategy used by a slew of companies. If it is possible to give away your main product or service for free, that should be how you present yourself.
2) Offer Trials Of Premium Products Are Available For Free.
Let us say you have a simple kit but are having trouble getting people to take the next move. Giving them a free trial of a paid service could make it more difficult for them to go back to the free, limited choice.
Pandora provides a 14-day free trial of their Premium service without requiring users to commit with credit card information. These users can get ad-free, higher-quality streams with more personalization for two weeks. The free service is full of commercials after the trial period expires, and users can no longer personalize it. As a result, they are more likely to return to Premium's benefits and the improved experience that comes with it. Marketing Charts were used as a conversion source.
You can also use this tactic if you're selling physical goods, such as a monthly box of goodies shipped to customers. You can sell a month or two of your package for free, even though you won't be able to do it long-term.
The longer your free trial duration is, the more costly your membership is.
Wistia's Monthly Annual Subscription Pricing
Wistia is a business-oriented video hosting service. The brand assists businesses in uploading videos to the web, tracking their success, and encouraging new ways to connect with and engage their audiences.
When purchasing a Wistia subscription, you have the option of paying monthly or annually. You can choose monthly or annual pricing on the right-hand side of the table. The monthly payments for each of the paying levels alternate to disclose the 20% discount offered to customers who sign up for an annual contract. The pricing is always shown weekly, but in such a way that the discount is shown.
Despite the fact that Wistia makes less money every month from each client, they've locked them in for a longer period of time. This is much more convenient than requiring consumers to sign a year-long contract or charging them on a monthly basis.
3) Discounts for Paying in Advance
Obviously, the longer a subscription lasts, the more money you make. Forcing consumers to sign a long-term contract, on the other hand, would instantly turn them off. Customers must be able to cancel at any time in order to maintain the illusion that they are ultimately in control. Monthly subscriptions are extremely common for this reason.
Monthly payments, on the other hand, can be difficult. If they're cancelled quickly, you won't be able to benefit from the subscription. To counter this, give those who pay in advance a justification to do so.
4) Always Be Transparent in Subscription Pricing.
A common misunderstanding about subscription-based services is that they bind you to a contract. Customers will be put off by this. As a result, making the terms and conditions big and bold up front should be a top priority.
Transparency in subscription pricing is essential.
You will have to prove your worth to customers over and over again, no matter what type of service or product you provide. Integrating a smart contract (or self-executing contract) into a blockchain that changes and amends all interactions, updates, and cancellations is one way to ensure transparency. It's a tech-driven, forward-thinking way to increase confidence without having to go back and forth with the customer.
Furthermore, excellent customer support can be provided by a dedicated phone line or even live chat apps, which aids both customer acquisition and retention.
5) Renewals on Autopilot
Congratulations, you have just added a new subscriber! You have obtained their payment details and are in the process of processing it. It is now critical that you set the payment to renew based on the terms and conditions they agreed to when signing up (which you've made clear, as we've established).
You do not want to send them a message at the end of each month reminding them to pay. That is why you must obtain this permission ahead of time. It is much easier for them to cancel if you give them the option to opt-out each month. They can keep the service even though they are not using it if their card is charged without their knowledge.
It does not matter if you show up and use the gym every month, just as it doesn't matter if you show up and use the gym every month. You will be fined in any case. Of course, you would like your clients to use the service or product you are selling, but it doesn't matter to you as much as it does to them.
6) Relationships Should be Nurtured.
A successful subscription model relies on a solid customer relationship. There can be no sustainable development without strong relationships. This becomes increasingly important as the consumer base grows. Getting new customers is essential, but losing existing customers is much more expensive.
As a result, you must have smart and comprehensive resources for customers to manage their spending during the subscription life cycle. To minimize turnover, keep a close eye on the customers' use and implementation. For consistent growth, you need a dependable, satisfied customer base.
All your customer data, such as location, price points, product range, and feedback, should be linked. Thanks to the internet of things, gathering and collating such data has never been simpler (the network of internet-connected objects able to gather and exchange data). As well as similar technological advancements.
With this information, you can figure out who your users are and what they want. This allows you to personalize your experiences with them. You may, for example, use a unified communications platform to contact anyone through their preferred channel. This gives the impression that you are speaking directly to the customer rather than screaming into the void.
7) Maintain Consistency in Pricing.
Pricing options for subscription-based purchases are virtually endless. Since you must start somewhere, most people start with a traditional recurring model. Markets, on the other hand, change in a moment, and consumer preferences change over time. Competitors, for example, could enter your market with a different product. It is important for you to keep an eye on such developments and adapt if you want to keep your foundation.
To optimize consumer acquisition and market share, a subscription company must be flexible with pricing models. Prepare to change your models on the fly without alienating your current customers. If you need to raise rates, give your consumers a new product or offer them discounts compared to new members' higher prices.
In Closing
Subscription-based models can be highly lucrative, and they are becoming increasingly popular. The seven tips outlined above will help you succeed if you are introducing this form of service or changing your current model.
About the Author:
The SEO-Alien is a project started in 2009 regarding all things online marketing. The site started out more of a diary of predictions, suggestions and references to things I frequently used for online marketing... before social media marketing was even an option.
I hope you find the information and tools presented here useful and something worth sharing with others.
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