Tips to Combat Subscription Fatigue and Retain Customers

The subscription economy is experiencing explosive growth in recent years. Currently, a wide range of products and services are available via a subscription model, which includes digital services, meal kits, groceries, clothes, and even customised beauty products. Subscription model businesses offer a lot of benefits for both businesses and consumers alike which is the reason for its big success, but are not immune to challenges. Subscription fatigue is one such challenge that businesses need to address.

What is Subscription Fatigue?

Subscription fatigue is the situation when a customer is overwhelmed by the sheer number of subscriptions that they have and they start to question if its worth the value. This can lead to the cancellation of some of the subscriptions that they already have as well as are least likely to subscribe to new subscriptions. Such a state is very concerning for businesses and needs to be addressed. There are many underlying reasons that can cause subscription fatigue, such as too many options to choose from, the cumulative cost of all the subscriptions could be pretty high and can affect their budget, lost interest as some subscriptions dont provide value anymore, and not using frequently due to the lack of time and other reasons can make you feel as a waste of money. In such situations, you tend to cancel some as well as keep distance from new subscriptions.

Tips to Combat Subscription Fatigue

Businesses need to implement strategies to address subscription fatigue. Lets find some of the effective strategies.

Improve Value Propositions

Customers should always feel that they are getting enough value for what they are paying. For the same, businesses need to bring continuous improvement to their offerings. Products and services offered should always be at par with the market standard. They can always introduce new features, to improve the overall value proportions.

Gamification

Gamification means to add game like elements and features to your subscription services, mainly to keep customers engaged and loyal. It could be rewards systems, points systems, challenges, leader-board, and badges, exclusive rewards can be given for attaining higher badges. Such features in subscription services will make things more engaging and fun and keep customers motivated to stick around.

Tailored Offerings

Everyone's liking and preferences wont be the same, hence personalising the offerings based on individual preferences and behaviours can considerably enhance the customer satisfaction level. Data analysis will help businesses to identify individual preferences and tailor their offerings accordingly. Personalised pricing and recommendations as well as personalised marketing campaigns can be considered. Up-selling and cross-selling options can be identified with data analytics.

Flexible Subscription Plan Options

Offering different subscription plans at various budget levels and features can help to cater to a wide variety of customers. Businesses should also provide options like pausing the subscriptions, and changing the subscription plans without any penalties can help in addressing subscription fatigue.

Enhanced User Experience

A simple and intuitive process can help to enhance the user experience. Things like subscription plan management and access to billing and other information should be easily accessible to the subscribers, backed by responsive and friendly customer support will considerably enhance the overall customer experience.

Easy Subscription Management Options

Providing easy-to-manage subscription services will reduce frustrations and will enhance the overall customer experience. This includes easy-to-manage account settings, easily accessible and clearer billing details, options to change subscription plans and straightforward cancellations and pause options.

Proactive Customer Support

Customer support and clearer communication is always very important for providing good customer experience. Small niggles and concerns can be prevented from becoming big problems with proactive customer support. And it gives the sense to the customers that you care. Customer care can check in with customers periodically to offer help as well as to gather feedback.

Technology's Role

Leveraging technology can significantly enhance customer experience. Technology can help in multiple ways, it can automate the subscription systems for seamless on boarding to personalised recommendations, automated payment collections and reminder generations, automated chat-bots and other advanced tech to make operations smoother.

Data Analytics

Subscription services enable businesses to have long-term interactions with customers, this leads to the generation of a huge amount of customer data. Which on analysis can give you valuable insights regarding customer behaviours and preferences. And accordingly fine tuning the offerings as well the process, it will enhance the overall customer experience.

Gathering Customer Feedback Periodically

Collecting customer feedback periodically, to understand their concerns and their pain points will allow you to improve your services. Feedback collecting should be done on a regular basis and accordingly fine tune the offerings could considerably enhance the customer experience and will reduce subscription fatigue.