As an entrepreneur or solopreneur running a small or large business, you may have come up with a service that works well with subscriptions. The Scope Weekly couldn’t do without Mailchimp automation services and Cakemail in-depth analytics to manage campaigns. Subscription-based services are great for developing customer loyalty and generating recurring revenue. The problem is actually making them work.
Many companies are rethinking the way a subscriber should be treated. Subscribers are to be thought off as customers, but the customer experience is a different beast from the subscriber experience. Therefore you must be wondering how do you reconcile the two? Keep in mind that the subscriber experience should revolve around inspiring trust from the get-go. Registration, customer support, delivery of promised services — all should give them the idea that being a subscriber is worth it and keep them engaged with your business.
How can you do this for your startup or established business? It’s all about value. There are a number of ways you can increase the value of your subscription service and inspire customer loyalty.
Level of Service Should be Left Up to the Customer
Part of being an entrepreneur is offering exactly what the customer wants. Your product must solve their problem or improve their life in some manner — and that approach should also apply to your subscription service. It is essentially another product to sell.
Customers who don’t see immediate value will quit the service. Give them several subscription models that allow them to choose how much of the service they want. This will let them align the service to their current needs and context and can lead to a loyal customer. Forcing them into a specific subscription model can result in drop offs, which is not what you want.
Let Them Customize the Service
Part of your job as an entrepreneur is to give your target audience what they want – however, not everyone will want the same thing and people don’t want to pay for options or features they’re not going to use. That’s where customization and personalization come into play.
This means giving customers the ability to utilize their subscription the way they want to. The only thing limiting what customization you have to offer is your imagination and the expense of putting it into practice. The better the customization options you have to offer, the more invested the subscribers will be in your business.
Commit to Constant Improvement
Constant improvement is probably part of your mantra as an entrepreneur. However, this may only apply to your product. Apply it to your subscription model as well and you may find customer loyalty and retention improve.
Continuously improving your subscription services gives your customers something to look forward to and gives them more reasons to stay. Every time you upgrade your services, the customer ends up feeling like they’re getting more bang for their buck. That increases their satisfaction and can even result in a service upgrade.
Engage with Your Subscribers
Value comes in many shapes and sizes, and the more value you give your subscribers, the more dedicated and loyal they’ll be. Reward the fact that they’re subscribers. Make deals with other companies that give your subscribers something special. Discounts, gift bags — the sky is the limit.
You can also develop brand loyalty by offering them bonuses related to your company. Give longtime subscribers discounts or advance information on future offerings. Make them feel special.
Give Subscribers Control Over Their Privacy
Privacy is a big issue on the Internet. Harassment and bullying are very real issues. Personal data is stolen daily and can result in thousands of dollars lost to thieves, and if it isn’t stolen, companies give or even sell this information to other companies to allow for targeted marketing.
Your subscribers must trust you and your company or they won’t stick around. That means giving them control over their privacy and identity and what information they choose to share. This makes the subscriber feel empowered, which often results in increased loyalty. You’ve reduced the risk of exposure for them, after all.
This may result in less information for you to use in your start-up, but that’s okay. You may not have as much information on your subscribers, but you will have their trust.
Your subscriber service cannot simply be a means of transferring money from their pockets to yours. As an entrepreneur, you’re familiar as to why — it must provide them with value or they’ll leave. Engage with subscribers by offering them subscription benefits related to other business. Give them control over their privacy settings to further deepen their trust in your company. Keep up the good work and you’ll find your subscriber numbers steadily increasing.
Thank you for reading.