Subscription cancellations, often referred to as churn, are a fact of life for any business that uses this model to market its products or services. However, there are actions that you can take to keep client defections to an acceptable minimum.
Get to the root
If you’re wondering why clients are bailing on their subscriptions, they themselves are your best source of intelligence on the matter. When they click on the option to cancel, immediately initiate a survey that asks for their reasons. Make it easy to fill out, with just a few multiple-choice questions. One of them might even be, “What can we do to get you to stay?”
Once you have gathered data from several customers, analyze it. Look for patterns, including particular segments of customers that are terminating, dissatisfaction with product choices or features, etc. Then use what you have learned to improve your offerings.
Conducting direct outreach to high-value customers who have expressed the desire to cancel can also be very effective. Speak to them personally or send a customized email to gather their thoughts, and consider offering incentives such as free products or discounts to get these special clients to remain in the fold.
Enhance the customer experience
When subscribers feel good about your company, its stability, and the quality of your products and services, they are more likely to remain loyal. Start with a strong onboarding process that introduces your product over the first few weeks. This can be accomplished with interactive tutorials, personalized emails, and an accessible resource center that contains FAQs and guides.
Throughout their relationship with you, customers should be able to get help and information easily. This should occur via multiple channels, including phone support, live chat, email, and knowledge bases. The availability of information and support will do a lot to reduce chargebacks and churn while increasing the likelihood of positive reviews and referrals.
Finally, use the data that you regularly analyze to flag customers who are at risk of canceling. To accomplish this, look for patterns such as usage drops and a lack of engagement with key features. Then get in touch with them proactively to address any concerns before the cancellation occurs.
Make your product valuable
Successful subscriptions revolve around providing exceptional products or services conveniently and at a price perceived to be reasonable by the customer. As soon as they believe they are not getting their money’s worth, the chances of cancellation rise. Frequently reminding customers of the benefits they are getting can reinforce the value of what you are selling. Highlighting new features and focusing on customer testimonials are excellent ways to bring home this point.
Some cancellations occur when a client’s financial situation changes. For these valued clients, consider offering different tiers, temporary discounts, and even the option to suspend their subscription with no penalty for a set period of time.
Finally, keep involuntary churn to a minimum. This occurs when a subscription is canceled after a payment failure. Investing in a dunning management system allows you to send automatic notifications of failed payments and retry the subscription payment process several times before ultimate failure.
Build retention into your culture
Retaining subscribers is a multifaceted undertaking. Start with your customers, rewarding them for their long-term subscriptions with loyalty benefits, exclusive products or content, and special discounts.
Using the ongoing feedback that they generate, continue to focus on improving. While shoppers value the tried-and-true, they also enjoy novelty and innovation. Consequently, offer both old favorites and new choices to keep everyone interested and engaged.
Finally, be sure that your staff members are well-versed in how your subscriptions work as well as what to do when someone indicates that they want to cancel. They should know about any discounts or other offers that can be made available to a wavering customer. Incentivize them by rewarding saved subscriptions.
Cancellations are inevitable, but you can reduce their impact. By implementing some or all of these strategies, you can move from simply reacting to churn to building a set of products and procedures that will inspire people to stay for the long term.
