Keeping Customers Engaged with Subscriptions

Remember the time long before the internet and email when you signed up for magazine subscriptions? It’s still very much a ‘thing’, but not nearly the draw it used to be. What many don’t realize is how pervasive subscriptions really are in our lives today. Some do still love to get magazines; others have anywhere from 1-20 tv package subscriptions. We all have plenty of email subscriptions for news, sales offers, exciting blogs, etc., and it’s clear that the subscription never really went away; it has just evolved. The fact is, people do love getting something on a regular basis, whether it’s access or something physical. Subscription kits are hugely popular right now for everyone from babies to adults catering to any need you could imagine; toys, science experiments, alcoholic beverages, plants, food… you name it, and there’s likely some service for it. 

Subscriptions work well for companies because it’s consistent reoccurring revenue that is fairly predictable. If you set it up correctly, the customer pre-pays for at least their first month or two of the subscription, which usually won’t start for at least 30-60 days. If you’re putting together subscription kits, the more time you have under your belt with your demographic, the better you can predict sign-up patterns and tailor your product orders to be appropriately sized to maximize your cost of goods. 

The actual process of shipping those types of subscription boxes, or “kits” as we call them at Kirkwood Direct, can be daunting for many. It takes a lot of logistics to make sure that the correct products go to the right people at the right time, but that work largely pays off. Once a customer signs up for a subscription, it takes work to cancel it. Studies have shown, and we probably all feel this, that online shopping has primarily desensitized consumers around making purchases online, and subscriptions automatically charge on a monthly basis and renew monthly or annually. It’s good for business and hopefully good for the customer who gets something new in the mail monthly.

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Looking for assistance defining or executing subscription services? Kirkwood Direct’s team is ready and willing to assist with strategy, subscription marketing execution, product kitting and fulfillment, and more. If you can dream it, we can make it a reality. Let’s partner to make your next subscription offering a big success. Give us a call today or fill out our online contact form.