Subscriptions are a journey and can be tough to get right with your DTC e-commerce brand. A lot of times brands don’t fully appreciate their customer’s journey and interaction with their brand and products, which can lead to miscommunication and asking customers to become loyal subscribers at an inopportune time.
It’s important to think about designing your intended journey as if you were your own customer.
Below we break down the three most important steps and touchpoints in acquiring a loyal subscriber to your DTC e-commerce brand.
Your Customer’s First Purchase:
Convincing your customer to give your product an initial try is arguably the most important step. Their first purchase can be seen as a trial for them to figure out whether or not they really love your product and want to bring it into their lives.
A lot of brands will offer a trial pack or a sample pack to give their customers the full experience of what their brand has to offer to them. Giving customers a selection in a sample pack, for example, helps them narrow down their favorite flavor, style or type of product they like the most from your DTC e-commerce brand.
For example, Sanzo offers a Sample Pack of their three award-winning sparkling water flavors. This option gives their customers the opportunity to sample three of their offered flavors at the same time rather than having to purchase each individually.
After all, if you were walking into a physical store and saw a product you liked and wanted to try out, would you subscribe to it on your first purchase? Probably not!
Getting Your Customer To Come Back:
The second purchase that you ask your customer to make should be based off of their favorite option from the sample pack. This step allows your customer to confirm their favorite flavor, scent, colors, etc. and get a glimpse at what a subscription to it could look and feel like.
In some cases, a customer will choose to subscribe on their second purchase if they especially love one of the options in your brand’s sample pack or if your brand only has a few product options. It’s important not to force the subscription here, though, or over-ask for it. Chances are if your customer is coming back a second time, it’s likely you have a good shot at getting them to subscribe to your brand.
Turning Your Customer Into A Subscriber:
Here’s where you can really make it official. Your customer’s third purchase is where you can confidently ask them to choose the subscription option. This touchpoint is where you should be encouraging them to become a subscriber and not just a repeat purchaser. It’s important to also put on display the benefits they unlock when they subscribe to their favorite variant, such as monthly discounts, access to exclusive rewards, announcements and communities and so forth.
Bringing The Subscription Journey All Together:
Subscriptions are a journey and should be treated like one. Having reasonable expectations for your customers and how they interact with your brand and products is crucial to creating the best experience possible for them and maximizing their value to your DTC e-commerce business.
