NEW DATA: The Five Subscription Features That Could Keep Millions From Clicking ‘Cancel’

Stay-at-home mandates have consumers spending more on subscriptions, ranging from streaming services to buying retail products for day-to-day use.

It is perhaps not surprising that merchants that are offering subscription services are flourishing. Yet, these services are still not immune to experiencing churn.

Both consumers and businesses are tightening their belts in the face of the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, and many are actively considering plans to cancel their subscriptions. That is true for more than 27 million American consumers who are at least somewhat likely to cancel their subscriptions. Consumers today not only want the flexibility to pause their subscriptions, they have also come to expect more out of their subscription plans, whether it is their subscription for digital media services or online games.

Over a quarter of consumers who use digital media subscriptions are “very likely” or “extremely likely” to cancel their subscriptions within the next year. More than 23 percent of consumers who subscribe to online games, meanwhile, are as likely to cancel their plans.

So, what are subscription services to do and what features are most likely to help keep members loyal and engaged with their subscription providers?

Those are questions PYMNTS set out to answer in the latest installment of the Subscription Commerce Conversion Index, in collaboration with Recurly. The analysis gauges the online subscription processes of 190 subscription service providers in 10 different industries to understand the key features that have the biggest impact on users’ overall subscription experiences.

Providing additional subscription features that enhance the overall subscription offering is becoming increasingly critical, according to our research. In addition to giving subscribers the option to pause their subscriptions, offering free trial periods, rewards programs and free shipping are some of the key features that are vital to enhancing customers’ subscription experiences and convincing new users to sign up.

But how should subscription services go about adding these features and how can they identify what features no longer add value to their customers? To learn more, download the Index.