Our sister company Copper Peak Logistics recently published a white paper entitled “From Wine Club Promotion to Wine Club Experience: Lessons from Subscription Services.” While that paper mostly focuses on wine clubs, there are some great takeaways that apply broadly to any business wanting to maintain a subscription service:
Growth explosive, but profits still elusive. “The market for subscription services has exploded in the last few years; in fact a list of subscription services that received start-up capital investment in 2013 had 18 different offerings, and the market continues to grow today… Still, many services are struggling to turn a consistent profit.”
Look to successful models for best practices. There is good news, however: “There are now some good models of subscription services, both within the wine industry and outside of it.” Businesses looking to get into the subscription services business can extract best practices from them. Some of these are outlined in the white paper.
Subscriptions services face common challenges. There are several reasons why consumers leave wine clubs. Many of these problems plague other subscription services as well. Copper Peak’s white paper lists:
1. Lack of variety
2. Financial considerations
3. Receiving incorrect orders
4. Receiving damaged product
5. Poor customer service
6. Low perceived value for the price
7. No “WOW” factor
There is opportunity in communicating with each shipment. “This could be something as simple as a short note from the owner to say ‘thank you,’ or something as involved as a newsletter. Better yet, take advantage of the opportunity to include a coupon for future purchases, or a catalogue… [just] make sure that each communication is an accurate and heart-felt reflection of your brand.”
You can find out more by downloading the white paper. Even if you are not in the wine industry, this is a great example of some of the challenges of moving into a new business segment in a way that drives and sustains profits. A good 3PL should be able to grow with your business in this way.
Milton Cornwell – Chief Operating Officer – Materialogic
Materialogic has years of experience helping clients manage their subscription services. If you would like to find out more about best practices relevant to your industry, please do contact us.
The post Best Practices for Subscriptions Services appeared first on Materialogic.