The holiday season is fast approaching, and with it comes an unparalleled opportunity for DTC subscription brands to capture new customers and convert them into loyal subscribers. Last year, Recharge brands welcomed 1.3 million new subscribers over Black Friday/Cyber Monday (BFCM), but subscriptions made up just 5% of total checkouts. This presents a huge opportunity to not only build subscriber success during the holidays—but beyond.
This season, it’s crucial to focus on growing your subscriber base, particularly in a year where we predict that:
- Customers will be choosier than ever. They’re not only hunting for deals, but seeking brands that offer genuine value to their routines and anchor their messaging and promotions in a clear brand promise.
- Online spending is expected to hit record levels. And customers will expect excellence in their online experiences, even in-store shoppers who often rely on brand websites to check inventory and product reviews before making their trip.
- Acquisition costs are at an all-time high. With customer acquisition expenses soaring, maximizing retention is essential for sustaining growth.
To help brands make the most of this holiday season and beyond, here’s a 6-step plan designed to turn holiday shoppers into long-term subscribers based on the success of hundreds of subscription brands.
1. Define success
Before diving into the holiday season, clearly define what success looks like for your subscription business. Is it growing your active subscriber base, maintaining a healthy profit margin, or keeping churn rates low? Setting explicit goals will help determine a targeted strategy and actionable next steps.
One metric we encourage brands to center is subscription share of wallet, or the percentage of sales that comes from subscriptions. With subscribers generating about three times the revenue of non-subscribers, it pays to increase subscription share of wallet.
2. Make subscriptions the star of your website
Your website is a powerful tool for promoting subscriptions. During the busy holiday season, customers’ attention spans are limited, so it’s vital to highlight the benefits of becoming a subscriber at every touchpoint, from homepage banners to checkout pages.
Make signing up easy and compelling—clear, concise messaging about the value and convenience of a subscription can turn casual holiday shoppers into loyal subscribers.
3. Do the math
In today’s competitive landscape, retaining customers is more crucial than ever. Acquiring customers before you develop a strong retention strategy is like pouring water into a leaky bucket: Until you invest in retention efforts that patch those cracks, all your new customers will leak right out again.
By addressing churn and improving your customer retention, your acquisition efforts are amplified, giving your brand a solid foundation to build upon.
4. Surprise & delight
One of the most effective ways to retain customers is to consistently surprise and delight them. Go beyond typical holiday promotions—aim to make your subscribers feel valued and appreciated throughout the year.
This could involve loyalty rewards, personalized thank-you notes, unexpected free gifts, or special offers that cater to their interests. This emotional connection can significantly enhance customer loyalty and lifetime value.
5. Listen to feedback
Your customers are a goldmine of insights. From support chats and cancellation reasons to social media interactions and focus groups, gather and analyze feedback from various sources.
Avoid relying on internal assumptions—customers will give you clear signals about what they love or dislike about your products and services.
By actively listening and responding to this feedback, you can make informed decisions and adjustments that enhance the overall subscriber experience.
6. Always be testing
The key to continuous improvement is testing. Develop a robust testing roadmap to explore and optimize elements of your subscription journey. Experiment with website designs, promotional strategies, cancellation processes, and retention initiatives.
Every test should provide valuable learnings, whether it’s about refining your subscription model or optimizing customer touchpoints.
An obsession with testing and iterative improvement will help you stay ahead of the competition and consistently enhance your subscriber experience.
Drive loyalty and retention for your subscription brand this holiday season
The efforts you make to build relationships with your customers and nurture your subscriber base will pay dividends—driving loyalty, connection and goodwill is essential in today’s competitive landscape.
The holidays present a golden opportunity to both attract and retain new customers. Embrace these strategies, and you’ll be well-positioned to capitalize on this season’s opportunities and thrive throughout the year.
For more insights and strategies on enhancing retention and ensuring holiday success, sign up for our Building For Tomorrow webinar replay.
