Transcript

Mapping & Measuring the Subscriber Journey:

Attracting & Acquiring New Subscribers

Companies of all stages, sizes and industries share one essential need for growing or staying profitable: acquiring

new customers. In a subscription business, one of the most integral aspects of long-term profitability is already baked in—repeat customers. However, finding new users and then converting them into paying subscribers is easier said than

done. So, let’s dive into some tried and true options for attracting, acquiring and converting new subscribers.

In order to drive more subscription revenue, you must first attract new customers. Search engine, affiliate and social media marketing are three of the best ways to get your service in front of as many eyes as possible. While you may already be utilizing these tactics, our complimentary ebook provides a few quick reminders on how to maximize your efforts.

Attracting Visitors

key points

Get more tried and true options for attracting, acquiring and converting new subscribers, in our complimentary ebook!

• Creating a plan to generate traffic is vital to having a successful business. These channels (search engine, affiliate and social media marketing) are foundational elements of a solid plan. Be sure to implement tracking to understand how each channel performs.

• Every business requires a custom mix of channels. Stick to them, monitor and refine them, and you will eventually get fresh visitors to your site and increase your user base.

In today’s world, many consumers and businesses are reluctant to pay for things they haven’t had the opportunity to try first. So no matter where your visitors come from, your landing page should offer a single call-to-action (CTA) that gives users access to your free trial or freemium service. Providing free access to your service allows potential users to see its value firsthand. By offering your service for free, you have the opportunity to engage with them about your paid or premium version and motivate

them to become enthusiastic subscribers.

Acquiring Free Users

There are two primary ways of

convincing consumers

to try your service:

1. Free trial

A free trial grants customers access to your service for a limited time. Once the time limit is reached, the customer can only use the service by subscribing to it. Examples of companies that use free trials include Moz, Ancestry.com and Nitro Software.

2. Freemium

A freemium pricing model offers customers access to limited features of your service for an indefinite period of time. The customer would be required to purchase your service in order to unlock additional features and functionality not available in the freemium version. Spotify, Dropbox, Match.com, Box, Yammer and LinkedIn are all examples of companies that employ the freemium model.

Learn more about the pros and cons of each marketing tactic, in our complimentary ebook!

Ask yourself, “What do the 97% of users that will likely never pay me bring to the table?” Free users are only worthwhile if they provide value to your business. Often, the most alluring (yet dangerous) aspect of freemium is seeing 100,000 or 1 million people around the world using your service. But if these users don’t ever convert to paying customers, they can become an expensive burden that slowly drains a company. For your freemium model to work, free users must a) provide you invaluable data to improve your service, b) convert into paid subscribers or c) attract paying subscribers.

key point

No matter how you attract and acquire users, be sure to consolidate your data sources for the most up-to-date view of customer activity. Too many disconnected data sources can muddy your reporting and analytics and inaccurately inform your marketing and sales strategies. Merge customer data from all of your sources – like your CRM, web forms, third party tracking tools, license management system and email service provider – through ongoing API calls, so you always have visibility into a single unified source of customer information.

key point

Get more tried and true options for attracting, acquiring and converting new subscribers, in our complimentary ebook!

While some companies collect payment information before letting a visitor sign up for free access to the service, most wait until the initial billing event. In either case, with both freemium and free trials, the key to converting users is demonstrating the value of your paid service and the consequences of losing access to it.

Converting Free Usersto Subscribers

Here are some different

approaches to help convert free

users into paying subscribers.

1. Show users what they are missing by not becoming paying subscribers.

Use charts on landing pages, emails or popups to show different types of users the exact benefits they receive by paying for your premium offer. Include plenty of reviews to help them feel

comfortable.

Messages that convert freemium users typically read like:

• Upgrade to unlock powerful new features. Learn more.• Five reasons why you should upgrade to premium.• Last chance to save on your upgrade.

An email marketing campaign with timely and relevant messages is a powerful tool for converting free users. Here’s an example from Spotify of trying to get a free user to upgrade to the paid version:

2. Offer freemium users a discount if they seem reluctant to upgrade. Some example messages are:

 

• Earn a free month when you upgrade to premium.

• Save now when you upgrade to premium.

• Enjoy an extra 30% off your first bill when you upgrade now.

Here’s an example from online slideshow and video maker Kizoa offering a discount code to upgrade to its Premium Lifestyle membership:

Learn more approaches to help convert free users into paying subscribers, in our complimentary ebook!

Throughout the acquisition and conversion stages, be sure to collect the right data. David Walsh, former marketing director at Intuit, noted that there needs to be a balance between the amount of information you need to make the initial sale and the amount you should ask for to assist you throughout the customer lifecycle. “The conversion rate declines by 7% for every piece of information after five. So, you really need to think about what that additional information will mean to the lifecycle of those customers. Are you going to want to contact them in the future? What additional information can really grow the value of your customers? It’s imperative to make sure you are asking for information you really need.”

key point

The key to nurturing, acquiring and retaining subscribers is to show them the right offer or promotion precisely when they need to see it. By automating subscriber communications, you can trigger relevant marketing communications or offers based on customer behavior, which can dramatically impact conversion and overall revenue. Analyze how your service is being used, create cohorts, and then automate communication for the segments.

key point

Get more tried and true options for attracting, acquiring and converting new subscribers, in our complimentary ebook!

Conclusion

It makes sense for businesses to cultivate a base of free users, provided that enough of those users are converting to paying subscribers on a regular basis. If the right business conditions are met, free trial and freemium models are more than just building out a user base – they can help drive faster revenue and profit growth than a paid-only model. You also need to make sure you have a strong strategy in place for acquiring users, converting them, and managing them if they do not upgrade.

Get more tried and true options for attracting, acquiring and converting new subscribers, in our complimentary ebook!

cleverbridge provides global subscription billing solutions that help companies build long-term customer relationships and grow recurring

revenue streams. With its flexible, cloud-based billing and monetization platform, cleverbridge integrates seamlessly with client systems, simplifies

subscription business models and delivers an optimized online customer experience. Leveraging cleverbridge expertise, technology and services,

clients monetize products and services more effectively, rapidly expand their global subscriber base and maximize customer lifetime value.

Headquartered in Cologne, Germany, cleverbridge has offices in Chicago, San Francisco and Tokyo.

To learn more about cleverbridge, please contact [email protected] or visit www.cleverbridge.com.


Top Related