Subscription in e-Commerce: +1 Solution to Retain & Repeat

Marina 2Jour
Jun 9
3 min read

Many beauty websites offer a subscription-based purchase. This means the customer will receive the same item at the chosen interval, the order will be placed automatically. Along with a subscription there is always a perk—a discount, which usually ranges between 5–20%.

By subscribing:

1) The customer gets a discount on a product they like and are happy to reorder, and also gains a certain peace of mind—they don’t have to think about when something will run out or when to place the next order.

2) The online shop, in turn, receives repeat purchases and builds the customer’s loyalty to a particular product.

The main terms when setting up such a subscription are:

1) Cancellation policy. Two practices prevail: either cancellation at any time (even after the first order), or cancellation only after a certain number of deliveries (most often I’ve seen a minimum of three mandatory shipments).

2) Ability to skip a delivery and adjust the schedule for receiving the product.

Let’s compare two variants of such subscriptions by brands I like:

1. Dr. Barbara Sturm. 15% off your first subscription order and then 15% off all recurring orders. You can make changes or cancel your subscription at any time.

2. Augustinus Bader. Provides 20% off and requires a minimum of three delivery cycles before you can cancel the subscription. At the same time, the customer can adjust the frequency of deliveries once they’ve started receiving the product.

Obviously, the first option is more attractive—the customer loves flexibility in their decisions (and they love discounts, too). Moreover, by artificially “forcing” someone to purchase a product multiple times, a brand gains not a loyal customer but an irritated one—especially if the product isn’t a good fit. In that case, the discount on the order doesn’t compensate for the negative emotions.

At the same time, with the first model the brand potentially loses out. Seeing that the subscription can be easily canceled, the customer—in the vast majority of cases—will of course take advantage of it, possibly without ever planning to buy again.

I have a better solution for subscription terms, which I haven’t seen this variant anywhere. Yet, it is definitely the most advantageous for both the customer and the online shop.

The solution will work for: