How to Make a Success of DTC Subscriptions
Of all the different types of businesses that can benefit from offering a subscription service, companies that sell directly to consumers have the most to gain.
By using subscription services like Upscribe, companies can achieve significant advances in customer engagement and reliably increase both their subscriber base and revenues.
If that sounds like it could benefit your business, please read on!
What is DTC?
DTC stands for direct-to-consumer, which is one of the types of traditional sales channels that include retail, wholesale ecommerce, business-to-business (B2B), and finally, DTC.
Sales channels are the means and methods through which a business gets its products or services to customers and end-users.
DTC has become a much more popular sales channel in the age of e-commerce because businesses that would once have had to rely on retail or wholesaling sales models, often facilitated by third-party intermediaries, can now serve their customers directly through their own websites or online stores.
Types of DTC Subscriptions
1. Replenishment model
Used for products that are used or consumed and need replacing on a regular, consistent basis, such as shaving razors, vitamins, and other supplements.
2. Curation Model
In the curation model, companies choose a selection of products or content based on customer preferences and deliver them on a recurring basis.
Common examples of this you’re probably familiar with include book subscriptions, beauty & fashion subscription boxes, and wine clubs.
3. Membership subscription model
With membership subscriptions, companies offer exclusive benefits, discounts, or access to premium services as part of a membership subscription.
A good example of this is Amazon Prime, which provides free shipping and access to exclusive streaming content to Prime members.
Why DTC is Important
The ability to sell directly to consumers is incredibly important for a wide range of reasons, including:
- Enabling greater control over customer experience
- Enhancing customer relationships
- Improving brand-building and story-telling capabilities
- Providing valuable data and insights to improve customer acquisition and retention
- Making the business more agile
- Greater profits and margin control (by eliminating third parties)
Starting Points to Building DTC Subscription Business
Step 1: Identify Your Target Audience
Define your target market and understand their needs, preferences, and pain points.
To do this, you should conduct market research to gather insights into consumer behavior, demographics, and purchase frequency that you can leverage in your product offering.
Step 2: Develop a Unique Value Proposition
Next, you need to determine what sets your DTC subscription business apart from competitors to identify the unique value you bring to customers.
Key ways to distinguish your offering can be by highlighting product quality, customization options, convenience, cheaper subscription pricing, or exceptional customer service.
Step 3. Select the Right Pricing and Revenue Model
Once you have defined your UVP, you must determine your pricing strategy. This will be dependent on a number of factors, such as production costs, market demand, and competitive analysis.
Then, decide on your revenue model, whether it’s a monthly subscription fee, tiered pricing, or add-on options.
Most businesses look to offer additional incentives for longer subscription commitments to encourage customer loyalty.
Step 4: Focus on Customer Acquisition and Retention
This is key to securing recurring revenues and growing your business.
To develop a marketing strategy to attract and acquire customers, you need to leverage a broad range of digital marketing channels such as social media, email marketing, content marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO).
You must then implement retention strategies, such as personalized recommendations, exclusive offers, or loyalty programs, to keep customers engaged and reduce churn.
DTC Subscription Business Best Practices
1. Let customers promote your subscription with UGC
User-generated content (UGC) is becoming an increasingly vital aspect of marketing practices in an increasingly online world.
UGC is the new “word of mouth” or personal recommendations of the digital arena.
A recent report by Stackla reveals that 59% of consumers say user-generated content is the most authentic type of content, and the same study also revealed that UGC is almost six times more impactful in driving purchase decisions than standard “influencers.”
2. Give Customers Control
One of the best ways of improving customer loyalty and reducing churn is to give your customers control of their subscriptions.
By giving them autonomy over how they engage with your business and control over the terms of the relationship, they are more likely to both remain as customers and advocate for your business with family, friends, and their social media groups. That means more word of mouth subscriptions if you’re lucky!
Upscribe lets you meet subscriber demands by allowing them to manage their subscriptions directly through email and SMS, providing users with the ability to alter subscriptions on the fly with their mobile device. You can try Uscribe for free and see why so many businesses are choosing Upscribe for their subscription management requirements
3. Leverage internal analytics
Data and analytics of customer behavior are now one of the most important assets a company can possess.
By leveraging key insights into customer behavior, such as purchasing patterns, product preferences, preferred methods of communication, and other trends, businesses can reduce churn and achieve higher recurring revenues.
You should be monitoring key subscription metrics such as subscriber growth, churn rate, customer satisfaction, and lifetime value and then using this information to refine your marketing strategies, improve customer targeting, and optimize your subscription offerings.
4. Foster Community
One of the best ways to develop a loyal customer base and grow it is by building a customer community.
If you can create opportunities for customers to connect and engage with each other based on shared, positive experiences with your products, you will go a long way in building a strong base of loyal customers that will advocate for your business’s success on your behalf.
You should encourage community-building through social media groups, online forums, or events related to your product or industry.
Take the time to engage with customers personally and respond promptly to their inquiries or comments to foster a sense of belonging and loyalty.
Conclusion
DTC subscriptions can significantly enhance business performance by increasing sales, growing your subscriber base, and providing key data to enable you to optimize your subscription service offerings such as customer service and auxiliary marketing campaigns.
If you’re looking to introduce a DTC subscription service to your business, you should try Upscribe.
Upscribe gives your customers full control of their subscriptions with powerful features like simplified reorders and lets you capitalize on key data metrics to offer totally personalized engagements with each of your unique customers.
