Every subscriber who leaves has to be replaced before a subscription business can grow, which makes retention the quieter half of reader revenue and often the more profitable one. The first renewal is the real test of whether acquisition brought in the right people.
Retention starts with habit. The publishers that keep subscribers longest engage them well beyond the welcome emails, and renew on the strength of the brand rather than another discount. A surprising share of churn isn't a decision at all. Expired cards and failed payments quietly lose revenue that can often be recovered.
Some brands are losing subscribers and hard-fought revenue that could be saved with some attention and effort.
Tracy Larner Our subs retention strategy: William Reed
When someone does want to leave, how it is handled matters. Understand why before offering anything, and make the exit easy, because subscribers treated well on the way out are far more likely to come back.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on subscriber retention and churn, from engagement and renewal pricing to payment failure and cancellation, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
Does your CEO know what your subscriber retention rate is? The chances are, probably not. But, according to Julian Thorne, author of our Guide to Retention Strategies for Publishers, this number should never be far from his or her (or your) mind.
A subscriber’s first 30 days are important to build habit but so is every day after, says Emma Robinson, head of customer experience.
You cannot improve a process until you have documented it, and you cannot achieve an objective until you have a process and system to support it, says Rosa Sherwood, head of CRM, engagement and loyalty.
It’s a well-known fact that engaged subscribers stay for longer, says Susanne Kinnaird, head of digital reader revenue.
It’s important not to lose subscribers and hard-fought revenue through involuntary churn, says Tracy Larner, subscriptions director.
It’s important to understand the reason for cancellation and to ensure the retention offer directly addresses the subscriber’s stated concern, says Mike Halstead, managing director of HH&S.
What determines pricing power is not only the category of need, says Andy Burden, founder of Substribe, it’s the stakes.
Making it super-hard to cancel a subscription does no one any favours.
Dynamic paywalls that adapt and respond to user behaviours are far more effective than a hard and fast, rigid barrier, says Vicky Macey, product and strategy specialist at Full Fat Things.
Infopro Digital replaced its free trial strategy with a metered life-time registration product and significantly boosted new business, says Simon Gates, global marketing director.
Within a publishing business, says Will Woodrow, head of marketing, it’s not just about encouraging testing, it’s about creating a test friendly environment.
Ideally, says Mike Halstead, managing director of HH&S, successful engagement marketing requires multiple points of contact across various channels.
Newsweek International offers library subscriptions in partnership with Exact Editions to advance its digital growth.
Alma News Media, a digital news media player in Finland, has announced a deeper partnership with global software company Atex.
Motor Sport Magazine has announced its new partnership with Pelcro, a subscription and e-commerce solution provider.
The Mail has announced the appointment of Celia Duncan as global woman’s editor.
The Capilano Review has preserved its fifty-year history with the launch of a complete digital archive.
The Dundee-based media brand, part of DC Thomson, unveils a brand campaign that aims to build a subscription community united by local stories.
Subscription management is a multifaceted operation, and it’s important to make sure every facet is covered, says AdvantageCS’s Dan Heffernan.
Having a buzzing magazine community is essential, says Warners’ Natalie Smith. Here are seven ways you can build one.
For regional publishers, it’s important, says Tindle Newspapers’ Scott Wood, to keep it strictly local and… to maintain a high street presence.
As tech has transformed publishing, it’s also seen dramatic changes in how marketing teams work. There are so many different strands to the marketer’s bow that the art of copywriting often feels undervalued, says David Littlewood.
Publishing quality content that local people are prepared to pay for is at the heart of the Belfast Telegraph’s strategy and if 2024 is anything to go by, it appears to be working. Meg Carter meets editor-in-chief Eoin Brannigan.
