 "How To Customise Your Subscriptions on Shopify")
Regardless of the industry that you work in and the products that you sell, it’s likely that your business could benefit from a subscription service. When many people think about subscriptions, they think about streaming services like Netflix or long-term delivery guarantees with Amazon Prime. But subscription services for goods are just as popular, and more and more businesses are jumping on board. A lot of this is done through Shopify, and Shopify subscriptions offer several benefits for both businesses and customers. In this post, we have looked at how to customise your subscriptions on Shopify and how other businesses have already taken advantage of what Shopify offers.
The benefits of offering Shopify subscriptions.
Here are some of the key benefits that come with offering Shopify subscriptions as a business:
1. Improved customer experience.
Subscriptions provide a seamless and hassle-free experience for customers, as they no longer have to remember to reorder products on their own. This can lead to a better overall customer experience and increased customer satisfaction. There is no need to worry about forgetting to order a much-loved product or running out of their favourite snack, as a subscription keeps a customer topped up, which helps them to look favourably at the company.
2. Increased customer loyalty.
Subscriptions can help to increase customer loyalty by providing a convenient and consistent experience for customers. Customers appreciate the convenience of having products automatically delivered regularly and are more likely to remain loyal to businesses that offer this service. Instead of shopping around or going to a different business every month, a subscription ensures that they will continue to shop with you.
3. A subscription is predictable revenue.
With subscriptions, you can generate predictable and recurring revenue as customers sign up to receive products or services on a regular basis. This helps to stabilise cash flow and can be particularly beneficial for businesses with a high customer retention rate. Instead of not knowing which sales are coming, subscriptions give you a rough idea of who will be receiving what each month.
4. Better inventory management.
By offering subscriptions, you can better manage your inventory and production planning, as you have a clearer idea of the demand for each product over time. This can help reduce waste and improve efficiency, reducing the chance of you running out of a product, leaving customers disappointed and taking their business elsewhere. With subscriptions, you know who is expecting what and when.
5. Shopify subscriptions are flexible.
Shopify subscriptions allow businesses to customise subscription options to meet the specific needs of their customers, such as offering different delivery frequencies, discounts, or the ability to skip or pause shipments. Not only does this ensure that customers get exactly what they want from your business, but it also makes them feel as though their wants and needs are being considered. Instead of everyone having to subscribe to the same ‘one size fits all’ subscription, flexible options are available with Shopify.
Though there are a range of platforms that offer subscription services, there is no denying that Shopify does so in a way that benefits businesses. With Shopify, you can customise your subscription options to cater to your customer’s exact needs whilst keeping the sign-up process simple and straightforward.
Custom Shopify subscriptions in action.
One of the best ways to see the benefits of customised subscriptions on Shopify is to look at how they already benefit other brands.
Check out some of our recent projects below, all of which use customised Shopify subscriptions in a way that is completely tailored to the business, its customers and its offerings.
Richard Ayles, Head of Development at blubolt, explains that reCharge is a vital part of the customised subscription products that our team has worked on. He explained: “We have built custom interfaces to help guide the user to reach the correct items, but under the hood, the ongoing subscription offering is coming from Recharge.” Though each client project requires something slightly different, they all utilise reCharge and Shopify.
1. Rave Coffee: personalised coffee subscriptions.
At Rave Coffee, the coffee subscription is considered an apprenticeship, a way for customers to learn more about coffee with every cup. This means a standard subscription wouldn’t cut it, and we had to look into custom subscriptions. At blubolt, we partnered with reCharge to deliver a subscription service that was fun, educational, and approachable for everyone who wanted to learn more about what Rave Coffee has to offer. Instead of everyone getting the same subscription, customers select their coffee style before moving on to grind, duration, delivery date and bags per delivery. The amount of cups the customer drinks per day is taken into account, and the subscription service calculates how many bags are needed. It’s a quick process that ends with the customer checking everything on a summary page, before going ahead with the purchase. This is an example of the custom ‘choose a subscription’ page working with the standard product detail page (PDP), with custom numbering logic also being used via the ReCharge API. This ensures that the user gets the right detailed information alongside their subscription. Read more about our Rave Coffee project.
2. Misfits: sub & save subscriptions.
Misfits’ ‘Sub and Save’ subscription offering allows customers to order a regular delivery of their favourite product, with the benefit of saving money for doing so. Customers have the option to have deliveries scheduled as regularly as they would like - with options ranging from every two weeks to every six weeks - and the choice of two products. If they want to increase the frequency of deliveries, they can easily edit their subscription. The custom subscription bundle choice that is being used, alongside complex logic, ensures that each user always has two items in their subscription. At blubolt, we used further custom logic within the account area to create a reCharge account area theme. This makes it possible to ensure that a user retains two items in their ongoing subscription, even if they make changes to their subscription along the way. Read more about our Misfits project.
3. Muc-Off: Ride Box subscriptions.
Muc-Off is well known for making innovative bike and motorbike cleaning products, as well as products for lubrication and protection. They needed a way for customers to get regular deliveries of their favourite products, which is where blubolt comes in. Using a custom subscription bundle similar to the one used for Misfits, we were able to fully customise the way that customers build their Ride Box subscriptions. Customers are able to tell Muc-Off about their riding habits and product requirements and create a personalised box of bike essentials to be delivered every three months. Using the information provided by the customer, there is a guarantee that each Ride Box will tick every box. Customers can build a bespoke box of products and get them delivered by subscription, removing the hassle of reordering regularly used products. Read more about our Muc-Off project.
4. Never Fully Dressed: annual delivery subscription.
Using ReCharge for a subscription service that’s similar to Amazon Prime, Never Fully Dressed is able to offer customers a unique way of shopping. Customers can pay £15 for an annual subscription, which gives them free next-day delivery for 12 months. This is a different kind of subscription service for blubolt, as it encourages customers to sign up for regular delivery discounts rather than delivery of a specific product. Customers can sign up knowing that their subscription takes care of delivery fees for as long as they are subscribed. This saves customers money whilst boosting customer retention. Despite being a different type of subscription, we used many of the unique, customisable features that Shopify offers. Read more about our Never Fully Dressed project.
Custom Shopify subscriptions with blubolt.
As you can see from the examples above, at blubolt, we have a lot of experience delivering customised Shopify subscriptions to brands in a wide range of verticals. Our goal is always to help clients maximise the potential of their subscription services with great customisation. Not only does this benefit the business by ensuring the subscription service ticks every box, but it provides customers with a simple and straightforward way to get the most out of their favourite brands. Considering the range of benefits, it’s easy to see why subscription services are rising!
Fancy a chat about subscriptions for your eCommerce store?
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