The Subscription-Based Business Model Is On The Rise

Subscription-based businesses are emphatically on the rise. The idea is simple, rather than make customers buy the whole house at once, they can get the sofa, dining table, chairs, coffee tables whenever they want. Pretty soon they will have all the items of the house but they are allowed to take their time. Little by little they gain more and more and each time they do purchase or receive something, they get closer to their goal. Recurring subscriptions have raised the monthly revenue of businesses with this model. This has also skyrocketed customer loyalty and new customer retention. The entire concept is about consumer freedom. Whenever, wherever and however they want to use your business, they have the total freedom to choose. Could this be a fit for your business?

What types are relevant?
The current subscription-based environment in business is actually giving old business formats a new lease of life. We’re seeing this mainly in media, as many online magazines and newspapers have created a subscription-based business model. In this day and age of rapid technology expansion, this is very prudent. Now their best journalism that is regarding as ‘premium content’ is locked behind a paywall, which can only be accessed when you sign up for a subscription. And of course we see Amazon Prime and Netflix have all but put the final nail in the coffin of traditional television shows. Website companies like SquareSpace are also using a subscription-based business model so you can have a website for as long as you want without being hooked into a long-term contract. This is the best part, because we’re now finding out that consumers are more likely to feel comfortable when they’re not being tied down and have more freedom to jump in and out of your business’s services.

What would you need?
Every business is trying to find a way to incorporate this new business model into their own. If you’re also considering doing something similar, you need to utilize a few things first. Take a look at a recurring bill technology from a merchant provider which allows you to bill customers at regular intervals. This could be used in the real-world also such as when you sell materials to other businesses. If you’re a steel works company and you’re selling steel to car manufacturers who need fluid contracts to manage their market sales, then you need to employ an automated recurring bill system. The other things you will need are account management systems to cope with the needs and profiles of all your customers. They might want to have unique settings on their accounts such as wanting more of a particular area of your content than others. Online newspaper businesses give their customers the option to see more of a category than others. Preferences and more choice for the customer, can only be delivered with account management software.

It's the way of the future, subscription-based business models are here to stay. Survey the landscape and see how you could incorporate this into your business for your customers to be given more choice and freedom.