Subscription Overload The Struggle is Real

These days it seems like there’s a subscription available for just about everything.  From TV and music streaming to digital news and magazines, from groceries and meal services to beauty products, pet goods and exercise programs, the subscription offerings and options are endless.  Subscriptions have reinvented the way we access products and services and have added an invaluable amount of convenience to our lives.  Since the costs of most individual subscription services are relatively low, consumers tend to sign on without much thought and they often don’t even realize how much they are spending in aggregate.  In fact, most people are unaware of just how many subscriptions they actually have.  It can become overwhelming to try and manage them all and easy to forget what is being paid for and when the subscriptions will renew.

The subscription industry won’t be slowing down any time soon

Consumers spend billions of dollars each month on subscriptions, yet surprisingly most underestimate the amount of money they actually spend.  The most popular subscription categories are mobile phone, WiFi and TV/movie streaming services followed by music streaming, gaming, cloud storage, beauty boxes and book services.  Consumers also spend on home security, fitness, dating apps and more.  Because the demand for subscriptions is so high, companies who don’t offer them yet are likely to find ways to introduce them into their product mix.  

The pandemic has changed the way consumers spend money

While COVID-19 has caused many consumers to cut back on their spending, they’ve actually increased their spending on subscriptions.  The subscription industry has experienced explosive growth since people started social distancing.  A CompareCards survey revealed:

1 in 3 respondents purchased a new online subscription due to the pandemic

The top 5 subscription services were Netflix or Hulu, Amazon Prime, food/delivery services like Instacart, magazines and newspapers and virtual exercise programs

Consumers spent an average of $192.30 for these services, many of which have recurring monthly charges.

67% of respondents said they purchased subscriptions to entertain themselves, 41% said they bought them to entertain their children and 39% said they were motivated to buy new subscriptions to avoid leaving the house to buy needed items.

People are satisfied with their subscription services

According to a study conducted by westmonroepartners.com, which analyzed 2,500 Americans’ budgets among 21 subscription services, people are generally happy with their subscription services even though they aren’t quite sure how much they are spending on them.  Retention rates are high for certain services, such as music streaming, while there is less brand loyalty for services like mobile phone plans even though phones are used to listen to music platforms.

Recurring subscription expenses add up fast

It’s easy to lose track of what you’re spending on subscriptions when most monthly costs are low and easy to overlook.  But those small charges - especially the ones that cost $10 or less - really add up over a twelve-month period.  For consumers looking to cut costs, subscriptions are a great place to start.

Negotiate the non-negotiables

For the services consumers cannot live without, such as phone, internet, and cable, negotiation can be a really effective tool to reduce costs.  Those providers change their pricing plans constantly and there are always deals to be had.  Banks that offer bill negotiation as a service to their clients will be appreciated, as most people don’t enjoy negotiating or know how to do it effectively.  ApexEdge has expert negotiators who will perform this dreaded task on your behalf, so you can pass the service and the savings along to your clients.

Manage and cancel subscriptions

As for those endless subscriptions, ApexEdge is relentlessly building and perfecting subscription solutions to help people live better financial lives.  We can cancel unnecessary subscriptions for your clients, so they don’t have to ever deal with the hassle.  Delivering these solutions as a targeted added-value to your customers transforms your insights into actions, so you become a trusted advocate.  

Subscriptions are here to stay, as consumers continue to seek out the many conveniences they offer.  Being able to help assess and manage your customers’ subscription portfolios with Apex Edge’s simple tool, http://greenvillebusinessmag.com/ill help you continue to be an invaluable financial partner for years to come.

Source: westmonroepartners.com, greenvillebusinessmag.com