Apple App Store Subscription Management Secrets
The subscription model was first introduced on the App Store in 2016 and since then remains one of the priority aspects of the service, for the improvement of which the company spares no resources. This scheme, unlike IAP, is aimed at long-term user retention and stable accruals, which is probably profitable for the developer and definitely beneficial for the market - now the share of subscriptions is about 18% of the total profit of the corporation . Subscriptions can rightfully be called the fastest growing business model on the App Store.
Apple withholds from 15% to 30% of the commission on subscription payments, and in return offers developers more and more tools to make subscription a convenient, safe, standardized process that does not exactly push the user away. The problem is not far-fetched: as Apple experts bluntly say, the effectiveness of the subscription model often suffers due to excessive complexity or time-consuming design. At the last WWDC conference, the company devoted a whole report to this topic, explaining in detail how to convey the value of its offer to users, provide them with a positive experience and increase conversion. The main provisions with examples and illustrations you will find under the cut.
So, you decided to transfer your application to auto-renewable subscriptions, which Apple promotes. To get the desired result, make sure that the subscription:
This characteristic consists of several conditions. First, the proposal should be simply conspicuous and affordable. It’s not worth counting on the fact that users will take the initiative and themselves will seek out the opportunity to pay. To convey information to them and encourage them to act is the developer's concern.
Apple offers two patterns for displaying the calling button:
Embed the subscribe button in the application interface. In this case, it will remain in front of the user throughout the entire interaction, constantly reminding about the possibility of receiving additional content or functionality.
Very well, this approach is implemented in the New York Times app. The button is built in with taste, in accordance with the style of the rest of the UI, but it is very noticeable - it is located directly above the article that the user is currently reading. This harmony of design is of great importance: it allows you to leave the proposal in sight, without leaving a feeling of obsession and without causing irritation.
Another way to present a purchase opportunity is to show the corresponding window at a strategic moment when the user has already shown interest in some part of the content or function that is offered as part of the subscription. The calculation here is clear: the user has already outlined a specific travel route and may not want to deviate from it.
An example is the Her application. Let's pretend that you opened the application and flipped through profiles, but suddenly miss someone you really liked. Of course, you are trying to return to this profile, and it was at that moment that the Her application tastefully showed you a proposal window, because the tool for rewinding viewed profiles is an option available only to subscribers.
Regardless of which method you choose, an alternative way of registration should be provided in all applications with subscriptions: you should allocate space for the subscription button in the Settings or Accounts window. This is the most obvious, intuitive place where most people will start looking for a subscription.
The team also cites one popular antipattern - pop-ups that appear at an arbitrary moment and are not tied to the general context of the user experience. Such windows are associated with advertisements and notifications, which are usually “smacked” off the screen without reading - the same fate will befall your subscription.
A minimum of steps and a minimum of action is the credo of UX design as a whole, and here it is also quite applicable. Any additional effort - requesting redundant information, splitting the process into many steps, loading and time-consuming interactions - will be perceived by the user as a barrier. In order to understand where the line between “acceptable” and “too much” goes, you can refer to the following chart:
Here you can see the results of researching user behavior in three top streaming applications. The data shows the level of subscription conversion and the number of clicks needed to complete the registration: with three clicks, 61% of users subscribed, with four clicks - 48% of users, and when the number of clicks increased to nine clicks, the number of subscribers was only 7%. The correlation is obvious.
Accordingly, it makes sense to request from the user only the most necessary information for the subscription: the fewer clicks, the less obstacles, the less obstacles, the more subscribers. So first of all, focus on signing the user - and personalization and getting additional details can wait until the person signs up.
Honesty is the best policy (especially since no one has canceled returns). It is necessary to clearly and concisely state the conditions of the offer so that users can make a complete picture of it and make an informed decision. According to the editors of the App Store, a subscription window or screen must necessarily contain the following information:
Most users subscribe from their phone, so brevity and capacity are especially important when designing an interface and working on content. Ideally, all the basic information should be located on one screen so that the user can immediately capture their eyes. It turned out to be very successful with the developers of the At Bat application:
In order to successfully sell a subscription, the developer needs to maintain a balance: on the one hand, the application must be attractive from the very moment of launch, on the other hand, the user must clearly realize that in his experience something is missing that can be obtained for a fee. The easiest and most proven way to achieve this is to let him try out the application and content before he signs up. This scheme is now used by businesses from various fields: just remember to try on clothes or test drive cars. Marketing experts say that the experience of interaction is extremely effective in inducing the user to decide to make a purchase.
There are three ways to attract people through user experience:
Trial version:the user is given the opportunity to work with a full range of functions or content, but only for a limited time period. This method works best for brands with strong market positions that people have heard about and with simple subscriptions, the content of which is immediately understandable.
“Sampler” of content: here the restrictions do not concern the terms of use, but the volume of content. Users get access to some part of it "for trial" and the option to get more for an additional fee. Unlike the first method, this works for the vast majority of applications.
The New York Times app can open ten articles a month for free. An important point: the service allows people to select the content that they will receive for free. As a result, the fact that they read exactly the materials that interest them enhances engagement and helps to increase the value of the subscription in their eyes.
Premium features:Apple also cites the classic scheme among those involved through experience, when most of the functionality is available for free, but individual tools remain blocked. It is important that the user is regularly reminded of their existence - for this, you can also embed them in the interface of linked pages. For example, the Sleepcycle application uses the bluer effect to keep the Trends tools visible, but at the same time marked as inaccessible. Thus, potential subscribers can evaluate what content they will receive, if they subscribe, right during the interaction with the basic functions.
For all its hypothetical attractiveness, a subscription, of course, is fraught with expenses for the user, which cannot but dampen it. However, over the past year, the App Store has been actively introducing ways to present its product in a favorable light and to alleviate the pain of parting with money. First of all, these measures are aimed at helping to overcome the psychological barrier for those who installed the application recently or so far have worked only with free functionality.
A one-time discount for new users: the App Store has the ability to recognize new arrivals and subscribe to them for a set period at a reduced price. The ability to evaluate blocked content on favorable terms serves as an additional impetus to the purchase.
Two calculation models:developers can choose how the user will be charged. The Pay As You Go model assumes regular charges less than the standard size over time. For example: the first three months the user contributes $ 1.99 monthly instead of the standard $ 9.99. This will work effectively to attract an audience for which the price factor is critical and can be useful in highly competitive markets.
In the Pay Upfront model, on the contrary, a longer period is immediately paid, covering several billing periods, but it costs less than if the user made money in the normal mode. Suppose: for a payment of $ 9.99, he gets access to full functionality for six months, while a standard annual subscription would cost him $ 39.99. This method is recommended for applications that show value and increase engagement gradually - so the user will definitely have time to properly enjoy the benefits.
Localization: the price indicated for the initial localization is not automatically converted to other currencies - for each country, you can set the cost autonomously depending on the characteristics of the market, taxation and other considerations.
So, the main goal in the subscription model is to give people familiar with and related to the application and its content enough to support it financially, and all of the above (transparency, visibility, content probes) contributes to this. But the App Store team emphasizes: no matter what approach you choose, make sure that it works for your target audience - because no one knows it better than you. Think about the user experience you are currently providing them with, what type of content is available to them in your applications, and how adding subscriptions will affect your overall experience.
Apple withholds from 15% to 30% of the commission on subscription payments, and in return offers developers more and more tools to make subscription a convenient, safe, standardized process that does not exactly push the user away. The problem is not far-fetched: as Apple experts bluntly say, the effectiveness of the subscription model often suffers due to excessive complexity or time-consuming design. At the last WWDC conference, the company devoted a whole report to this topic, explaining in detail how to convey the value of its offer to users, provide them with a positive experience and increase conversion. The main provisions with examples and illustrations you will find under the cut.
So, you decided to transfer your application to auto-renewable subscriptions, which Apple promotes. To get the desired result, make sure that the subscription:
... was noticeable
This characteristic consists of several conditions. First, the proposal should be simply conspicuous and affordable. It’s not worth counting on the fact that users will take the initiative and themselves will seek out the opportunity to pay. To convey information to them and encourage them to act is the developer's concern.
Apple offers two patterns for displaying the calling button:
Embed the subscribe button in the application interface. In this case, it will remain in front of the user throughout the entire interaction, constantly reminding about the possibility of receiving additional content or functionality.
Very well, this approach is implemented in the New York Times app. The button is built in with taste, in accordance with the style of the rest of the UI, but it is very noticeable - it is located directly above the article that the user is currently reading. This harmony of design is of great importance: it allows you to leave the proposal in sight, without leaving a feeling of obsession and without causing irritation.
Another way to present a purchase opportunity is to show the corresponding window at a strategic moment when the user has already shown interest in some part of the content or function that is offered as part of the subscription. The calculation here is clear: the user has already outlined a specific travel route and may not want to deviate from it.
An example is the Her application. Let's pretend that you opened the application and flipped through profiles, but suddenly miss someone you really liked. Of course, you are trying to return to this profile, and it was at that moment that the Her application tastefully showed you a proposal window, because the tool for rewinding viewed profiles is an option available only to subscribers.
Regardless of which method you choose, an alternative way of registration should be provided in all applications with subscriptions: you should allocate space for the subscription button in the Settings or Accounts window. This is the most obvious, intuitive place where most people will start looking for a subscription.
The team also cites one popular antipattern - pop-ups that appear at an arbitrary moment and are not tied to the general context of the user experience. Such windows are associated with advertisements and notifications, which are usually “smacked” off the screen without reading - the same fate will befall your subscription.
... did not require extra effort
A minimum of steps and a minimum of action is the credo of UX design as a whole, and here it is also quite applicable. Any additional effort - requesting redundant information, splitting the process into many steps, loading and time-consuming interactions - will be perceived by the user as a barrier. In order to understand where the line between “acceptable” and “too much” goes, you can refer to the following chart:
Here you can see the results of researching user behavior in three top streaming applications. The data shows the level of subscription conversion and the number of clicks needed to complete the registration: with three clicks, 61% of users subscribed, with four clicks - 48% of users, and when the number of clicks increased to nine clicks, the number of subscribers was only 7%. The correlation is obvious.
Accordingly, it makes sense to request from the user only the most necessary information for the subscription: the fewer clicks, the less obstacles, the less obstacles, the more subscribers. So first of all, focus on signing the user - and personalization and getting additional details can wait until the person signs up.
... was transparent
Honesty is the best policy (especially since no one has canceled returns). It is necessary to clearly and concisely state the conditions of the offer so that users can make a complete picture of it and make an informed decision. According to the editors of the App Store, a subscription window or screen must necessarily contain the following information:
- A brief, clear description of the value of the subscription;
- Strong call to action;
- Login button for already subscribed users;
- Subscription restoration for those who have changed the device;
- Subscription button, which displays the cost and expiration date;
- Several subscription options - both to play it safe (you will never guess what exactly this particular user needs) and to collect statistics and find out what suits the target audience more.
Most users subscribe from their phone, so brevity and capacity are especially important when designing an interface and working on content. Ideally, all the basic information should be located on one screen so that the user can immediately capture their eyes. It turned out to be very successful with the developers of the At Bat application:
... was attractive
In order to successfully sell a subscription, the developer needs to maintain a balance: on the one hand, the application must be attractive from the very moment of launch, on the other hand, the user must clearly realize that in his experience something is missing that can be obtained for a fee. The easiest and most proven way to achieve this is to let him try out the application and content before he signs up. This scheme is now used by businesses from various fields: just remember to try on clothes or test drive cars. Marketing experts say that the experience of interaction is extremely effective in inducing the user to decide to make a purchase.
There are three ways to attract people through user experience:
Trial version:the user is given the opportunity to work with a full range of functions or content, but only for a limited time period. This method works best for brands with strong market positions that people have heard about and with simple subscriptions, the content of which is immediately understandable.
“Sampler” of content: here the restrictions do not concern the terms of use, but the volume of content. Users get access to some part of it "for trial" and the option to get more for an additional fee. Unlike the first method, this works for the vast majority of applications.
The New York Times app can open ten articles a month for free. An important point: the service allows people to select the content that they will receive for free. As a result, the fact that they read exactly the materials that interest them enhances engagement and helps to increase the value of the subscription in their eyes.
Premium features:Apple also cites the classic scheme among those involved through experience, when most of the functionality is available for free, but individual tools remain blocked. It is important that the user is regularly reminded of their existence - for this, you can also embed them in the interface of linked pages. For example, the Sleepcycle application uses the bluer effect to keep the Trends tools visible, but at the same time marked as inaccessible. Thus, potential subscribers can evaluate what content they will receive, if they subscribe, right during the interaction with the basic functions.
... was flexible
For all its hypothetical attractiveness, a subscription, of course, is fraught with expenses for the user, which cannot but dampen it. However, over the past year, the App Store has been actively introducing ways to present its product in a favorable light and to alleviate the pain of parting with money. First of all, these measures are aimed at helping to overcome the psychological barrier for those who installed the application recently or so far have worked only with free functionality.
A one-time discount for new users: the App Store has the ability to recognize new arrivals and subscribe to them for a set period at a reduced price. The ability to evaluate blocked content on favorable terms serves as an additional impetus to the purchase.
Two calculation models:developers can choose how the user will be charged. The Pay As You Go model assumes regular charges less than the standard size over time. For example: the first three months the user contributes $ 1.99 monthly instead of the standard $ 9.99. This will work effectively to attract an audience for which the price factor is critical and can be useful in highly competitive markets.
In the Pay Upfront model, on the contrary, a longer period is immediately paid, covering several billing periods, but it costs less than if the user made money in the normal mode. Suppose: for a payment of $ 9.99, he gets access to full functionality for six months, while a standard annual subscription would cost him $ 39.99. This method is recommended for applications that show value and increase engagement gradually - so the user will definitely have time to properly enjoy the benefits.
Localization: the price indicated for the initial localization is not automatically converted to other currencies - for each country, you can set the cost autonomously depending on the characteristics of the market, taxation and other considerations.
So, the main goal in the subscription model is to give people familiar with and related to the application and its content enough to support it financially, and all of the above (transparency, visibility, content probes) contributes to this. But the App Store team emphasizes: no matter what approach you choose, make sure that it works for your target audience - because no one knows it better than you. Think about the user experience you are currently providing them with, what type of content is available to them in your applications, and how adding subscriptions will affect your overall experience.