The psychology of consumption has made all businesses realize the top priority is the consumption of their products or services. Subscription models help prolong the consumer lifecycle, ensuring steady streams of income. This is true of almost every membership or subscription service, from Cox wifi plans to Ring magazine. Such businesses thrive on the subscribers who sign up for a free trial on their app and become regular long-term customers.
However, less reputable businesses often bill subscribers for not unsubscribing on time. Some even rely on this happening. If you want to stay on top of the expenses you incur on subscriptions, you must adopt one of the following methods. Some of them are as easy as the simple cancellation of membership.
Decide if You’re Still Using the App
It’s a common practice nowadays to offer a free trial period, may it be a printed magazine or software application. Taking the free trial package seems attractive since it comes with a ‘No strings attached’ tagline. However, your credit card number is asked in the very next line.
The basic plan of the product is made attractive by attaching a free trial period with it. The plan itself is also priced at a reasonable rate. So, you don’t feel the pinch when it’s billed to your account, in case you forget to unsubscribe.????
Therefore, don’t sign-up for attractive free packages unless you really need them. If you do, make a note of its expiry date and, if possible, a link to the cancellation page. This will help you to unsubscribe before it’s billed to you.
Identify if You Even Need the App
Another scenario is that you took the subscription because you needed it sometimes back. You are unhappy with the increased renewal rate. At this point, you must decide whether or not you are using the application enough to pay a higher price. If you feel that it has lost its value to you, you should discontinue it.
At other times, the basic package is still useful to you but you don’t need the add-ons or the upgraded extras. There isn’t much that you can do except either pay for the needless extra bits or unsubscribe and then re-subscribe under a different email address for a free trial. This will give you some time to finish your project or to find a cheaper alternative to the product.
Don’t Pay for the Same Product Twice
Bundle offers are on the rise in the market. The psyche of ‘buy one get one free,’ is playing at its best, and quite successfully too.
Learn all you can about the bundle you are subscribing to. For example, if they are pairing multiple products/services together, like TV or phone plans with an internet connection. Check if the cable has a gaming offer that you can avail yourself of without a new subscription.
In the case of software applications, it’s better to check if they offer a similar or alternate to what you have subscribed to earlier. An example is that you already have a Zoom package for your meetings and now you subscribe to Google workspace.? Now, google workspace comes with Google Meet, an alternative to Zoom, so it’s safe for you to unsubscribe from Zoom.
Similarly, Microsoft 365 comes with One Note, which is a good alternative to Evernote. So, unsubscribe from Evernote, instead of paying twice for similar products. If you are smart, you can outsmart any smart marketer.
Go Fishing for Alternatives
Complacency is one virtue we need to be aware of. It seeps in slowly and before you know it, you are stuck with an application you subscribed to five years ago. It’s now the dinosaur of the application but you are still paying a heavy price for it.
Don’t get ripped off because of your comfort zone! Put on your thinking cap and go fishing for newer, better, cheaper alternatives. It’s a good exercise to check different software in the market. One way to begin is, just to type ‘alternative’ with your present product’s name to get a list.
Before you go clicking on the list, it’s important to determine the features of the present application you use most. Make two lists, one of the frequently used features and the other of desired features from your present software.? Now go click the links of the list of alternative applications, and compare their features with your required and desired list.
Make a fresh list of the software that offers the most as per your requirements, along with their subscription fee. This exercise will help you make an informed decision about your present subscription. You can either drop it or renew it, whichever suits you better. At least you’d know that you’ve taken the best decision available.
Learn How to Take Your Data with You
In case you decide to try a new product, you must learn how to import your data from one application to the other. It becomes a lot easier if you keep backup data on a cloud site.
Don’t delete your data or cancel your subscription unless you have figured out a way to export data from the previous site. Simultaneously, learn how to import it onto the new application. This should be done within the free trial period or before the expiry of the old subscription.
