Headspace · B2C · meditation app
Email free users a small discount, then raise it every few days until they upgrade
Saw some good results, consultant says; no numbers
Workedemailpricing
What they did
Find the average time from download to upgrade (e.g. 7 days). For users who haven't upgraded by then, send an email with a small discount (e.g. 10%), then increase the discount in later emails (2 days, 5 days, a week later) if they still haven't upgraded. Headspace ran this ~2-3 years before the episode.
What happened
Headspace saw some good results.
- Stage
- Scale (scaling)
In their words
Sub Club by RevenueCat · How to Boost Retention with Subscription Lifecycle Messaging — Alice Muir, Phiture“And then if that user still hasn't upgraded within two days later, five days later, maybe a week later, then you can start to slowly increase the discount percentage, and that's what we would call a drip campaign.”
“That's something that Headspace did back in the early days of of me working with them.”
“That's what they did and they saw some good results from that.”
Related topics
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More from Headspace
All 22 Headspace tactics- Add a free trial: 7 days on monthly, 14 days on yearlyDouble-digit conversion lift; rolled out end of 2019
- Lock the whole content library behind a free trial, for new and old usersHigh double-digit lift in paid subscribers; trial users engaged more than free users
- Raise monthly from $9.99 to $12.99 and cut annual from $99 to $69.99More total revenue and higher conversion on both plans; more users chose annual
- Lock 90-99% of the free library, keeping 1-2 favorites free per categoryMuch higher free-to-paid conversion; far fewer complaints than feared
- Label the yearly plan 'best value' instead of showing the dollars savedThe simple 'best value' label beat showing the dollar savings
- Let new users pick several reasons they came, not just oneSignificant lift: fewer drop-offs at that question and more trial starts
More from this episode
- Right after someone subscribes, show a message linking straight to their first premium reportFixed a wave of instant cancellations, consultant says; no numbers
- Plan a message for each free-trial day, aimed at getting users to try premium
- Phiture: Test paywalls by building them as full-screen in-app messagesWorks, and banners converted surprisingly well; messages sometimes fail to load
- Build one paywall message that shows each user the price for their regionPretty good success, consultant says; results can't be split by region
- Keakr: Find which features buyers used first, then nudge similar users toward themAdvanced-editing users were more likely to subscribe; no numbers
- Survey users who start opening the app less often than normal to learn whyFound many drifting users were pregnant; advised content to keep them
- Headspace: Ask why people joined, then remind them of it laterQuite effective at reinforcing the habit, consultant says; no numbers
- VSCO: Remind people who cancel which features they'll lose, e.g. '7 days left of this filter'Called one of the coolest campaigns seen; no numbers
- When users screenshot a premium creation, offer the high-resolution download with premiumWorked nicely for both new and lapsed users, consultant says
- Show lapsing members photos they made in the past to celebrate their membership
- Headspace: Add new uses, like sleep and exercise, so users don't outgrow the appConsultant calls it smart; no numbers
- MyFitnessPal: After each day's log, show where the user will be in 5 weeks if every day is like todayGuest, a 3-year user, credits it for a brilliant retention strategy; no numbers
- MyFitnessPal: Show lapsed subscribers pop-ups that point to features they've never used
- Headspace: Email lapsed subscribers 40% off if they come back within 7 days