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Curriculum The Subscription Economy

The Subscription Economy

How subscriptions work: what the model is, its history, SaaS, lifetime value and acquisition cost, churn, pricing tiers and trials, dark patterns and subscription traps, subscriptions in India, physical subscriptions, data and lock-in, managing your own subscriptions, and a recap.

  1. What the Subscription Economy Is Instead of buying a product once, customers pay a regular fee for continued access, from streaming and software to meal kits and gyms. 📄 Read-aloud
  2. From Newspapers to Netflix Subscriptions are old, from magazines and milk delivery to Netflix's DVDs by mail, but digital technology made them universal. 📄 Read-aloud
  3. Software as a Service Software companies earn recurring fees by hosting applications online, changing how businesses buy technology. 📄 Read-aloud
  4. Lifetime Value and Customer Acquisition A subscription business earns from each customer over time, so it compares lifetime value with the cost of winning that customer. 📄 Read-aloud
  5. Churn: The Leaky Bucket Churn is the rate at which customers cancel, and even small monthly churn can shrink a subscription business quickly. 📄 Read-aloud
  6. Pricing Plans, Tiers and Free Trials Firms offer tiers with different features, free trials and annual discounts to segment customers and encourage commitment. 📄 Read-aloud
  7. The Subscription Economy: Checkpoint 1 Quick checkpoint - five questions on the subscription economy. 5 questions
  8. Dark Patterns and Subscription Traps Some firms make it easy to sign up but hard to cancel, and regulators have moved against such practices. 📄 Read-aloud
  9. Subscriptions in India: Streaming, Music and Prime India's subscription market grew with cheap data, low prices and bundles, with pricing designed for a price-sensitive population. 📄 Read-aloud
  10. Physical Subscriptions: Meal Kits, Razors and Boxes Businesses sell physical goods on repeat, from razor blades to snack boxes, relying on convenience and habit. 📄 Read-aloud
  11. Data, Personalisation and Lock-in Subscription firms learn about users and use it to personalise, but it can also lock customers into a service's ecosystem. 📄 Read-aloud
  12. Managing Your Own Subscriptions Consumers can save money by auditing subscriptions, sharing where permitted, and choosing annual plans only for services they truly use. 📄 Read-aloud
  13. Subscription Economy: Recap A recap of how subscriptions work for firms and customers. 📄 Read-aloud

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