A subscription box is an innovative way to offer customers goods and services on a recurring basis. The concept has been around for centuries, typically in the form of magazine or newspaper subscriptions. However, with the growth of internet access and e-commerce technology, subscription boxes have become even more popular lately. Subscription boxes are unique in that they provide convenience by delivering products directly to customers’ doorsteps at regular intervals. This allows people to receive items without having to remember to order them each time they need something new. Additionally, these types of services often come with discounts and other exclusive offers which help make them very cost-effective for shoppers as well.
How to start a subscription box?
Starting a subscription box can be an exciting and rewarding way to make extra money. Subscription boxes are becoming increasingly popular, providing customers with the convenience of receiving a surprise package on their doorstep every month. If you’ve been considering starting your own subscription box business, then read on for some valuable tips about how to get started.
1 – Select a Niche Market
The first and most important step in this list is inherently simple, but can often be more difficult than people think. You may already have a loose idea of what your box will contain, but how carefully have you analyzed your niche?
2 – Conduct Competitor Research
We’re talking about finding a niche that isn’t overly saturated, where you’ll be able to fill a void or improve on the products of your competitors. The only way you’ll be able to determine if your box meets these requirements is by doing some serious competitor analysis.
3 – Conduct Product Supplier Research
When people think about how to start a subscription box, they tend to get excited about the types of products they’ll be shipping in their boxes. However, it’s not always as easy as contacting a supplier and shipping their product.
When Identifying the supplier for the products you’ll be shipping, you’ll want to put in the extra work ahead of time to vet their reliability and determine whether or not their costs per product fit your budget.
4 – Conduct Packaging Size and Supplier Research
When people think about how to start a subscription box business, the box itself is often an oversight. Everyone is focused on the products they’ll be shipping.
Once you’ve conducted your supplier research, you’ll have a good idea of the types of products you’ll be shipping every month. You’ll want to have a set template for the number and sizes of each of the products you’ll ship so you can get an idea of the size of the packaging you’ll need to fit them all in.
5 – Conduct Fulfillment Service Research
If you’re brand new and starting off small, you’ll likely be able to handle all of the fulfillment yourself. However, if you’re considering how to start a subscription box that can compete with the big dogs, you’ll want to hire a fulfillment company to help you with the logistics of delivering your boxes each month.
6 – Create a Realistic Budget
In order to fully understand things like return on marketing investment and overall profitability you’ll need to create a clear and well-defined budget.
- How much can you expect your customers to pay for the products you’ll be sending them?
- How much can you expect to pay for the products you ship each month?
- What about the cost of packaging and fulfillment?
- What is the average LTV (lifetime value) of customers in your niche?
- How much can you afford to spend on marketing to acquire each customer?
Think about all of the costs involved in production, fulfillment, customer acquisition, and customer retention to get a clear picture of what you’ll need to spend/charge to be profitable and successful in the long term.
7 – Establish Your Branding
Effective branding is a big part of how to start a subscription box that people notice, share with their friends, and remember long after they’re exposed to it.
8 – Create / Launch Your Website
Answering the question of how to start a subscription box business has been all about preparation and research up to this point.
Your website will become the foundation of your subscription box business and act as the public face of your brand. Your marketing, customer service, and every customer interaction will revolve around your site.
9 – Market Your Subscription Box
Once you’ve figured out how to start a subscription box company, you’ll need to understand how to effectively market your new business. The topic of marketing your subscription box is beyond the scope of this post.
10 – Work to Retain Your Customers
Once you’ve done the heavy lifting and signed up a customer the hard work is over, right?
Not even close!
While this article is all about how to start a subscription box, the topic of customer retention is worthy of its own post.
Too many recurring revenue (subscription) brands are focused on customer acquisition and don’t put enough resources into keeping their existing customers happy. The truth is that signing new customers is far more expensive than keeping existing customers, but many brands still fail to recognize the potential represented by their current subscribers.
If you don’t how to start your subscription box and you are looking for someone who can help you when it comes to customizing your own subscription boxes PackFancy is the right choice for you.
Conclusion
As you have seen, starting a successful subscription box is not difficult and can be quite lucrative. By following the tips discussed in this article, you will be well on your way to creating an exciting and profitable business model. Having a clear focus on the target market, offering quality services or products, and excellent customer service are just three of the most important considerations when launching a subscription box service.
By taking advantage of powerful digital marketing strategies such as social media campaigns, influencer marketing, and email campaigns, along with utilizing analytics tools to monitor customer engagement and satisfaction ratings, it is possible to keep customers engaged for years to come. With careful planning and dedication to providing customers with an unforgettable experience every month, there is no reason why your subscription box cannot become a successful venture.
Interesting Related Article: “How to Develop Your Subscription Box Brand Online“