Amazon Subscribe & Save Update
Amazon’s Subscribe & Save service allows shoppers to receive discounted shipments of their favorite products at regular intervals, and it has become one of the most reliable low-churn subscription models in e-commerce. However, for businesses—particularly those selling consumer packaged goods (CPG)—understanding their subscribers and tracking how long they stay subscribed has often been a challenge.
This is starting to change. In a recent beta update, Amazon introduced a significant upgrade to its Subscribe & Save metrics within the Brand Metrics dashboard. While currently only available to select sellers and brands, this update is a game changer for businesses relying on Subscribe & Save.
So, what’s new about this dashboard, and how can it help your business?
Key Insights from the Updated Subscribe & Save Dashboard
Amazon’s new Subscribe & Save dashboard provides crucial data about the longevity of subscriptions. While traditional metrics like the number of subscribers per product and inventory forecasts are still available, the real value lies in the upgraded insights into subscriber retention.
How many subscribers cancel after their first purchase?
The “Sales by Deliveries” pie chart breaks down subscriber behavior into three groups: those who have received 2+ deliveries, those who received 1 delivery but remain subscribed, and those who canceled after the first delivery. A large percentage of subscribers receiving 2+ deliveries is a good sign, but if most drop off after just one, you may need to rethink your strategy.
How long do subscribers stay active?
A retention graph now shows how many subscribers remain subscribed after 30 and 90 days. Monitoring these metrics can help you identify where drop-offs occur and refine your retention strategies accordingly.
Are subscribers more loyal?
The dashboard also lets you compare sales between subscribers and non-subscribers, providing insights into whether your subscription customers tend to buy more.
What the Dashboard Doesn’t Tell You
While the updated Subscribe & Save dashboard offers a wealth of new data, it does have its limitations. For example, it provides insights into subscriber behavior for up to two deliveries but doesn’t allow for long-term analysis of subscriber longevity or detailed comparisons across products. You can’t calculate the lifetime value of your average subscriber or determine which products retain subscribers the best.
Additionally, the dashboard won’t reveal how your subscribers found your product—whether it was a particular ad or search term that led them to subscribe.
How to Get More Granular Data with Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC)
If you want to dive deeper into the specifics of your subscribers’ journeys, Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) is the tool to use. With AMC, you can map out the entire shopper journey leading up to a subscription, analyze which ads and search terms led to conversions, and track how many deliveries your typical subscriber receives before canceling.
AMC gives you the ability to:
- Calculate subscriber lifetime value.
- Identify the ads or search terms that drive subscriptions.
- Map out the typical path a shopper takes before becoming a subscriber.
If your goal is not just to understand your current subscribers but also to grow your audience, AMC is the platform to unlock that potential. It enables you to create detailed queries, audiences, and dashboards to drive subscriber growth and improve retention.
If you need help building custom queries or dashboards in AMC to take full advantage of these capabilities, our team has experience helping brands level up their Subscribe & Save strategies. Please contact us via help@commercecanal.com.