Stephen Hurrell's Analyst Perspectives

The subscription business model has seen much growth in all aspects of the market in recent years. Now considered the standard for the digital age, the model’s implementation travels parallel to rising technology, leading to the demand for newer functionality and tools. As more and more vendors create their own versions, and as the subscription model is increasingly adopted, technology solutions are also advancing to support a broader range of products and services, as well as industries.

One such company is putting their personal touch on the subscription business model. Vindicia is a SaaS subscription management and recurring billing platform that helps optimize customer retention and acquisition. The company was acquired by Amdocs in 2016 but still retains their name. Vindicia’s primary product is called MarketONE, which includes 3 areas: Subscribe, Bundle and Connect. Also included in MarketONE is subscription intelligence and Retain, which is a tool that aids in recovering failed payments. But what makes Vindicia so interesting is its integrated platform designed to support end to end a range of organizations, whether starting out in ecommerce and subscription management or wanting to expand their existing offerings.

The customer journey is centered around the subscription business model, and providing an exceptional experience is vital to acquiring and retaining customers. But with billing becoming a very complicated process, how do organizations remain efficient while at the same time ensuring a smooth experience for their customers? Historically, the traditional one-time charge billing cycle started at a “quote” and ended at a “payment”. Now, these processes can include anything from flexible billing cycles, automatic renewals, upgrading /downgrading subscriptions, usage-based pricing, flexible payment options and sometimes all of these at once. Each customer might be at a different point in their billing cycle.

The process to negotiate individual contracts and set up SLAs and revenue allocations can be quite time consuming. This is where Vindicia comes in. Often only thought of as a customer service process, CX has now found its way to subscription management. Vindicia’s integrated platform is designed with smooth customer experience in mind and they do that in three ways.

The first is Subscribe. With platform support for global implementation, Vindicia allows an organization to scale its subscriptions faster with flexibility and to maintain the expected customer support.

Second is the growing topic of bundling. With so many compatible subscriptions, bundling is a great way to showcase certain services while also increasing customer satisfaction. Vindicia Bundle allows you to create and join bundles within their partner database that can lead to increased revenue and customer acquisition and retainment.

Third is Connect, which is the primary driver in consumer subscriptions. Here Vindicia delivers a seamless customer journey across services and bundles. This includes the ability to have full control of these services on a single platform and even choosing from a library of best-practice-based processes for fast and easy implementation.

The topic of bundling is the focus point of the Vindicia experience. The term itself is not new, but the way it can be positioned is what Vindicia has its eyes on. Consumers are exposed to bundles every day. From having internet access and cable/phone in the same package, to Hulu and Disney Plus partnering with ESPN to provide a sort of “triple play” bundle, the potential combinations are endless. Entertainment bundles make sense, but what about bundles an organization might not think of? As subscription management becomes commoditized, customers are looking for more value for their money. Bundles are a way for organizations to add that value. We assert by 2025, one in 10 organizations will be engaged with a partner ecosystem to deliver bundled products and services to their customers, expanding their offerings and addressable markets.

As bundling becomes more useful and popular, buyers need the ability to search for compatible products and services that will drive more revenue and growth. Focusing on subscription intelligence will be crucial to provide buyers with an AI-based marketplace of adjacent products and services that organizations can use to create bundles of services. But which services an organization chooses is vital to its success.

The bundle economy doesn’t work if customers don’t sign up for long term subscriptions. The only way to achieve sustained consumer interest is to create “stickiness” in these bundles. Vindicia offers multiple real time Subscription Intelligence tools, which sit in the MarketONE platform and can help organizations turn their data into actionable insights. The process used to take days or weeks, but can now happen in hours. This high-powered processing can be crucial in reducing customer churn, proactively addressing problems and optimizing pricing.

Organizations looking to simplify their subscription billing and bundling systems should keep Vindicia in their sights. Longevity is key to bundling, and providing a reason for customers to stay is vital to the success of these bundles. Vindicia, with its integrated platform, can help an organization offer a smooth and efficient customer experience.

For more looks into Subscription Management and Billing, see these Analyst Perspectives:

• Subscription Automation Enables a Better Subscriber Experience
• Subscription Pricing Changing for Sustained Customer Growth
• Subscription and Usage Management Technology Needs for the Modern Economy

Regards,

Stephen Hurrell