Episode 01: How COVID-19 Has Impacted the Subscription Space with Melanie Stout, Partner at Paul Larsen Consulting
In this episode of the Subscriptions: Scaled podcast, Melanie Stout, Partner at Paul Larsen Consulting, joins President of Rebar Technology, Nick Fredrick, to talk all things subscription - from payments, to best practices, to how COVID has affected the industry, and more.
Melanie, a 20-year subscription veteran, first fell into the subscription industry by chance. Since then, she has worked closely in payment processing, dabbled in other areas of subscription organizations, and finally landed in her current role as a Partner at Paul Larsen Consulting, a consulting group that has helped over 600 subscription businesses improve payment processing, increase retention, reduce involuntary churn, monitor KPIs, and more.
In this episode, Melanie discusses the importance of being in front of potential fraud by having solid fraud solutions in place, as well as having clear communication with customers in order to avoid unnecessary chargebacks.
Melanie also provides insight into the changes that the subscription industry has faced since the onset of COVID-19, including a greater focus on customer experience in the form of giving customers more control over their subscriptions (e.g. pausing or skipping a month, switching tiers, etc.), an increase in insufficient funds on debit cards due to hourly workers receiving an inconsistent flow of income, and more.
Melanie wraps the episode by suggesting that although price and ease of integration are important indicators that subscription businesses should consider when looking for an acquiring partner, the number of recurring subscription businesses that use that partner can also be an important indicator.
You can reach Melanie at mstout@paullarsenconsulting.com and LinkedIn, and don’t forget to check out Paul Larsen Consulting.
Don’t forget to rate, download, and subscribe to the show and share this episode with your network. See you in the next episode!
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