In a world where transactions are increasingly taking place online, having an optimized payment portal is more important than ever before. Thankfully, many services have emerged to make e-commerce possible without doing extensive custom coding or incurring compliance risks. These services can help you to set up a world-class payment portal with minimal overhead. In fact, many subscription management tools can enable your business to get started with a fully optimized online payment experience in less than an hour.
These services are designed for businesses of all sizes, so you can easily receive payment for small jobs while also having the power to scale your business globally. Read on to learn how subscription management software can improve how your business processes and accounts for digital payments.
What Is Subscription Management Software?
Subscription management software provides businesses with the ability to take payments online, set up automatic recurring payments, and analyze results. Most subscriptions are used for e-commerce services, but these subscriptions can also be used for physical products, phone-based selling, and in-person sales. For instance, gyms can use subscription management software to get customers signed up for monthly payments both through online campaigns and at their brick-and-mortar customer service desks.
The ability to manage all subscriptions with one digital service means that businesses can stay more organized and track campaign results more effectively. Subscription management software also helps to grow revenue by making it easy for businesses to grow customer lifetime value through the use of upsells and cross-sells. Customers can easily upgrade or downgrade their subscription level through an online portal. So the cost of managing accounts can be brought down while barriers to revenue can be decreased.
Many of the best subscription management tools also help with compliance and accounting. In the past, complying with the wide range of e-commerce laws around the world made digital payments accessible only to the largest organizations. With subscription management software, manage compliance automatically with little-to-no configuration. Also, manage accounting seamlessly so that dashboards are full with accurate live reporting. And synchronize this data with CRM systems, analytics tools, and other software services.
Simplify and Improve Subscription Billing
In most situations, more long-term revenue is obtainable from customers by asking them to pay over time. Until recently, setting up subscription services was difficult, so companies often had to rely on paper invoices and paper checks. Today, subscription management software has made it easy for businesses to automatically charge customers immediately, when a payment cycle begins. Also, taking advantage of a wide range of new digital tools to boost revenue over time.
Subscription management software can completely eliminate the necessity of sending out paper invoices. Additionally, it can help you remain in compliance with the maze of invoicing laws. When starting a subscription, businesses can easily configure prices, billing frequency, upsells, and other factors. Customers can easily pay their bills online using their cards, and card data is secure by third-party providers data centers.
Process Payments Securely and Legally
Most subscription management suites can securely manage payment processing. Therefore, you do not have to worry about configuring SSL certificates. As well as, getting your site PCI compliant, or dealing with data retention laws. Instead, the provider manages all of the technical aspects associated with receiving payments on your behalf. This allows you to focus on what you do best.
When you use subscription management software, you can easily collect payments both online and offline. Receive these payments in any currency so that customers worldwide can pay in a way best for them. By simplifying payment processing, you can significantly reduce the barriers to starting a new business that makes full use of modern payment solutions.
Additionally, subscription management software enables failed payments can be managed in an effective manner. Declined payments can automatically be tried again after a couple of days. Most subscription management tools also have the ability to configure payment reminders. This encourages customers to take necessary actions when their cards are about to expire or when a payment is declined. By managing failed payments effectively, overall revenue can be significantly increased.
Configure New Subscriptions Easily
When customers subscribe digitally, it is crucial to have a feature-rich portal where subscriptions can be easily managed. Most software tools give both providers and customers a portal. This enables them to view an easy overview of current subscriptions, previous payments, and account information. Many software tools give providers the ability to make notes about customer accounts and even the ability to email customers with only a few clicks.
Another major advantage of subscription management software is the ability to configure subscriptions that can be used by a large audience of potential customers attracted through SEO, paid ads, email, and other channels. Service plan tiers can be easily configured, and payment portals can be designed to encourage customers purchase additional products. Most software tools also can add coupons and discounts to facilitate the use of promotions and other marketing campaigns.
Get Started Faster With High-Quality Templates
Designing high-quality payment portals can cost thousands of dollars when pages have to be manually coded. Online businesses have traditionally relied on plugins and website builders. But these tools are often difficult to use and take a substantial amount of time to configure.
Subscription management software, on the other hand, comes with fully optimized templates that can be used without any configuration. These templates come with all the features customers need to adjust their subscriptions and manage their accounts. The templates included with most modern subscription management suites are fully optimized for conversions and even conform to the HTML and CSS of your website.
Additionally, subscription management software can provide invoice templates that enable customers to easily view invoices in the format required in their jurisdiction for tax purposes or other forms of compliance. Therefore, modern paperless billing can be fully adopted, and customers who need conventional paper invoices can simply print out these documents from their account portal.
Analytics and Reporting
Live analytics is another major advantage of using subscription management software. Conventional payment solutions usually provide a live account overview, but data usually has to be exported to view it in charts, tables, and other forms. Subscription management suites, on the other hand, are natively designed to help businesses manage their revenue. Consequently, sophisticated analytics and reporting can be easily used to improve business processes and manage live campaigns.
Today, the best subscription management tools let you easily keep an eye on key metrics, such as churn rate, monthly revenue, and customer lifetime value. Some tools even detect missed opportunities and highlight high-risk accounts that require immediate action. The bottom line is that analytics and reporting can help businesses to closely keep up with new developments in a way that enables faster adaptation and responses.
Choosing the Best Subscription Management Suite
There are dozens of subscription management tools available. Businesses should try several services before committing to the long-term use of a particular service to avoid missing opportunities.
Zoho Subscriptions is one of the best subscription management software suites on the market. It stands out for featuring dozens of integrations with major third-party payment solutions and working hand-in-hand with other Zoho apps, including Zoho Books, Zoho CRM, and Zoho Analytics. Zoho Subscriptions is also priced fairly with service tiers that can fit the budget of businesses of all sizes.
