Subscriptions: From Business Model to Implementation
Start with milk deliveries, magazines, and software to understand when subscriptions make sense, then follow a monthly plan through Stripe Billing and Payments.
A magazine subscription can be paid for a year in advance. Software billed monthly may come with a year-long commitment. Inside the application, a successful payment alone may not tell you how long a customer should retain access.
This series starts with those distinctions, then follows them into a billing system. Read the articles in order for the full discussion, or start with the Stripe article if you are working on a payment integration.
1. What Is a Subscription, and When Does It Make Sense?
How does a subscription differ from a one-time purchase or an installment plan? Why does regular milk delivery make sense for some households, while a sofa is a different proposition? This article uses everyday examples to explore the history, costs, and limits of subscriptions, including the customer’s cost per use and the merchant’s acquisition payback period.
Read: What Is a Subscription, and When Does It Make Sense?
2. How Stripe Models Subscriptions: Plans, Invoices, and Payments
What must a $20-a-month cloud storage service keep track of when someone upgrades, cancels renewal, or misses a payment? Follow those cases through Stripe’s product structure and the roles of Product, Price, Subscription, Invoice, and PaymentIntent.
Read: How Stripe Models Subscriptions: Plans, Invoices, and Payments
A later article will cover an Alipay subscription integration, with a closer look at what the platform provides and what the application still needs to implement.