I'm curious if there is a relationship between how strict one company's retention policy is (e.g., tactics like this), and the overall health of the business. Is it positive, negative, neutral? In either case, I do worry about the future of paid journalism.
Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
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Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#32This is the only reason I’m not a subscriber. I have no interest in starting an open ended subscription that I have to fight to cancel.
Shame too because I love the NYT, but I’m mostly able to scratch that itch with the economist, my local paper, and some smaller news outlets.
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#33When they ask why you are cancelling say "No reason". There is literally nothing they can say to prolong the whole experience. Don't volunteer any information. Don't tell them what is wrong with their website. Don't tell them anything. You will make the whole process go longer.
I always chose "other" for any question of this type. If there is a text box that must be filled out to describe "other", I always write "Other".
Hi, this is Antonio from the New York Times. May I inquire as to what your 'other' reason is?
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#34Netflix does something similar. It won't let you remove your credit card so you don't get billed automatically after the first month.
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#35There are several publications I would willingly support (eg The Atlantic, the New Yorker) but I don’t and this is the reason why: I absolutely refuse to subscribe to services that are going to be a hassle to cancel.
It’s the gym business model. I’m sure this shows incremental gains in revenue but I bet it’s at the cost of retarding growth.
I want to start and stop a subscription as I please. I want to do it without having to speak to a human being. I don’t want to be called by the provider to renew my subscription.
I will not reward or support scummy retention tactics.
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#36Imagine having a business model so fragile that your only line of defense is to obscure the cancellation process through these tactics. Do they really think that they can curve their churn this way? I mean best you’re doing is getting maybe another month or so of revenue from a customer who is just pushing the pain of cancelling because they are busy or lazy. And at the end instead of getting what could be a dormant…
This happened to me with audible. They didn't have the cancel subscription on the app. Had to hunt for it on the site.
Was asked if i was suuuuuuure i wanted to leave, 3 separate times before it canceled.
Definitely not thinking of doing that again, or like i do for some streaming services, pay for a couple months, stop, then pay for a few more.
Utterly rediculous.
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#37Last month I cancelled my subscription online in about three clicks. Not sure how they determine who to redirect to chat.
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#38Sadly I've seen worse for a subscription service. For example, Birchbox, a monthly makeup service will autorenew for you for a full year and won't allow cancellations at all. Also obviously you can sign up online easily but can't cancel there, you have to work through their customer service, like most of these sites that try to steal your money. I guess treating customers who already left you doesn't matter much to these companies and in some cases like Birchbox I'm surprised what they are doing isn't predatory and illegal.
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#39I had a similar experience with the Economist a few years ago. Signed up for a trial (something like $5 for 13 weeks?) and decided to cancel at the end of the trial.
It took me 10 minutes on the phone to cancel, and then I received 3 phone calls later that day from the Economist offering me special offers to re-subscribe. I have to admit that I may have answered rather rudely when the third caller asked how I was doing...
Re: Before buying a NYT subscription, here's what it'll take to cancel it
#40Imagine having a business model so fragile that your only line of defense is to obscure the cancellation process through these tactics. Do they really think that they can curve their churn this way? I mean best you’re doing is getting maybe another month or so of revenue from a customer who is just pushing the pain of cancelling because they are busy or lazy. And at the end instead of getting what could be a dormant…
This happened to me with audible. They didn't have the cancel subscription on the app. Had to hunt for it on the site. Was asked if i was suuuuuuure i wanted to leave, 3 separate times before it canceled. Definitely not thinking of doing that again, or like i do for some streaming services, pay for a couple months, stop, then pay for a few more. Utterly rediculous.
Signed up for some hosting online.
Cancelation apparently required a fax. Got a legal friend to help me write a scary letter.
Service was promptly canceled.