What makes us sign up to subscription boxes
Louise Grimmer and Gary Mortimer explore exactly what goes through a customer’s mind as they excitedly rip open a gift they’ve been waiting for in the mail in this crossposting from The Conversation.
Everyone can relate to that excitement of ripping open a present or the anticipation before discovering what a package in the post contains. In fact, the rush of good feeling is very similar to what gamblers experience and it’s this type of psychological effect that retailers are now banking on.
Subscription box retailing is a recurring delivery of various products, grouped according to a theme or product type, and ordered online through a subscription retailer.
While customers select the type of box, and there are literally hundreds of different genres and retailers to choose from. Prices for boxes vary depending on the type of box, with costs ranging from A$10 per month (like beauty retailer Birchbox) to over A$100 (like luxury retailer Monthly Express).
Retailers know that most customers want to see, touch and “experience” products before they buy them, so subscription boxes, often filled with smaller sample sizes of new products, give customers a chance to try before they buy.
