Try Before You Subscribe

Try Before You Subscribe offers allow you to use Bold’s convertible subscription feature to convert a sample product into a full-sized subscription product after the initial order. Try Before You Subscribe offers encourage your customers to become loyal subscribers by removing almost all friction from the initial subscription commitment.

Note: Convertible subscriptions require an Online Store 2.0 theme. To install Bold Subscriptions on a 2.0 theme, please visit our Installation Guide for Bold Subscriptions.

Setup

To create a Try Before You Buy subscription, please follow the steps below.

Step 1: Create your sample product and full sized product in Shopify

Set up both the sample product and the full-sized product in your Shopify admin. Both should be unique and separate products or variants. The prices can be any amount as you can add discounts for subscribers only when you create your subscription group.

Step 2: Create your convertible subscription group

1. In Bold Subscriptions, navigate to Subscription groups.
2. Click Create subscription group.
3. Enter a Group name.

   Note: This is an internal name, your customers will not see it.

4. Click Select products.
5. Select your sample product or variant using the following steps:
   1. Product: Check the box next to the product you want to select.
   2. Variant: Click on the linked variants displayed under the product name to expand them, and check the box next to the variant you'd like to select.
6. Click Confirm.
7. Move the toggle to the right next to Allow automatic product swaps for convertible subscriptions.
8. Click Select product.
9. Select the product or variant you'd like to set as the full-sized (converting) product.

   Note: Only one product or variant should be selected for the converting product.

   1. Product: Check the box next to the product you want to select.
   2. Variant: Click on the linked variants displayed under the product name to expand them, and check the box next to the variant you'd like to select.
10. Click Confirm.
11. Optional: Enter a discount for the recurring product after the swap (the full-sized product).
12. Set your Subscription frequency. Select Days, Weeks, Months, or Years.
13. Click Show advanced options, and choose from the following options:
    • On purchase day: The customer's subscription renews based on the date of their initial purchase.
    • On specific day of the month: The customer's subscription renews on the same day every month; regardless of their date of purchase.
    • Custom occurrence: Custom logic for when your customers' subscriptions renew. Additional choices appear when selecting this option.

      Note: If either of the last two options are selected, you have the ability to Use cutoff days.

14. Enter a Frequency name.

    Note: This name is displayed in the subscription widget on the product page.

15. Click Save Frequency.
16. Optional: Click Add new frequency and repeat steps 12 - 15 for additional frequency intervals.
17. Optional: Move the toggle to the right to enable the Allow minimum order requirement setting, and enter a number to set the minimum amount of orders that must pass before a customer can cancel their subscription.

    Note: If this setting is used, Try Before You Subscribe offers should allow customers to cancel after one order has passed as this is when the order converts to the full-size. Please ensure your use of this setting complies with local laws. For more information about this feature, please visit Subscription Group Settings.

18. Optional: Move the toggle to the right next to Offer a discount on the first product before the swap (the sample product), and enter a discount.
19. Select Save Changes.

    Note: The subscription is activated on the storefront as soon as it's saved.

Step 3: Set the subscription to subscription-only (optional)

If you’d like your sample product to be available to subscribers only, please follow the steps below.

1. In your Shopify admin, navigate to Products.
2. Find the sample product, and click on the product name to access the settings.
3. Scroll down to the Purchase options section.
4. Check the box next to Only sell this product as a subscription.

   

5. Click Save.

Important considerations

Locations and feature limitations

Try Before You Subscribe convertible subscriptions must be purchased from the product page in order to work as intended. If a customer purchases a convertible subscription from another location, they will remain subscribed to the initial product only, and the swap will not take place. This includes when a convertible subscription is added to an existing subscription by an admin or by a customer from inside the customer portal.

Additionally, convertible subscriptions are not compatible with the following features:

• Prepaid subscriptions
• Buy Now Links
• Subscription Upsell offers created through the Bold Upsell & Subscriptions Integration
• The Express Add-Ons Widget

Subscription groups

The initial product in a convertible subscription must not belong to any other subscription groups. Adding the product to different subscription group types will cause issues with the widget display and functionality.

Product swapping

Customers are not able to swap convertible subscription products in the customer portal.

Note: If desired, an admin can manually swap a product on behalf of a customer. This requires changing the product’s subscription group first. Read more about how to Change a product's subscription group and then Swap a subscription product.

Checkout display

Due to Shopify constraints, the Shopify checkout can only display the cost of the initial product as the recurring total, however, the subtotal of the recurring converted product is clearly displayed in the product description section of the checkout.

Shipping

When the subscription is converted to the recurring product, the recurring product is assigned the least expensive applicable shipping rate.

Subscriber count

At this time, the subscriber count for convertible subscriptions is not able to be displayed on the Subscription groups page under the Active subscribers column. Convertible subscriptions are still included in your subscription Dashboard analytics and reports.