Subscription Management: Customer Perspective

After purchasing a subscription product on your store, your customers can make adjustments to their subscriptions in the customer portal. Some of the adjustments they have access to depend on the customer portal settings you have enabled.

Pro-Tip: If your customer forgets their password they can click the forgot password link on the login page.  Shopify sends an email with instructions to reset their password. If your customer is unable to login, they may not have signed up for their account yet. In this case, you can send an account invite from within their customer profile in Shopify. For more information about managing your customer's account, please visit Shopify's help center article.

This article will outline the changes that a customer can make to their subscriptions, as well as list the steps they can take to make those changes.

Change upcoming order date

Allowing customers to change their next order date reduces the number of cancelled subscriptions on your store (churn). When this permission is enabled, your customers can choose a new date for their next order from within the customer portal.

Your customers have two options when changing the upcoming order date:

1. Only update next order date: This option will only update the next order date in the cycle and skip the previously scheduled next order date. For example, if a subscription generates monthly on the 15th, and the next order date is changed from September 15th to September 10th, the next order will generate on September 10th and then will be skipped on September 15th. All future orders will remain set to recur on the 15th.
2. Update all future orders based on the selected date: This option will will change the next order date as well as the future order dates. For example, if a subscription generates monthly on the 15th, and the next order date is changed to the 10th, the next order will generate on the 10th as will all future recurring orders. 

Orders changed to today's date can take up to 60 minutes to process as Bold Subscriptions runs batches for recurring orders every hour starting at midnight.

To allow your customers to change change their next order date, please follow the steps below.

1. From within Bold Subscriptions, navigate to Settings > Customer portal.
2. Enable Customer can change their next order date by moving the toggle to the right.

To change the next order date, your customers can follow the steps below.

1. From the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription. 
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. Under Active subscriptions, click Edit future orders under the product that you would like to adjust the order date for.

   

4. Click on the existing order date and select a new order date.
5. Select Only update next order date or Update all future orders based on selected date.
6. Select Save Changes.

Change order frequency

Active subscribers may need to change the order frequency for their active subscription on your store. For example, your customer may wish to adjust an order frequency from recurring every two weeks to every week to receive more of a product.

Customers can only select from the frequency options that are built into the existing subscription groups.

Note: Changing the order frequency will not update the next order date. Frequency changes will come into affect once the next order has passed.

To allow your customers to change their order frequency , please follow the steps below.

1. From within Bold Subscriptions, navigate to Settings  > Customer portal.
2. Enable Customer can change their order frequency by moving the toggle to the right.

To adjust the order frequency of their subscription, your customers can follow the steps below.

1. From the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. Under Order frequency, click Change frequency.

   

4. Use the dropdown menu to select a new frequency.
5. Select Save.

Once the order frequency has been updated, it's best to check the upcoming order dates to ensure they are correct and match the new frequency selected.

Pause and resume a subscription

Within Bold Subscriptions, you can allow your subscribers to pause and resume their recurring orders. This gives your subscribers the ability to put their subscriptions on hold whenever they need to, for as long as they need.

During this time, they will not be billed or receive any orders that have not already been sent.

This helps to reduce churn for subscription orders as it gives your customers the flexibility to temporarily stop their subscriptions instead of cancelling.

To enable the pause/resume feature for your customers, please follow the steps below.

1. From within Bold Subscriptions, navigate to Settings > Customer portal.
2. Enable the setting Customers can pause and resume their subscriptions by moving the toggle to the right.

To pause or resume a subscription, your customers can follow the steps below.

1. From the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If you have more than one subscription, click Show details under the one that you would like to pause.
4. Click Manage upcoming orders.
5. Click Pause Future Orders.

   

If your customer would like to resume their subscription, this can be done by selecting Resume future orders near the top of the subscription details:

Change product quantity

Customers can adjust the quantity for a product on a subscription from within the customer portal. This allows existing subscribers to easy increase or decrease the amount of products they are receiving, without the need to make another purchase.

To update the product quantity within an existing subscription, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. From your storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If you have multiple subscriptions, click Show details under the subscription you would like to change.
4. Click Edit next to Products in my subscription.

   

5. Adjust the quantity to the desired amount for each product that is in the existing subscription.
6. Click Save.

Cancel or reactivate a subscription

If a customer needs to cancel their existing subscription, they can complete this within the customer portal. 

Some common reasons a customer may look at cancelling their subscription on your store are as follows:

• The product is too expensive.
• Unhappy with the product.
• Receiving too much of the product.
• Prefer to make one-time purchases of the product.
• Moving out of delivery area.

To allow your customers to cancel their orders, please follow the steps below.

1. From within Bold Subscriptions, navigate to Settings > Customer portal.
2. Enable the Customers can cancel their subscriptions setting by moving the toggle to the right.

To cancel an existing subscription within the customer portal, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. From your storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If there are multiple subscriptions, click Show details under the subscription that needs to be cancelled.
4. Click Cancel Subscription three times.
5. If you have set up a cancellation flow, your customer will need to either choose a cancellation reason, or follow the instructions you've provided. If you have not enabled a cancellation flow, your customer will be able to cancel without selecting any further options.

   Note: For more information, please visit Cancellation & Dunning Management in Subscriptions for Shopify Checkout.

   

6. Click Confirm.

If your customer needs to reactivate a subscription, they can follow the steps below.

1. Log into the Customer Portal and select View Inactive Subscriptions at the bottom of the page.

   

2. Under the desired subscription, click Reactivate Subscription.

   

3. Click Yes, Reactivate Subscription.

Update account information (name, email, phone number)

Subscribers are able to change their account information within the customer portal. This includes updating their email address, first name, last name and phone number.

Updating information within the customer portal also changes the information within their customer account in Shopify.

Note: If your customer changes their email address in the customer portal, they must then use the new email address to log into their account going forward. 

To change their account information, your customers can follow the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. Near the top of the page under My account info, make the necessary adjustments.
   
4. Click Save Changes.

Update payment method or billing address

If a customer's payment method or billing address needs to be updated, they can complete this change through the customer portal.

It is important that your customers know that they have the ability to update their payment details as their subscription may be cancelled depending on your store's failed transaction handling in the Cancellation and Dunning Management settings.

Customers can update their payment method or billing address using the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If there are multiple subscriptions, select Show details under the subscription you would like to update the payment method or billing address for.
4. Click Payment information.
5. Click Change Payment Information.
6. Check the email that is registered to the subscription account.

   Note: If you are having issues receiving the email, please check your spam and junk folders.

7. Open the email titled Edit your payment details and click the Edit payment details button within the email.

   

8. Click Change.

   

9. Enter the new payment credentials.
10. Under Billing address, update the billing address that matches your new credentials.
11. Click Update card.

Update shipping address

Customers are able to adjust their shipping address directly within the customer portal. If the correct information is not updated, there is a strong possibility that the future recurring orders will fail due to a payment error with the payment method being used.

To update their shipping address, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If there are multiple subscriptions, click Show details under the subscription you would like to update the shipping address for.
4. Click Edit next to Address and shipping information.

   

5. Select an existing address or enter a new address.
6. Click Save Changes.

Swap a subscription product

Swapping is unavailable for customers who are using a currency that is different from your store's base currency.

Customers can only swap between products that belong to the same subscription group.

If a swap is attempted on a subscription that contains a product-specific discount code, it will result in an error. Product-specific discount codes must be removed from the subscription prior to the product swap. After this is done, the discount code can be reapplied.

If a customer would like to subscribe to a different product, they can swap their current product with a new one. This allows them to avoid cancelling and resubscribing.

To swap a product, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If multiple subscriptions are present, click Show details under the subscription you would like to swap.
4. Click Products in my subscription.
5. Select Swap product next to the product you want to swap with.

   

6. Click Select product next to a product you would like to swap the original product with.

   

7. Select OK.

Add a discount code

You can provide subscribers with a discount code at any time. Your existing subscribers can add a discount code to their order from within the customer portal. If an existing discount code is already applied to the order, then that will need to be removed first. For customer facing instructions, please view the information below, under Remove a discount code.

Certain discount codes like Buy X Get Y discounts are not eligible for subscriptions. Additionally, when a discount code is applied to a subscription, the price will not be noted as discounted in the customer portal, the price will simply reflect the new amount. To read more about this and other limitations, please visit Discount Codes in Subscriptions for Shopify Checkout.

To add a discount code, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription. 
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. If there are multiple subscriptions, click Show details under the subscription you would like to add the discount code to.
4. Click Discount code, then Add discount.

   

5. Enter the discount code and then click Apply.

Remove a discount code

In order to add a new discount code to an existing subscription, any existing or inactive discount codes will need to be removed first. Inactive discount codes remain visible on your customer's subscription even when they are expired.

To remove a discount code, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription. 
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. Click Discount code, then Remove discount.

   

Skip an upcoming order

Customers can skip an upcoming order within the customer portal. If they change their mind at a later date, they can also recover the order.

Some possible reasons a customer may want to skip an upcoming order are as follows:

• Insufficient funds in the payment method on file.
• They are moving.
• They just need some extra time between orders.

To skip an order within the customer portal, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. From the storefront, log into the account with the subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. Click Show details under the subscription that you would like to skip.
4. Click Manage upcoming orders.
5. Click Skip shipment next to the upcoming order that you would like to skip.

   

If a subscription has an order that was skipped that needs to be reversed, you can follow steps 1-6 and select Recover shipment to reverse the change that was made earlier.

Add a product to a subscription (one-time or recurring)

Alert: This feature is only available to customers who are using the same currency as your store’s base currency.

When this feature is enabled, your customers can add a product to one of their active subscriptions from within the Customer Portal. The options available are as follows:

• Add to this subscription. This will add the product as a recurring order along with the existing subscription.
• Add to next order only. This will add the product to the next subscription order as a one-time purchase only. It will not recur.

The options available to your customers depend on the options you’ve made available for the product on your storefront. These are as follows:

• If the product is available as a subscription only, your customer will only see the option to Add to this subscription.
• If the product is available as a one-time purchase only, your customer will see the option to Add to next order only.
• If the product is available for subscription as well as one-time purchase, your customers will see both options, Add to this subscription, and Add to next order only.

If a subscription product is added to the existing subscription, the new subscription product will share the same order frequency of the existing subscription. In addition, the added product will take the discount of the subscription group it belongs to. If it belongs to more than one subscription group, the discount from the last group it was added to will apply.

A new shipping rate will be calculated at the time the new product is added.

To allow your customers to add a new product to their existing subscription, please follow the steps below.

1. From within Bold Subscriptions, navigate to Settings > Customer portal.
2. Enable the toggle next to Customer can add products to their existing subscriptions.

To add a product to an existing subscription, your customer can follow the steps below.

1. On the storefront, log in to the account that has the active subscription.
2. Click My Subscriptions.
3. Within the active subscription overview, click Add Products.

   

4. Select the desired product.
5. If applicable, select the size and quantity.
6. Choose an available option.