Ellie Horvath
Research from OnePoll, commissioned by eDreams ODIGEO, one of the world’s largest online travel companies and the leading travel subscription provider, reveals the USA’s “Subscribe Tribes:” the sections of society most engaged with subscription shopping and why they are prioritising this mode of retail to weather macroeconomic headwinds.
The research evidences that subscriptions are increasing in popularity across all demographics – only 1% of US shoppers say they do not consider themselves to be a subscriber, while 82% have active subscriptions and 84% intend to ringfence or increase subscription spending over the next 12 months.
The most popular benefit of subscription services highlighted by singles without children was convenience (58%), followed by access to personalized offers (21%) and access to deals offers (19%).
For time-poor parents (respondents in relationships with children), convenience also emerged as the most popular subscription benefit – 58%. Families highlighted the importance of cost-effectiveness (48%) as a key benefit of subscriptions. This demographic group (46%) also highlighted the importance of access to new deals and offers and being offered services and deals that align with personal shopping preferences as top reasons for subscribing.
Together, these results suggest that subscriptions work for families because they offer the potential for time and financial savings through subscriber-only deals, but also because they give parents time back by understanding their personal shopping preferences, and tailoring their offerings accordingly, as well as automating much of the traditional shopping experience.
For older subscribers (65 years old or more), it was a blend of convenience (63%) and being offered deals and personalized offers (44%), that made subscriptions so attractive, perhaps suggesting that this demographic values the ability to relax and retire in style through subscriptions, which offer both cost savings and the ability to shop in a simpler way.
What unifies all the USA’s Subscribe Tribes is singling out both cost-effectiveness and convenience as the clear top two benefits of subscription services, particularly notable during a time of economic turbulence when household incomes are being put under immense pressure. Across all those polled, the top 3 reasons for subscribing were convenience (56%), access to unique offers, deals or products (44%) and cost-effectiveness (37%), which indicates shoppers are increasingly on the hunt for shopping methods that offer better value for money.
Dana Dunne, CEO at eDreams ODIGEO, said: “In the United States, and across the world, households are facing cost of living pressures. In this context, subscriptions become a true ally to modern-day shoppers as they bring material tangible benefits, whether that’s time savings for busy parents or better value for money for those with stretched budgets. What seems to unify everyone though is that subscriptions offer a way to make vital cost savings, as well as a far more convenient and personalized shopping experience. Subscriptions are allowing people to buy what they need, and enjoy the things they love, more easily, and for less. This is a huge part of why we are seeing a boom in the subscription economy globally, and it’s why we continue to shift our business model towards subscription as our main method for engaging with our customers.”
About eDreams ODIGEO
eDreams ODIGEO (www.edreamsodigeo.com) is one of the world’s largest online travel companies and one of the largest e-commerce businesses in Europe. The business is the largest player worldwide in flight revenues, excluding China, and the largest in Europe. Under its four leading online travel agency brands – eDreams, GO Voyages, Opodo, Travellink, and the metasearch engine Liligo – it serves more than 17 million customers per year across 44 markets. Listed on the Spanish Stock Market, eDreams ODIGEO works with over 690 airlines and +2.1 million hotels. The business conceptualised Prime, the first subscription product in the travel sector which has attracted 3.8 million members since launching in 2017. The brand offers the best quality products and the widest choice of regular flights, low-cost airlines, hotels, dynamic packages, cruises, car rental services and travel insurance products to make travel easier, more accessible, and better value for consumers across the globe.
