Bango : Key growth trends in subscription bundling partnerships #4

Telcos and streaming subscription merchants are capitalizing on bundling partnerships in new and unique ways. An increasing number of merchants are offering products and services for Telcos to bundle as customer offers. Sophisticated targeting of those bundles boosts customer acquisition and retention, monetizing those customers more effectively.

This series explores the market trends creating the biggest opportunities in OTT bundling, explaining the innovative technology required for merchants and Telcos to maximize the full potential.

#4 Traditional retailers are exploring digital options

• Trend: Brick-and-mortar retailers are bundling physical goods with complementary digital services
• Opportunity: Endless marketing opportunities to bundle complimentary digital and physical goods for increased loyalty and competitive advantage.
• Strategy: Ensure bundled digital subscriptions are received by the right customer and not passed on or sold on the black market by using a solution that is targeted to specific people, so the offer can be tracked, measured and controlled.

Bricks and mortar retailers have been offering rewards for years, typically via vouchers which can be redeemed by anyone. They can be passed around, distributed by anyone online etc. We're now seeing more traditional retailers exploring new bundle options, aligning their brick-and-mortar stores offers with digital world offers.

Sam's Club offer their members one place to subscribe to a wealth of streaming subscriptions, becoming intrinsically linked with their customers entertainment needs. The marketing opportunities this opens up are endless. Purchasing new headphones? Buy them from Sam's Club and get 12 months free Pandora subscription. Yes please!

Sam's Club also tie in digital subscriptions with hardware bundles. Offering 24 month subscriptions of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate with an Xbox console purchased from them. Walmart is another big-name example of tying Xbox console sales with bundled Game pass subscriptions. But that's not their only bundling strategy! The retail giant launched Walmart Plus last year, which is a new membership program where customers get cheaper gas, free deliveries and access to the Mobile Scan and Go shopping app.

This is a clever move. Walmart Plus rewards customers with digital bundles to increase loyalty in their retail stores. Many also see the move as a direct response to Amazon Prime. A recent Forbes article states: 'With 150 million Prime members worldwide, going up against Amazon seems like a tall order. But if anyone can take on the e-commerce giant, it's Walmart, which has $300 billion higher global revenue.'

'A burger Sir? Would you like fries and a drink with that for an extra $2?'. Traditional bricks and mortar retailers are applying the age-old bundling model to digital offerings. The wealth of opportunities this creates for retailers to bundle across complimentary digital and physical goods has vast scope and scale.

Capture the entire opportunity….

Unlike the legacy voucher or gift card solutions where the retailer has no idea which customer has signed up for any service or offer, Bango's solution is targeted to specific people, the offer can be tracked, measured and controlled. If a product is provided as a reward, it ensures that reward is received by the right customer and not passed on or sold on the black-market. It gives visibility for the people showing interest and signing up much earlier. It links the bundles or sales with actual people and links to the third-party product they are entitled to use.

Digital products can be offered and linked to customers or attached to physical products in store. With Bango they help drive customer understanding and engagement.

Download our guide to explore more key growth trends in subscription bundling partnerships.