Defend Your Pick of a Subscription Product: Recurring Value, Plans and Retention

Which subscription product do you rate above every other one you pay for? Name it and explain what makes it your choice. ```hint Earn the renewal A subscription has to justify itself again every billing period. Separate what got you to sign up from what keeps you paying, and look at how the plan itself is built. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Should I pick a consumer subscription, or is a business software subscription I use at work also fair game? - Would you prefer I choose something outside Microsoft, or is one of Microsoft's own subscriptions, such as Microsoft 365 or Xbox Game Pass, a reasonable pick? - Once I have explained why I like it, do you also want an improvement I would make as its PM? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A clear pick, with the specific kind of user the candidate is and how they actually use the product - The recurring value that justifies each renewal, separated from what drove the first sign-up - How the subscription is packaged: free or trial entry, tiers and plans, and how easy it is to downgrade, pause or cancel - A PM's view of the business: the other users or sides it serves, the metrics it most likely optimizes, such as churn and free-to-paid conversion, and where it is vulnerable - A weakness or improvement that follows from the analysis, with a way to measure it ### Follow-up Questions - If cancellations among first-month subscribers jumped, what would you investigate first? - How would you change its plans or pricing, and which users could that drive away? - What would make you cancel it tomorrow, and what does that tell its product team?