📚 Home → Chapter 8: Subscriptions

Chapter 8: Subscriptions 💳

Manage Premium Features & Billing Plans

⏱️ Reading Time: 18 minutes | Difficulty: Medium | Prerequisites: Chapters 1-7

📖 In This Chapter

📖 Understanding Subscriptions

A Subscription is a recurring service plan that clients or partners pay for to access premium features of the recruitment system. Subscriptions can be monthly, quarterly, or yearly.

Why Subscriptions Matter

  • 💰 Recurring revenue stream
  • 📊 Track customer payments and billing
  • 🔐 Control access to premium features
  • 📈 Manage multiple clients with different plans
  • 🔔 Automatic renewal tracking and reminders
  • 📋 Invoice generation and payment records
  • 🎯 Monitor plan usage and ROI
💡 Key Concept: Subscriptions work for both service clients (who pay for workers) and software users (who pay for system access/features).

📦 Available Plans & Features

Common Subscription Plans

Plan Name Best For Key Features Typical Price
Starter Small businesses, startups Basic recruitment, up to 10 workers, 5 clients 500-1000 AED/month
Professional Mid-size companies Full recruitment suite, 50-100 workers, 20+ clients, analytics 2000-5000 AED/month
Enterprise Large corporations, agencies Unlimited workers/clients, custom features, API access, support 10000+ AED/month
Premium Add-ons Any existing plan Advanced reporting, custom fields, integrations, white-label 500-2000 AED/month

Feature Comparison by Plan

Feature Starter Professional Enterprise Notes
Candidates Database ✅ Limited ✅ Unlimited ✅ Unlimited Store candidate info
Job Requisitions ✅ 5/month ✅ Unlimited ✅ Unlimited Create job postings
Applications ✅ Basic ✅ Full ✅ Full + Custom Track applications
Client Management ✅ 5 Clients ✅ Unlimited ✅ Unlimited Manage client accounts
Deployments ✅ Basic ✅ Full ✅ Full + Analytics Track assignments
Reports ❌ ✅ Standard ✅ Advanced + Custom Analytics & reports
API Access ❌ ❌ ✅ Full Integrations
Support ✅ Email ✅ Phone/Email ✅ 24/7 Dedicated Customer support

➕ Creating Subscriptions

Step-by-Step: Create a New Subscription

  1. Go to Subscriptions Menu Click "Subscriptions" from left menu.
  2. Click "New" Button
  3. Select Subscription Type - Software User Plan (access to system)
    - Service Client Plan (for staffing clients)
    - Partner Subscription (for agencies)
  4. Select Customer/Client Choose who will have this subscription.
  5. Choose Plan Starter, Professional, Enterprise, or custom.
  6. Select Billing Period Monthly, Quarterly, Annual.
  7. Enter Start Date When subscription begins.
  8. Set Auto-Renewal** Yes (recommended) or No
  9. Add Payment Method** Bank transfer, credit card, check, etc.
  10. Review Total Cost** Plan cost + any add-ons + taxes
  11. Click Save**
💡 Pro Tip: Offer first month at discount to encourage signup. System can automatically calculate and apply promotional pricing.

💰 Pricing Structures

Common Pricing Models

Flat Fee (Fixed Price)

How it works: Same price every month regardless of usage.

Example: Professional plan = 3,000 AED/month always

Best for: Predictable budgeting for both parties

Pros: Simple, easy to budget

Cons: May underutilize if plan has limits

Usage-Based (Pay-Per-Use)

How it works: Price varies based on actual usage (candidates, workers, clients, etc.)

Example: 10 AED per candidate + 50 AED per worker deployed

Best for: Variable businesses with unpredictable needs

Pros: Fair pricing, incentives efficient use

Cons: Unpredictable monthly costs

Tiered (Bracket-Based)

How it works: Different price levels based on volume/usage brackets

Example:

  • 1-10 workers: 1,000 AED/month
  • 11-25 workers: 1,800 AED/month
  • 26+ workers: 2,500 AED/month

Best for: Encouraging growth with volume discounts

Freemium (Free + Premium)

How it works: Basic plan free, premium features paid

Example:

  • Free: Up to 5 candidates
  • Paid Premium: Unlimited candidates

Best for: Customer acquisition and conversion

Percentage-Based (Commission)

How it works: Fee is percentage of revenue (for agencies)

Example: 15% of staffing fees earned

Best for: Agency partnerships where profit-sharing makes sense

Requires: Clear tracking of commissionable revenue

Add-On Pricing

Customers can add premium features to any plan:

  • 📊 Advanced Analytics: 500 AED/month
  • 📄 Custom Reports: 750 AED/month
  • 🔌 API Integration: 1000 AED/month
  • 🎨 White-Label: 2000 AED/month
  • 👥 Additional Seats: 200 AED/seat/month
  • 🛡️ Premium Support: 1500 AED/month

🔧 Managing Active Subscriptions

Subscription Status Tracking

Status Meaning Action
Active Customer can access all features of their plan Monitor and support
Trial Free/discounted trial period (usually 14-30 days) Follow up for conversion
Pending Waiting for payment or confirmation Send payment reminder
Suspended Temporarily disabled due to payment issue Collect payment to reactivate
Expired Subscription period ended, no renewal Archive account
Cancelled Customer cancelled subscription Offer retention plan or offboard

Modifying Subscriptions

  1. Open Subscription Record
  2. Click "Edit"**
  3. Make Changes** - Upgrade/downgrade plan
    - Change billing period
    - Add/remove add-ons
    - Update payment method
  4. Review Impact** Prorating costs if mid-period change
  5. Save Changes**
  6. Send Updated Invoice** To customer (if billing changed)
✅ Best Practice: When upgrading mid-month, prorate the difference (charge partial month at new rate). When downgrading, provide credit toward next billing cycle. This builds customer loyalty.

💳 Billing & Payments

Invoice Generation

  1. System Automatically Creates Invoice** On subscription start date and renewal date
  2. Review Invoice for Accuracy** Verify amounts, dates, customer details
  3. Send to Customer** Email invoice or print and mail
  4. Record Payment When Received** - Date received
    - Amount
    - Payment method
    - Reference number
  5. Mark Invoice as Paid** Once payment confirmed

Payment Methods

  • 🏦 Bank Transfer (most common for B2B)
  • 💳 Credit/Debit Card (online payment)
  • ✅ Check (for large amounts)
  • 💰 Cash (in-person)
  • 🔗 Payment Gateway Integration (automatic)

Late Payment Handling

Days Overdue Action
0-5 Days Send payment reminder email (friendly)
6-14 Days Send second reminder + offer payment plan if needed
15-30 Days Send formal notice, consider suspension of service
30+ Days Suspend access, escalate to collections, consider legal action
⚠️ Important: Clearly communicate payment terms when setting up subscription. Include due dates, late payment fees, and suspension policies in the contract/agreement.

🔄 Subscription Renewal & Cancellation

Automatic Renewal Process

  1. 30 Days Before Expiry** System sends renewal reminder to customer
  2. 7 Days Before Expiry** Send second reminder with renewal invoice
  3. On Renewal Date** If payment received, auto-renew subscription
    If payment not received, change status to "Suspended"
  4. After Renewal** Send confirmation to customer with new dates

Manual Renewal (for non-auto renewals)

  1. Customer Requests Renewal
  2. Confirm Plan & Terms Ask if they want same plan or changes
  3. Create New Subscription Period System creates new record with new dates
  4. Send Invoice & Collect Payment
  5. Activate New Period Mark old subscription as "Completed"

Cancellation Process

Customer Wants to Cancel

Steps:

  1. Ask reason for cancellation (feedback)
  2. Offer retention options (discount, plan change, etc.)
  3. If they insist, confirm cancellation date
  4. Process any refunds due (if applicable)
  5. Disable access on cancellation date
  6. Archive customer data per policy
  7. Send exit survey
Mid-Cycle Cancellation Refunds

Policy (adjust as needed):

  • Cancelled in first 14 days: Full refund (satisfaction guarantee)
  • Cancelled after 14 days: Pro-rata refund for unused portion
  • Monthly billing: Refund remaining days/30 * monthly rate
  • Annual billing: Refund remaining months/12 * annual rate
System Suspends Due to Non-Payment

Steps:

  1. After 30+ days of non-payment
  2. Send final warning with 7-day cure period
  3. If no payment, suspend subscription
  4. Lock customer out of system
  5. After 60 days suspension, cancel subscription
  6. After 90 days, delete/archive account data

❓ FAQ & Troubleshooting

Q: Can a customer switch plans mid-month?

Yes! Most systems allow upgrades/downgrades anytime:

  • Upgrade: Charge difference immediately, extend next renewal date equally
  • Downgrade: Issue credit toward next billing cycle
  • Process: Use proration calculator to split costs fairly
Q: What if payment fails on renewal date?

Recommended process:

  1. First attempt: Try auto-charge again after 3 days
  2. Second attempt: Try again after 5 more days
  3. Notify customer: Send payment failure notification
  4. Final notice: 7-day grace period to update payment method
  5. If still unpaid: Suspend access to system
Q: How do I track subscription profitability?

Key metrics:

  • Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) = Sum of all active subscription revenue
  • Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) = Marketing spend / New customers
  • Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) = Average customer value * retention rate
  • Churn Rate = Cancelled customers / Total customers
  • Profit per customer = Revenue - Support costs
Q: Can I offer discounts for annual billing?

Absolutely! Common strategy:

  • Monthly: Full price (1000 AED)
  • Annual: 10% discount (10,800 AED for 12 months vs. 12,000 AED)
  • Quarterly: 5% discount

Encourages longer commitments and improves cash flow.

Q: How to handle free trial conversions?

Best practices:

  • Offer 14-30 day free trial with full features
  • Require credit card for trial (reduces spam)
  • Send daily tips/onboarding during trial
  • Day 10: Offer 20% discount if they convert now
  • Day 13: Final reminder before conversion to paid
  • Auto-convert to basic plan if they don't cancel
Q: What happens to data if subscription expires?

Data retention policy (adjust as needed):

  • While Active: Full access to all data
  • 30 Days After Cancellation: Read-only access (they can export)
  • 60 Days After Cancellation: Limited access, can't modify
  • 90 Days After Cancellation: Archive and delete (unless they pay archive fee)

Always give customers time to export/backup their data!

🎯 Key Takeaways

You've now learned:
  • ✅ What subscriptions are and their value
  • ✅ Available plans and which to offer
  • ✅ How to create new subscriptions
  • ✅ Different pricing models and which to use
  • ✅ Managing active subscriptions
  • ✅ Billing, invoicing, and payment collection
  • ✅ Renewal and cancellation processes

🚀 What's Next?

Once workers are deployed, keep them engaged and productive with retention strategies and follow-up programs.

Next Chapter: Chapter 9: Retention & Follow-ups - Keep Workers Engaged & Productive
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