Having identified the need to overhaul their current membership programme, a global news brand required RED C UK research to develop a stronger, more compelling membership offer for their customers.

The key to this research was to identify the best membership package bundles and price points to inform the development of the future membership packages within the business.

Devising the research methodology so that our client could take both current and potential customers viewpoints into account was essential for safeguarding existing revenues whilst engendering the loyalty of potential members in the future. As such, we spoke to c.1,100 existing and potential customers via an online survey.

In order to give the most statistically reliable and robust direction, we used a statistical approach known as Choice Based Conjoint analysis (CBC). CBC works on a trade-off principle, which involves simulating customer responses to real world purchase decisions. Using this approach, we were able to test the appeal of membership features and price sensitivity and ultimately forecast uptake and associated revenues.

This research enabled us to identify the most motivating product features, how to optimise tiers, bundles and pricing. Subsequently this allowed our client to relaunch their digital subscription service with a simpler membership tier structure to better appeal to both current and future members.