Could data and AI be the key to giving streaming subscribers full-time FOMO?

Fear of missing out — or “FOMO” — might be one of the media industry’s greatest blessings. But it also might be its curse. People don’t want to miss out on the buzziest new show. But once it’s over, they move onto the next big thing. Subscriber management is a huge challenge for streaming services and media providers battling to maintain attention in between big-ticket events. 

Take, for example, HBO. When the final season of Game of Thrones premiered, the longtime cable behemoth saw a surge in new subscribers for its HBO Max service (now Max). But when the series concluded, its numbers took a huge hit as consumers looked elsewhere for the next show. It’s only becoming more and more common, and streaming subscriber growth halved in 2023 from the previous year. This phenomenon isn’t unique to video streaming, either. Practically any brand offering a subscription service — from gaming platforms to music streaming to digital fitness — sees this in-and-out behavior. Because customers of these services don’t get locked in with months- or years-long contracts, they don’t really have a reason to stick around and see what else the service can offer once they’ve gotten their fill.

With all of the choices available to consumers in the increasingly crowded market and consumers wanting to save money amidst price increases and service bundling options, subscription services are pouring tons of investments into not only attracting and acquiring customers but also retaining existing subscribers to drive growth and increase revenue. To realize a healthy ROI (return on investment), how do brands convince their customers they’ll miss out on something if they leave? By focusing on engagement and retention, with the help of data and AI. Here are three ways how:

What you’ll learn:

1. The rise of exclusive live events
2. Buddy up with other brands
3. Show your subscribers some love with loyalty programs

1. The rise of exclusive live events

One of the main appeals of streaming services has traditionally been the on-demand nature of consuming content whenever and wherever it suits viewers. The era of appointment TV viewing – think the NBC “Friends” and “ER” must-see-TV lineup on Thursday nights – has long been over. 

But slowly, traditional on-demand streaming platforms such as Netflix have begun to offer live events in an effort to create a buzz around “appointment TV” again. Events like live comedy specials, the “Love is Blind: Reunion,” and “The Greatest Roast of All-Time: Tom Brady,” which was viewed two million times on its debut night, are an effort to reach new audiences while also giving existing subscribers something new to keep them engaged with the platform in different ways. 

It also creates increased expectations for what viewers can expect from a platform; Netflix, for example, plans to expand into live sporting events with the planned Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul boxing match. Netflix is also making huge investments to stream live NFL games and WWE events. Other streaming platforms are also branching out into live sports streaming, with HBO’s Max, Apple TV, and Amazon all giving subscribers access to live sporting events. 

AI can play an important role in analyzing viewing patterns to provide insights on future content planning. The technology can determine what events or shows would appeal to the right audiences using external data from the habits of certain demographics. AI can also use that data to create personalized promotions to, for example, Tom Brady roast to viewers who engage with sports-related content and/or comedy specials or to relevant non-subscriber segments. The technology can also be used to generate ideas for future live events pulling on market trends in relation to certain demographic segments a platform hopes to attract. 

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2. Buddy up with other brands

Bundles aren’t a new concept. Cable companies have been offering bundles that included a slew of channels for decades. Subscription services are now partnering with companies with similar customer bases, which can go a long way to enhancing their brands by building delightful experiences for customers.

Partnering with brands that offer complementary services is a great way to do bundles right. Subscriber management strategies can benefit from these partnerships by keeping customers more engaged with a wider spectrum of related content offerings that fit their needs. 

Just recently, a partnership bundle among Disney+, Hulu and Max was announced. Bundle discounts incentivize subscribers to stick with the package of services because they’re getting more out of their money. If they want to make the most of their subscription, they may spend more time exploring each platform. This way, both brands and their customers win.

Or, if a streaming service partners with an audiobook subscription platform, racking up a certain number of points with the streaming service can unlock one or two free audiobook downloads. Making a game out of earning points can make staying on the streaming platform fun while earning opportunities to sample new services without risk. And once they start to accumulate points, they second-guess leaving the service because they don’t want to waste those hard-earned rewards. Meanwhile, the audiobook platform now has a new pipeline of prospective customers they can try to upsell or convert into subscribers.

The importance of data fueling powerful AI could hypothetically come into play in such a bundle by ensuring subscriber’s viewing habits are unified to allow relevant recommendations as they hop from one platform to another. Meaning, if someone watches a tennis match on Peacock, AI would automatically serve them up a recommendation of Netflix’s popular tennis docuseries “Break Point.”

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3. Show your subscribers some love with loyalty programs

Die-hard miles and points chasers and casual travelers alike participate in airline and hotel loyalty programs. They could be motivated for a number of reasons like free checked bags, complimentary room upgrades, or even the prestige of being an elusive Diamond Medallion member on Delta Airlines. Whatever the case, these brands have found ways to tie their customers to their services and keep them coming back. 

It’s a strategy that many media brands should consider, since many don’t currently reward customer loyalty. Folding the building blocks of these loyalty programs into their subscriber management strategies can drive better engagement and retain their customers. For example, Disney+ could offer subscribers loyalty programs to earn points toward theme-park discounts. Or loyal subscribers could be given exclusive content or early access to new releases. 

AI can pull from your existing data to ensure your subscribers are aware of relevant loyalty reward programs. It can create segmentation to make sure audiobook listeners, for example, aren’t receiving promotions to sign up for concert ticket rewards that would be better served to listeners who only consume music – and vice versa. Your integrated AI can also almost instantly create promotions around these programs targeted to the right audience. 

There’s a tremendous opportunity for subscription services to deliver better experiences for their customers. Serving up what they want when they want and enabling them to share it with whom they want can lead to longer-term subscriptions that have a huge impact on brands’ bottom lines. Customer acquisition costs approximately five times more than customer retention, so it’s in the best interest of subscription services to develop new ways to keep customers happy so that they’ll never want to say goodbye.

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