[curiousHacker]

$100 conversion cost isn't intractable.

Let's say you can optimize it down to $75 with better ad copy:

* Higher CTR -> lower spend

Then let's say you can optimize it down to $50 with better conversion funnel tracking

* You get their email and then send them a free eBook about Japanese candy or stationery, then you ask them if you have permission to keep contacting them. If yes, you keep providing value and eventually sell them on more Candy Japan packages.

* You include the video on your page

Then you instrument a referral incentive system

* You give someone double-candy if they refer a friend

Then you ask the people who aren't retaining why they aren't retaining. You bucket their complaints into categories and you provide solutions.

* "I only needed it for this one specific occasion" -> You sell them a gift subscription package instead, at a much lower price, so the recipient knows they are still thinking of them, with bigger upside kicking it at later months. i.e., month 1 = one piece of candy, month 2 = two additional pieces of candy, month 3 = 3 additional pieces of candy

Lifetime value could surpass conversion cost.

[bemmu]

I'm finding that when I ask people "why are you cancelling?" I don't get any actionable suggestions, mostly just people running out of money or that they've already had enough candy.

[pkteison]

Have enough candy seems quite actionable. Why not offer a less frequent plan to these folks, say twice a quarter instead of twice a month, and you could pick a festival or holiday for people to celebrate with candy. "Here's your Sapporo Snow Festival candy pack! Look for Cherry Blossom celebration in 2 months".

[Mithaldu]

> they've already had enough candy.

Did you ask them if they'd be interested in smaller packages?

[curiousHacker]

Some ideas to test separately.

\) Can you try switching them to "Pen Japan" 1.1 months before the usual cancellation point? This could be done with an opt-in.

\) Incrementally iterating on Mithaldu's idea, can you try giving them a price break (and announcing it with an email!) 1.1 months before the usual cancellation point?

\) Can you add a "But wait! If you stay around, you can get a 10% discount on your subscription cost" last-minute notice to your cancellation page, that is only presented if the user has been around for (the mean cancellation time - 1.1months)?

[alanctgardner3]

This. I wanted so badly to sign up, my girlfriend and I go to Chinese grocery stores and stock up on junk food a few times a year. Getting top ups and bring exposed to Japanese products would be awesome, but $25 a month is pretty dear for a monthly product. At $10/month for less frequent candy it would be a nobrainer for me.

[Scoundreller]

It is semi-monthly. Though I think monthly would be sufficient. It might be something to poll the customer base about (Moar candy or moar frequency?)

Hopefully with volume, better manufacturer/distributor relationships, maybe lower-cost fulfillment offshore and changing of shipping method/frequency, they can lower the price or increase the quantities.

One positive for this entrepreneur is that people already associate "Japan" with "expensive", so the sticker shock isn't really unexpected.

[onslauth]

I am a client of Bemmu's and I can tell you the two weeks don't come fast enough.

In our country, they will send you a notice in the post when a package has arrived. And then you have to go queue at the post office to receive it. However, every week I now find myself queueing at the post office just to see if any candy packages might have arrived.

I think the twice a month deliveries are great as they are still pretty far apart that you aren't sick of them yet. Lately the packages have increased in size and its a good size to make it enjoyable but not put you off sweets for a while.

Bemmu - You mentioned that a lot of people have un-subscribed, is this after you have changed from using an envelope size package to the new larger box?

[bemmu]

We had that in Finland too, I don't think anyone likes queuing. When I send slimmer packages do you then receive them directly?

In any service a certain amount of people will unsubscribe each month, but so far more people are joining and overall the service is growing.

[alanctgardner3]

I didn't think of the box versus letter issue as well. Fetching parcels from my local post office is a 20 minute walk, it can be annoying after a long day of work.

That said, based on the testimony I've seen here I might try a few months and see...

[Scoundreller]

Or to keep a handle on shipping costs, monthly, quarterly or even yearly packages?

One thing I actually appreciate about some of the random time-insensitive purchases I've made from HK/China on Ebay is that I tend to forget I've made my purchase by the time it arrives. It's like an unexpected Christmas.