renewal-campaign

name	renewal-campaign
description	Builds subscription renewal campaigns with reminder sequences, incentives, and save offers. Use when reducing churn and increasing subscription retention rates.
allowed-tools	Read Write Glob
metadata	{"author":"matthewhitcham","version":"1.0"}

Renewal Campaign

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

• Build an email sequence that encourages subscription renewals
• Create save offers for subscribers considering cancellation
• Design a renewal reminder timeline with escalating incentives
• Reduce churn by proactively engaging subscribers before their renewal date

DO NOT use this skill for initial onboarding, win-back campaigns for already-churned customers, or free trial conversion emails. This is for retaining active subscribers approaching renewal.

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Core Principle

RENEWAL IS NOT A TRANSACTION — IT IS A MOMENT TO REMIND CUSTOMERS OF THE VALUE THEY HAVE RECEIVED AND THE VALUE THEY WOULD LOSE BY LEAVING.

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Phase 1: Brief

Required Inputs

Input	What to Ask	Default
Product	"What subscription product is renewing?"	No default — must be provided
Subscription price	"What's the renewal price?"	No default — must be provided
Billing cycle	"Monthly or annual?"	Annual
Current churn rate	"What percentage of subscribers don't renew?"	Unknown
Renewal type	"Auto-renew or manual renewal required?"	Auto-renew
Save offer budget	"Can you offer a discount to prevent cancellation?"	Up to 20% off

GATE: Confirm the brief before building the campaign.

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Phase 2: Campaign Architecture

Renewal Timeline

## Renewal Email Sequence

**60 days before renewal:**
Email 1: Value recap — "Here's what you've accomplished this year"

**30 days before renewal:**
Email 2: What's coming — preview new features or content

**14 days before renewal:**
Email 3: Renewal reminder + any loyalty incentive

**7 days before renewal:**
Email 4: Direct renewal reminder + FAQ

**1 day before renewal:**
Email 5: Final reminder — "Your subscription renews tomorrow"

**Post-renewal (auto-renew):**
Email 6: Thank you + what's new for the next period

**Post-cancellation (if they cancel):**
Email 7: Save offer — "Before you go, we'd like to offer..."
Email 8 (7 days later): Final save attempt with different angle

Cancellation Save Flow

## Cancellation Interception

Step 1: Cancellation reason survey (required before processing)
Step 2: Tailored save offer based on reason:
  - "Too expensive" → Discounted rate or downgrade option
  - "Not using it enough" → Usage tips + pause option
  - "Missing features" → Roadmap preview + feedback collection
  - "Found alternative" → Competitive comparison + loyalty discount
Step 3: If declined → process cancellation gracefully
Step 4: Post-cancellation email with open door to return

GATE: Approve the campaign architecture before writing.

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Phase 3: Write Campaign Content

Value Recap Email (60 days out)

Personalize with actual usage data:

Subject: Your year with [Product] — by the numbers

{first_name}, you've been a member for [X] months. Here's what you've achieved:

- [Usage stat 1: e.g., "Created 47 projects"]
- [Usage stat 2: e.g., "Saved an estimated 120 hours"]
- [Usage stat 3: e.g., "Downloaded 23 templates"]

And we're just getting started. Here's what's coming in the next [period]...

Renewal Reminder Emails

Keep these short and clear:

• State the renewal date and amount
• Link to account/billing page
• For manual renewals: direct renewal button
• For auto-renewals: reassurance + how to update payment method

Save Offer Scripts

Tailored by cancellation reason:

"Too expensive" response:
"We'd hate to see you go over price. How about [X]% off your next
[period]? That brings your cost to $[discounted price]/[period]."

"Not using it" response:
"Totally fair. Instead of cancelling, would you like to pause your
subscription for [30/60/90] days? Your account and data stay intact."

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Phase 4: Polish

1. Churn Prediction Indicators

Flag at-risk subscribers before renewal based on:

• Login frequency declining over 60 days
• Support tickets or complaints
• Feature usage dropping
• Payment failures in the past

2. Metrics to Track

• Renewal rate (target: 80%+ for annual, 90%+ for monthly)
• Save offer acceptance rate
• Cancellation reason distribution
• Revenue saved from save offers
• Time to churn after save offer (do saved customers stay long-term?)

3. Ongoing Optimization

• A/B test save offer amounts (10% vs. 20% vs. free month)
• Test renewal email timing and frequency
• Survey renewed customers: "What almost made you cancel?"

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Anti-Patterns

• Surprising customers with charges — always remind before auto-renewal. Surprise charges create chargebacks and negative reviews.
• Begging in cancellation flow — "Please don't go!" is undignified. Present value and options, then respect the decision.
• No cancellation reason capture — every cancellation without a reason is a missed learning opportunity.
• Save offers that are too generous — 50% off to save one subscriber trains them to threaten cancellation for discounts.
• Ignoring low-usage subscribers — if they are not using the product, they will not renew. Engage them months before renewal, not days.

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Recovery

• No usage data available: Focus on feature highlights and customer testimonials instead of personalized recaps.
• Very high churn (over 30%): The problem may not be the renewal campaign — it may be the product or onboarding. Investigate root causes.
• User has no save offer budget: Use non-monetary saves: pause option, downgrade tier, extended free month, or personalized support call.
• Monthly subscription with constant churn: Consider switching to annual billing with a discount incentive. Annual subscribers churn at significantly lower rates.