From Netflix to Blue Apron to that nominal $.99 charge for additional iCloud storage, subscription-based services have become a common way for consumers to pay for goods and services in today’s digital economy.
Consumers don’t necessarily love subscriptions—they love a great experience. Whether it’s watching original content on Netflix, getting new razors each month from Dollar Shave Club or throwing together pre-packaged meals from Hello Fresh, consumers enjoy subscriptions because of the convenience, deals, products, novelty and the experience they provide.
That’s why we launched Rocket Dollar as a subscription-based service. Since our inception we made the commitment to be a subscription-based service provider because that’s the norm today—and because it forces us to continually innovate and offer customers a robust experience with their Self-Directed IRAs or Solo 401(k)s.
Subscription providers are well attuned to consumer demand. Birdbox sure was a dud, but Netflix is still jam-packed with excellent original content designed to keep loyal subscribers engaged in its streaming service versus Amazon Prime, Hulu or other competitors. It’s why Netflix dominates the streaming market with 148.8 million subscribers globally, including 60.2 million subscribers in the U.S.
According to an in-depth study of e-commerce subscriptions from consulting firm McKinsey & Company of New York City, women account for roughly 60 percent of all subscriptions, but men are more likely to have multiple subscriptions (probably trying to reduce the number of trips they have to take to the store).
At Rocket Dollar, we charge a nominal fee of $15 to maintain a Core account, and $30 for Gold. Our pricing has remained static since our inception, yet we continually strive to deliver more value to account holders through our product roadmap, new features, improved interface with our technology, and better customer interaction with their Solo 401(k)s or IRAs.
Subscriptions also are a very transparent form of payment for goods or services. It’s the opposite for many large investment and financial services companies, whose pricing is opaque. Customers are charged a percentage of their total account value, and there’s often additional layers of percentage-based fees for making investments or changes to their IRAs. Their primary incentive is retaining the account so they can continue making money off customers rather than enhancing the services they provide.
Charles Schwab announced last year it would offer a subscription-based model for its digital investment advisory services, but we’ve always been the leader in subscription-based, all-you-can invest pricing for financial services. And we are always working to deliver more value for that subscription price.
Rocket Dollar is a tech-enabled digital platform that allows people to take their IRAs or old 401(k)s, keep the tax benefits, and make investments into private and alternative securities. We deliver our services through a subscription-based pricing model for three reasons:
We have an ongoing relationship with our customers, and we’ll continue delivering increased value for your subscription price through new services, options and products. It’s why many subscription-based companies are successful, and it’s our commitment to our loyal and new customers.