Apple Introduces App Store 'Win-Back Offers' Allowing Developers to Prompt Customers to Re-Subscribe

Apple on Tuesday announced support for a new App Store feature that will allow developers to prompt former app users to sign up for a paid subscription again. These so-called 'win-back offers' will allow app developers to offer a discount to previous users in order to convince them to purchase a subscription. These offers will be available on automatically renewing plans, according to Apple. App developers have already started to present these offers to customers who have recently cancelled a subscription.

According to details shared on Apple's Developer site, the new 'win-back offers' feature is designed to allow developers to target users who are no longer subscribed to their app's services. Apple says that former customers can be shown a special offer that might encourage them to pay for a new subscription.

These offers will only be available for auto-renewable subscriptions, according to Apple. An example of one such win-back offer includes the ability to offer users the chance to pay $9.99 for a six-month subscription, followed by a $39.99 annual subscription that will automatically be renewed after the promotion period.

Developers will be able to set up these offers via App Store Connect, and Apple says that it will offer the ability to define criteria for eligibility, the type of discount to be offered, and region-wise availability of these promotions.

Once a win-back offer is set up, customers might see a prompt to purchase a subscription at a cheaper price inside the app or game, via the App Store product page, or the Subscriptions settings. Developers can also set up a direct link that can be sent to customers via e-mail or messages.

Apple's developer documentation states that customers will see win-back offers "this fall". Meanwhile, some developers have already implemented their own methods to encourage users to re-subscribe to cancelled plans. A Gadgets 360 staff member was recently shown offer from the Gentler Streak application, with a "what if you stayed?" message, prompting them to re-subscribe to the ongoing, but cancelled annual plan at Rs. 899 instead of the usual Rs. 1,499 price. With Apple offering developers a way to display win-back offers, we can expect to see more apps adopt similar functionality in the coming months.